Boston Scenes

President Barack Obama (right) blows out the candles on a birthday cake made for him at a celebration held in Boston in this 2008 photo. On Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2009, the president turned 48 years old. (Don West/Fotografiks photo)

Melinda Doolittle, a finalist from the sixth season of “American Idol,” performs during a special concert held on Thursday, July 23, 2009, as part of Brigham and Women’s Hospital’s annual celebration for employees and neighbors, Street Beat 2009. (Brigham and Women’s Hospital photo/Mike Cohea)

Julian Bond, chairman of the NAACP National Board of Directors, and Danny l. Steele, past president of the NAACP’s Brockton Branch, pose for a picture at the 100th annual NAACP Convention in New York City. (Willie Nelson photo)

Four Boston Public Schools educators have been named James Bryant Conant Fellows at the Harvard Graduate School of Education for the 2009-2010 school year. The educators will earn full-tuition scholarships during their one-year leave of absence from the district while pursuing advanced degrees. Boston Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Carol R. Johnson (center) congratulated educators (left to right) Marisa Bober of Charlestown High School; Elise Cucchi of Mary Lyon School; Xavier Rozas of The English High School; and Christopher Tsang of The Harbor School, at the recent Conant Fellows Ceremony at Harvard University. (Photo courtesy of Boston Public Schools)

Concerned citizens held a demonstration in front of Cambridge City Hall on Wednesday, July 29, 2009, in support of Harvard University Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr., who was arrested in his home on July 16. The protesters maintained that Gates’ arrest was an example of racial profiling. (Liz Green photo)

Music star Wyclef Jean (right) and Berklee College of Music instructor Terri Lynn Carrington pose for a photo after an in-house performance for the music school’s students, held Monday, July 27, 2009, in Boston. (Tony Irving photo)

Stage, film and TV star Marla Gibbs (right) joins ACT Roxbury Director Michelle Baxter (left) and Color of Film Collaborative Founder Lisa Simmons during the awards presentation at this year’s 11th Annual Roxbury Film Festival, held Thursday, July 30, 2009, at the Roxbury Center for Arts at Hibernian Hall in Roxbury’s Dudley Square. (Don West/Fotografiks photo)