History and Our Board
In the picture: Dr. Helen Faison, former Superintendent and longtime NEED Board Member Emerita; Charles Foggie, NEED Board Member; Florence Reizenstein, Co-Founder; A. Philip Randolph, a civil rights activist - holding document; Marion Jordon, Co-Founder; Arthur Edmunds, President of the Urban League of Pittsburgh; and Dr. Herman Reid, former Executive Director of NEED.
HISTORY
Sixty years ago a committee at-large including Dr. Helen Faison was established on July 22, 1963. Each person was to raise at least $200 by Aug. 12, 1963. Marion Jordan, along with Florence Reizenstein and Rabbi Harold S. Silver, the founding president of NEED (Negro Education Emergency Drive) all set out in earnest, selling the idea to anyone who would listen. Since that time NEED has grown to provide scholarship assistance to a small group of high school students into a nationally-recognized college access program, sending over 43,000 deserving young people by providing nearly $48 million in grants. Annually, NEED awards over $1 million in scholarships and grants to local students.
The year of 1963, was a time of turmoil and transition for the United States of America. Racial tensions bubbled in the Jim Crow South as the Civil Rights Movement swept across the nation. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Only weeks later, the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing killed four children at an African-American church in Birmingham, Alabama. Later in the year, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas.
A tragedy that sometimes gets lost in the mix is the assassination of Civil Rights activist Medgar Evers. Evers fought to end segregation in higher education, organized protests, and served as field secretary for the NAACP before being murdered in Jackson, Mississippi on June 12, 1963. Evers wouldn’t die in vain, as his death served as a catalyst for action among Civil Rights progressives around the nation, including colleague Marion Jordon.
Jordon and fellow activist, Florence Reizenstein, served as members of the Urban League of Pittsburgh’s education committee. Together, they began a temporary program through the committee to garner funds for 76 black high school students who were accepted into a college or university, but were not financially able to attend. The two wrote a letter to many influential individuals, appealing for contributions to their worthy cause. This was the birth of NEED.
Jordon and Reizenstein’s act of goodwill and humanity proliferated into the organization’s current vision, and the number of students assisted has grown exponentially from those first 76 students. As time and ideologies changed, NEED has evolved into a nationally recognized college access program that is supported by the corporate, philanthropic, and general communities.
NEED is the oldest community-based, nonprofit, minority, higher education assistance program in Pennsylvania. NEED’s vision is to unlock the power of education by helping youth meet their highest potential and enhance their quality of life, thereby strengthening the Pittsburgh regional economy. Although our organization was founded on the financial aspect of higher education, we recognize that students often need more than just money. For that reason, NEED has expanded its services to offer guidance exploring career options, internships, and colleges. In an increasingly competitive world, we help students prepare for critical admission tests and provide support to increase retention and progress toward graduation.
Since our founding, NEED has supported over 43,000 deserving young people by providing $48 million in grants. These grants help empower Pittsburgh’s next generation of leaders to overcome financial, class, cultural, and social barriers. In recent years, many college aid programs and government programs alike increased their aid to talented students based on merit, regardless of whether they actually needed financial help. This trend negatively impacted the poorest students who are need-based, by taking away dollars that could otherwise assist them financially. Therefore, NEED’s resources play an important role in encouraging access through financial and counseling assistance to those who are the neediest students.
The annual NEED campaign helps sustain our programming and services that are spread throughout the Pittsburgh region. It is through the programs and services that many students create their pathway to NEED, which further broadens their horizons. Looking ahead, we are constantly expanding and implementing our services to better suit the needs of our disadvantaged students.
NEED is an enduring legacy that has stood the test of times...
Our youth are our greatest investment to ensure the growth and stability of our community. At NEED, we are on a mission to eradicate the barriers that impede our underserved youth and minority students from achieving academic success, access to higher education, financial establishment, and we are forging them into pivotal decision makers to lead our nation into the 21st Century.
Recipients Served
Recipients Served
43,000+
43,000+
Board of Directors
Board of Directors
8
8
Staff
Staff
12
12
Years
Years
60
60
Meet Our Board of Directors
Meet Our Board of Directors
Contact Info
Address:
The Law and Finance Building
429 Fourth Avenue , 20th FL
Suite 2000
Pittsburgh, PA 15219
Phone: (412) 566-2760
Fax: (412) 471-6643
Email: needpgh@gmail.com
