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In the Spotlight Archive
ASSET Inc.
Achieving Student Success through Excellence in Teaching, or ASSET, is an education nonprofit that provides teacher training and hands-on curriculum materials for elementary and middle schools. In partnership with the Pennsylvania Department of Education, the organization also manages and designs the “Science: It’s Elementary” initiative, which has taken the ASSET model of teacher training to school districts across the state. Go to this Spotlight
Carlow University
Carlow University is the first Catholic, women-centered, liberal arts university in Pennsylvania, and is committed to preparing students, primarily women, for leadership and service in personal and professional life. Go to this Spotlight
Cave Canem Foundation, Inc.
Based Brooklyn, N.Y., Cave Canem was founded in 1996 by Toi Derricotte and Cornelius Eady to provide African American poets a place of their own in the literary landscape. Its name, Latin for “beware of the dog,” and its logo, a dog on a broken chain, have stood for the culture-shaping role that the nonprofit has played as a protector of poets and a catalyst for unleashing vital, new voices into the literary world. Over the years, Cave Canem has grown from an association of 26 poets to an influential movement with a renowned faculty and a national fellowship of 289 talented, high-achieving poets. In addition to an annual writing retreat at the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg, its programs include two book prizes with prestigious presses; workshops in New York City; Legacy Conversations; a Poets on Craft series; nationally based readings and panels; and the publication of two anthologies. Go to this Spotlight
Center for Healthy Environments and Communities
In 2004, The Heinz Endowments funded the University of Pittsburgh’s Graduate School of Public Health’s establishment of a multifaceted, community-based environmental research group. Unlike many academic institutions, the Center for Healthy Environments and Communities intends to bridge the gap between the community and academia by incorporating first-hand accounts of health-related environmental issues, like coal fly ash and Marcellus Shale gas drilling, into more traditional chemical and physical studies. Go to this Spotlight
Children's Museum of Pittsburgh
Housed within the Old Post Office Building on Pittsburgh’s North Side since 1983, the museum offers innovative experiences that inspire joy, creativity and curiosity in children. Go to this Spotlight
Citizens for Pennsylvania's Future
Citizens for Pennsylvania's Future, or PennFuture, was created in 1998 through matching grants from The Heinz Endowments and the Pew Charitable Trusts to establish an effective statewide voice for conservation and environmental protection in Pennsylvania. PennFuture's mission is to promote a just future in which nature, communities and the economy thrive in the state. The organization presses for the enforcement of environmental laws and advocates for the transformation of public policy, public opinion and the marketplace, to restore and protect the environment and to safeguard public health. In a little over a decade, PennFuture has become Pennsylvania's leading environmental advocacy organization, advancing effective solutions for the problems of pollution, sprawl and global warming; mobilizing citizens; crafting compelling communications; and providing excellent legal services and policy analysis. Go to this Spotlight
Diversity Business Resource Center
The Diversity Business Resource Center is a resource and referral center that provides a single point of contact for minority, women, veteran and other disadvantaged business owners who seek information and services to start, sustain and grow their businesses. Go to this Spotlight
Earth Force
Based in Denver, Earth Force encourages youth to become active citizens who improve the environment and their communities. The nonprofit partners with businesses, schools, community-based organizations and civic leaders to provide young people with hands-on, real-world opportunities to practice civic skills, acquire and understand environmental knowledge, and develop the motivation to become life-long leaders in addressing environmental issues. Earth Force has established offices and affiliates around the country, including the Lake Erie-Allegheny Earth Force chapter that serves Pittsburgh and the entire western Pennsylvania region. Go to this Spotlight
East End Cooperative Ministry
Founded in 1970 through the efforts of 18 local congregations, the East End Cooperative Ministry is an interfaith organization dedicated to helping at-risk children and youth, the hungry, the homeless, and others in need throughout Pittsburgh’s East End. Today, its staff of 37 full-time and 25 part-time employees serves more than 4,000 people, including 1,000 children. More than 40 member congregations support the work, as well as local businesses, foundations, donors and volunteers. Go to this Spotlight
Every Child Inc.
Every Child Inc. was founded by Susan Davis in 1997. From its humble beginnings of operating out of the founder’s home, Every Child has grown into an organization with a diverse staff of 75 and an annual budget of about $4 million. The Pittsburgh nonprofit provides a variety of support programs for children, including adoption and foster care services, and has helped more than 3,000 youngsters achieve a loving family. Go to this Spotlight
Frick Art & Historical Center
Within the black wrought-iron gates surrounding the estate of Henry Clay Frick, industrialist and art collector, is Pittsburgh at the turn of the 20th century. But the Frick Art and Historical Center tells more than just the history of the city. It displays a historic era of this country that is relevant to each Pittsburgher and each American. From the Frick residence, Clayton, to the art museum, and car and carriage museum, the center serves about 135,000 visitors annually, including more than 14,000 local schoolchildren. Go to this Spotlight
Gemini Theater Company
Gemini Theater was established in 1996 as an interactive children’s theater. Its mission is to cultivate creativity, imagination and originality through the performing arts. The nonprofit is located in "The Factory" building in Pittsburgh’s Point Breeze neighborhood, where it has produced more than 60 children’s plays, 18 new full-length plays, and provided space for 20 young and developing theater companies Go to this Spotlight
Group Against Smog and Pollution
The Group Against Smog and Pollution is a nonprofit citizens’ organization in southwestern Pennsylvania that is working for a healthy, sustainable environment. Founded in 1969, GASP has been a diligent watchdog, educator, litigator and policymaker on many environmental issues, with a focus on air quality in the Pittsburgh region. Go to this Spotlight
Manchester Academic Charter School
Manchester Academic Charter School opened in the fall of 1998 on Pittsburgh’s North Side. Manchester provides personalized education to 200 students in kindergarten through eighth grade, with a waiting list of more than 400 children. Last year, the school was honored with one of the country’s coveted Blue Ribbon awards for school excellence by the U.S. Department of Education, the first charter school in the region to be so recognized. Go to this Spotlight
Minority & Women Educational Labor Agency
The Minority & Women Educational Labor Agency is a Pittsburgh-based nonprofit focused on improving the participation of minorities and women in the building trades. Go to this Spotlight
Northside Coaliton for Fair Housing
Formed in the summer of 1998 to respond to the potential mass eviction of over 300 families living in the Northside Associates Properties (formerly Northside Properties), Northside Coalition for Fair Housing is a resident-focused community development organization whose mission is to engage in activities that preserve the long-term affordability, quality and diversity of housing in the Pittsburgh North Side communities, while improving the quality of life for all North Side residents. Go to this Spotlight
Northside Urban Pathways Charter School
Established in 1998, Northside Urban Pathways is a free public charter school housed on five floors of a downtown Pittsburgh office building. Every student at the school has a personal education plan developed by a team that includes the student, parents or other supportive adults, and a teacher/advisor. Students learn through a combination of individualized practice and basic skills development, theme-based courses, small-group projects, community-based shadowing and internship experiences. Go to this Spotlight
Off The Wall Productions
Off the Wall Productions was founded two years ago in Washington, Pa., by Virginia Wall Gruenert, an actress and playwright from New York, and her husband Hans, a businessman and native of Germany. The couple combined their artistic and business expertise to bring live professional – and often provocative – theater to Washington’s growing cultural scene and to expand the region’s dramatic arts options beyond the Pittsburgh city limits. Go to this Spotlight
Pittsburgh Filmmakers
Founded in 1971, Pittsburgh Filmmakers is one of the largest and oldest independent media arts centers in the country. In January 2006, the organization merged with Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, broadening its artistic offerings to southwestern Pennsylvania. Filmmakers offers a curriculum of courses in film, video, and photography to university and independent students in the Pittsburgh region. The organization exhibits the work of prominent photographers and filmmakers in its two galleries, where it also displays work by students and members twice a year. It owns and operates three theaters, which exhibit a wide variety of first-run foreign and independent American films as well as classics and documentaries. The organization’s Center for the Arts is a nonprofit arts campus that offers community arts education programs, contemporary art exhibitions, and services and resources for individual artists. Go to this Spotlight
Pittsburgh Musical Theater
In 1990, Ken Gargaro founded Pittsburgh Musical Theater as a performing arts company that is community-centered in its focus but always professional in its execution. The nonprofit organization later expanded its mission to include a strong commitment to education, training and outreach programs through its Richard E. Rauh Conservatory for Musical Theater. Today, the company offers professional productions at affordable prices to nearly 50,000 people a year, with attention given to providing special rates for young people who represent about 50 percent of its audience. Go to this Spotlight
Rachel Carson Homestead Association
The Rachel Carson Homestead is the birthplace and early home of scientist and author Rachel Carson, who died in 1964. The 19th century farmhouse is listed as a National Historic Landmark and is located northeast of Pittsburgh in Springdale, Pa. A marine biologist, Carson became a successful writer, and her fourth and most famous work was "Silent Spring," a warning about the dangers associated with the indiscriminate use of chemical pesticides and their potentially adverse effect on the environment and human health. Her message is as important today as it was more than 40 years ago when the book was first published. "Silent Spring" is credited as being the founding document of the modern environmental movement. (Photo courtesy of the Lear/Carson Collection, Connecticut College) Go to this Spotlight
Sarah Heinz House
The Sarah Heinz House’s roots stretch back to 1901 when Howard Heinz, son of H.J. Heinz Co. founder Henry John Heinz started Covode House, a small club on Pittsburgh’s North Side that provided recreational and social activities for boys, almost all of whom were first-generation immigrants. Girls were admitted to the club in 1903. When the demand for youth programs at Covode House grew too great for its small facility, a new building was constructed in 1913 and named in honor of Howard Heinz’s mother, Sarah Sloan Young Heinz. In the 1930s, Sarah Heinz House became one of the first members of the national Boys & Girls Clubs of America. Today, Sarah Heinz House, a Boys & Girls Club, provides children and teenagers with powerful role models and a safe, fun place to go after school, on weekends and in the summer. Educational, artistic, recreational and community service programs are available to promote healthy lifestyles and offer an environment that is welcoming, nurturing and challenging. In 2007, the facility was expanded with the construction of a “green,” energy-efficient, state-of-the-art building adjacent to the original Heinz House structure. Go to this Spotlight
Society for Contemporary Craft
Elizabeth Rockwell Raphael established the Society for Contemporary Craft in 1971 to broaden opportunities for craft artists to exhibit and sell their work. It has been presenting contemporary art in craft media by international, national and regional artists ever since. The organization offers cutting-edge exhibitions focused on multicultural diversity and non-mainstream art, provides a range of classes and community outreach programs, and operates a retail store. Go to this Spotlight
Sustainable Pittsburgh
Established in 1998 as part of the Pittsburgh Technology Council, Sustainable Pittsburgh works to build coalitions that will promote change on sustainability issues. The organization’s mission is to influence decision makers in the Pittsburgh region to integrate economic prosperity, social equity and environmental quality into sustainable solutions for communities and businesses. Sustainable Pittsburgh became its own 501(c)(3) nonprofit in 2006. Go to this Spotlight
The Children's Institute of Pittsburgh
When Mary Irwin Laughlin opened her heart to a 6-year-old boy who had been hurt in a train accident in 1902, she never could have imagined that the Memorial Home for Crippled Children would grow into one of the nation’s leading pediatric care centers. After several transformations reflecting the needs of the community, Laughlin’s center reestablished its original mission and, in 1998, took on the name, The Children’s Institute. Since then, the organization has provided children and their families with services to accommodate a range of special needs. To do this, the institute relies on its three program areas: the Hospital, the Day School, and its adoption and foster program Project STAR. Most recently, the Children’s Institute has received $725,000 in funding from the Endowments to complete its pioneer autism research project, attempting to find a link between autism and western Pennsylvania’s environmental pollutants. Go to this Spotlight
The Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds
The Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds gives grants to more than 150 statewide groups working to protect, preserve and restore local watersheds. Founded in 1994, the agency was originally known as the Western Pennsylvania Watershed Program, though their mission and dedication to waterways have not changed throughout the years. Despite economic woes, the foundation continues battling for funds to ensure the longevity of Pennsylvania’s lakes and streams. Go to this Spotlight
The YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh
The YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh is committed to building strong children, families and communities through programs that develop the whole person, as embodied in its symbol, the triangle, signifying the union of the spirit, mind and body. The organization assists people in learning the skills and attitudes that will enrich their lives, lead them to interracial and intergenerational understanding, and help them realize their full potential as members of the Pittsburgh region. Christian in its heritage, the YMCA is ecumenical in its delivery of services and its membership. Go to this Spotlight
Washington & Jefferson College
Located about 30 miles south of Pittsburgh, Pa., Washington & Jefferson College was founded in 1781. The college is one of the nation's oldest and most distinguished co-ed liberal arts colleges for undergraduate students. Go to this Spotlight