NEED hosted their 53rd Annual Scholarship Dinner to present scholarships to deserving students. Their annual benefit dinner honored this year’s scholarship recipients and celebrated the corporate, academic and community partnerships that make it possible to make such a generous presentation, furthering their mission to provide access to education and career development services that empower youth from the Pittsburgh region to aspire, to learn about, prepare for, and complete higher education.
This year’s theme, “Their Education Matters” speaks to NEED’s 53-year history of supporting the educational endeavors of youth from the Pittsburgh region. In 1963, NEED founders, Florence Reizenstein and Marion Jordon, began a temporary program through the Urban League Education Committee to garner funds for 76 black high school students who were accepted to a college or university, but were not financially able to attend. That number has grown to over 19,000. NEED’s vision is to unlock the power of education by helping underserved youth meet their highest potential and enhance their quality of life through education, thereby strengthening the regional economy.
This year’s NEED Benefit took place on Thursday, March 3, 2016, at 6:00 pm at the Wyndham Grand Pittsburgh Downtown. Over 800 individuals from corporations, universities, churches and foundations, as well as friends and family of the honored students attend this wonderful event.