Academics

Faculty & Staff

photo of Joan Arches

Joan Arches, PhD

  • Associate Professor of Human Services and Youth Work, College of Public and Community Service Program Coordinator of Human Services and Youth Work
  • Telephone: 617-287-7288
  • Fax: 617-287-7274
  • Office Location: Wheatley, 4-144/8

Areas of Expertise

Social Work; Youth Work; Community Practice; Service-learning; Community-University Partnerships; Civic Engagement and Social Change; Community Building; Participatory Action Research; Promoting the Pipeline to Higher Education; Community and Youth Development; Analyzing Issues of Urban Youth and Urban Education

Degrees

PhD (Sociology and Social Work)
MSW
BA (Sociology)
LICSW

Professional Publications & Contributions

Additional Information

Dr. Joan Arches is an Associate Professor in Human Services, and Coordinator of the Youth Work Concentration, at the College of Public and Community Service, University of Massachusetts/Boston where she has been engaged in numerous service-learning, and grant funded community-university partnerships, including innovative initiatives of working with youth at Harbor Point Apartment Community. She has developed and continues to run a tutoring and youth enrichment after school program HPOP (the Harbor Point Outreach Partnership).  

In 2009 and 2010, the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, the highest federal recognition a college or university can receive for its commitment to volunteering, service-learning, and civic engagement, recognized  the Harbor Point Outreach Partnership as one of two university-community partnerships for which the University of Massachusetts Boston was recognized.

Dr. Arches received University of Massachusetts Boston Office of International and Transnational Affairs funds for Faculty Study Abroad (2010) for work to support youth partnerships, civic engagement and service-learning with the Dominican Republic and the University of Massachusetts, Boston.

In Fall of 2007, Dr. Arches was a Visiting Professor at Chaminade University of Honolulu, assisting with their service-learning accreditation and working with youth in a local school .  In 2001, Dr. Arches was a visiting Professor at DeMontfort University, Leicester, United Kingdom, researching and working with community-university partnerships with youth.

In recognition of her accomplishments in regard to linking action research and teaching in service of the community, she was a 2005 recipient of the University of Massachusetts, President’s Award for Public Service.

Examples of the grants and partnershps that Dr. Joan Arches has overseen over the years include: The Boston EITC project, funded by the Department of Commerce, to do outreach to recipients of the Earned Income Tax in partnership with Community Technology Centers;  New Directions for Columbia Point, a HUD grant aimed at addressing urban issues through a community university partnership center; a Capstone project in collaboration with youth at Harbor Point Housing Development and HOPE (the Hispanic Organization for Planning and Evaluation); co-leader of the original Harbor Point Collaborative Project, which led to the development of the Columbia Point Community Partnership in 2000; board advisor to CIRCLE (The Center for Immigrant and Refugee Community Leadership and Empowerment); presentator at Jeremiah E. Burke High School and Harbot Point Housing on service-learning participatory action research projects.

Dr. Arches has also been leading an effort to establish a Community Resource Center at the University of Massachusetts-Boston.