Hubie Jones, special assistant to the chancellor for urban affairs, retired from UMass Boston on December 31. Jones came to the university in 1993 as a senior fellow at the McCormack Institute and in December 1995 joined the chancellor's office. During this time, he was singularly effective in making the university a large contributor to the City of Boston. Among his many initiatives, Jones developed a partnership with the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, Mayor Menino, and the university that launched the City to City Program. The program takes Boston leaders to other cities in the U.S. and abroad to learn how their leaders work together to make things happen.

Jones was well-known for his organization of the Forum for the 21st Century, a civic forum presented by the university in collaboration with other universities and civic organizations to provide public discourse on economic and social challenges facing Boston. During the year leading up to the dedication of the Leonard Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge in October, Jones led in creating the Boston Bridge Festival Chorus; he is now establishing the Boston Children's Chorus as a new arts organization. He also led in establishing the Columbia Point Community Partnership, a coalition of organizations on or next to the peninsula that includes UMass Boston's campus, to create a shared vision of a cohesive community.

Throughout his years in the chancellor's office, Jones has chaired the university's Urban Mission Committee. Chancellor Gora pledges to continue the good work he has done in the community.

"Hubie Jones's forty-six years in the Boston area constitute one of the significant careers in the civic and educational life of Boston," said Chancellor Gora. "He played a key role in the formation, rebuilding and leadership of at least thirty community organizations within the black community and across the city." In twenty of these organizations, he has served as board chairman or executive director. He served as acting president of Roxbury Community College during a time of organizational crisis, dean of the School of Social Work at Boston University, and director of the Community Fellows Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, making landmark contributions in each position.

"One focus of Hubie Jones throughout his career has been to foster a culture of collaboration throughout the city, as well as in each of the organizations he has led. There are few who can match his achievement in this regard," said Chancellor Gora.

More recently, he began writing a book on the political and social history of Boston. He turns now to completing the book and continuing to work for a culture of collaboration.

Image: Hubie Jones, seen here on November 19 at the twentieth Forum for the 21st Century, retired from UMass Boston on December 31. (Photo by Harry Brett)