Boston Mayor To Announce City Partnership with edX

Boston mayor Thomas M. Menino will announce a proposal to bring edX—the rapidly growing online education venture started by Harvard and MIT last spring—to the Boston community, according to a draft of his State of the City address, which he is slated to deliver on Tuesday night.

Envisioned as BostonX, the initiative will be launched first in neighborhood community centers and will then expand to high school classrooms and public libraries, the Boston Globe first reported early Tuesday morning.

Part of the plan includes expanding the program, currently structured around online courses for individuals, to facilitate a community-based group learning experience.

BostonX locations will host virtual and in-person meetings with affiliated university or community college faculty, staff, and graduate students. They will also provide training on how to use the edX system, career counseling, and job transitioning programs.

EdX already has a large presence in the Greater Boston area. Since being launched by Harvard and MIT, the program has expanded to include courses from Wellesley College. Bunker Hill Community College and MassBay Community College have also partnered with edX to use its educational materials.

—Staff writer Amna H. Hashmi can be reached at amnahashmi@college.harvard.edu.

—Check theCrimson.com for updates.