calendar & events : 2006 21st cf gala

On Saturday, November 4, 2006, Sandra Cohen Bakalar, Brookline High School Class of 1951, was honored by the Brookline High School 21st Century Fund at its annual 21st CF Gala. Sandy Bakalar, the first woman to receive the award, was recognized as a distinguished alumna for her outstanding contributions to the Greater Boston community through her professional accomplishments, numerous volunteer leadership positions, and extensive philanthropic support. The event raised $370,000 and was attended by more than 400 people.

Throughout her career, Sandy has worked to improve the lives of countless individuals. Sandy has devoted her life to helping rebuild families, fight discrimination, lobby for fair housing, and advocate for the mentally ill.

Sandy began her career as a caseworker for the Family Service of Brookline in 1957, and for more than 40 years she has served as an officer and board member of the Brookline Community Mental Health Center.

A passionate advocate for social justice, Sandy has increased opportunities for individuals and families seeking fair and affordable housing in Brookline. In the 1960’s, as a member of the Brookline Fair Housing Committee, Sandy helped an African-American man whose application to rent a Brookline apartment was denied. Sandy “tested” or challenged the availability of the apartment, and after securing a lease she informed the rental agent she was going to report him to the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination.

Currently, Sandy is a hearing officer for the Brookline Housing Authority and an appointed member of the Human Relations and Youth Resources Commission for the Town of Brookline, which she has been for thirty years. While working at the Brookline Cooperative Apartment, she helped secure transitional housing for women who had recently left mental institutions.

For seven years Sandy served as the director of the New Perspectives School, an alternative school for high school drop-outs, where her early leadership ensured the school’s perpetuation. Due to her vision and development of a program that combined support and counseling with education, the New Perspectives School, later renamed Beacon High School and located in Brookline, was one of the first alternative schools in Massachusetts certified to grant high school diplomas.

In addition to all of her professional accomplishments, Sandy is being honored for playing a major role in the founding of the 21st Century Fund. In December 1998, she and her husband David invited dozens of fellow Brookline High alumni and BHS parents into their home to commit to providing Brookline High School with the venture capital necessary to address challenges in public education. Because of her leadership and service on the board of directors during the early and critical years, the 21st Century Fund continues to grow and its programs touch hundreds of students and teachers each year.

A pianist from an early age combined with a strong passion for music, art and dance, Sandy has made a significant impact on numerous local cultural institutions. For twenty-five years she served as president of the Brookline Library Music Association. She also has assumed leadership positions at many organizations, including serving on the boards of the Brookline Music School, PALS, Longy School of Music, Ford Hall Forum, and Jacob’s Pillow. In 2000, Sandy received the Distinguished Public Service Award from the Brookline Rotary Club.

Together, Sandy and her husband David, who is a physicist, industrialist, and sculptor, have made extraordinary contributions to art and music organizations throughout Greater Boston including the Massachusetts College of Art, and the Art Institute of Boston, where she and her husband each received an honorary doctorate in fine arts.

Sandy entered Brookline High as a sophomore and flourished at BHS, studying hard, making life-long friendships and engaging in multiple extracurricular activities. Voted by her classmates “most popular girl” during her senior year, Sandy was a member of Alpha Pi, the Girls’ League, the French Club, the Murivian yearbook, and Dramatic Society. In addition, she was a marshal and a member of the student council.

While at BHS, she dated the president of the student council, Michael Dukakis, BHS Class of 1951, Governor of Massachusetts and 1988 democratic candidate for President of the United States. In fact, Sandy introduced Dukakis to her friend, Katharine “Kitty” Dickson Dukakis, BHS Class of 1954, who presented the 2006 Distinguished Alumna Award to Sandy.

Sandy has a masters’ degree in social work from Columbia University and a B.A. in sociology from Wellesley College. She has two children and three stepchildren. Sandy and David live in Chestnut Hill where they dote on their grandchildren.