Tufts University hosted its fourth annual Tufts Cherish Chinatown Cleanup in Boston’s Chinatown, the home of the university’s Health Sciences Campus, on Wednesday, May 1. More than 100 Tufts students, faculty, and staff volunteers participated, working on landscaping projects, collecting trash, and cleaning up sidewalks, while also learning about the neighborhood and about ways to deepen their engagement with local nonprofit community partners.

With the support of Tufts University’s Office of Government and Community Relations, Tisch College of Civic Life, and the university’s facilities team, volunteers from across the campus planted fresh flowers and assembled new tables at the Josiah Quincy Elementary School, organized storage closets at the Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center, and prepared garden beds at the Asian Community Development Corporation’s Chinatown Backyard, among other tasks, in the residential and business areas of the neighborhood. 

“We are so fortunate that our Health Sciences Campus is a part of the Chinatown neighborhood, a culturally vibrant and diverse neighborhood in Boston,” said Liza Perry, deputy director of Tufts’ office of Government and Community Relations. “This day is a chance for volunteers from the School of Medicine, the School of Dental Medicine, and the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, along with other programs and offices at Tufts, to unite and support our neighbors, local elementary school, and nonprofit partners.” 

“Our goal is to inspire the Tufts students, faculty, and staff to see themselves as an integral part of the community and to continue to stay involved with outreach initiatives,” said Perry. 

This year, at the event’s kickoff, volunteers heard remarks from Chulan Huang, Chinatown liaison in the office of Boston May Michelle Wu, Joann Yung, chief development officer at the Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center, and Rowena Tuttle, the Josiah Quincy Elementary School’s community field coordinator. 

Also in attendance were representatives from Chinatown Main Street, the Chinatown Business Association, Boston Asian Y.E.S., and Mayor Wu’s Office of Civic Organizing. 

"There is no better way to engage in a community than with community service. It is a civic duty to our neighbors in Chinatown," said Rudy Neustadt, master's of public health student and Graduate Student Senate president. "I've long been a believer that service should not feel like an obligation, but rather as an exciting way to make your part of the world a little brighter."