In The News

Pittsburgh City Council finished its 2016 meetings Thursday with a brief final session, approving a grant program for Pittsburgh Promise alumni. The revenue agreement with Rivers Casino will set aside $60,000 in initial funding to be split between employers and Pittsburgh Promise alumni hired by those organizations. The Pittsburgh Promise program has issued more than 7,100 scholarships to Pittsburgh Public Schools graduates since 2008.  

Pittsburgh Filmmakers/Pittsburgh Center for the Arts has a new leader, Germaine Williams, who should be able to hit the ground running when he begins the job Jan. 23. Although the group has been through a turbulent period, it rebounded nicely during the past year. Mr. Williams is well positioned to help it achieve more progress.

Donations to charity always peak during the traditional holiday giving period that stretches from Thanksgiving to New Year's Day. “It’s kind of a perfect storm for charitable giving,” said Yvonne Maher, senior vice president of development and donor services at the Pittsburgh Foundation. “You have a really strong stock market, lots of appreciated securities and the proposed cap on charitable deductions.” 

Germaine Williams, a senior program officer for arts and culture with the Pittsburgh Foundation, is the new chief executive officer of Pittsburgh Filmmakers/Pittsburgh Center for the Arts.  

Unity Township lawyer Vincent J. Quatrini Jr., and former board chair of The Community Foundation of Westmoreland County, has been named to a task force to assist Pennsylvania Attorney General-elect Josh Shapiro in personnel matters and planning. 

Fans of PublicSource may not know that there may never have been a PublicSource without the Knight Foundation. Knight helped to launch PublicSource in 2011 by matching funds provided by The Pittsburgh Foundation. Knight’s continued commitment to public-service journalism for the Pittsburgh region is exemplary.

A new program aims at rewarding Pittsburgh employers who hire Pittsburgh Promise scholarship recipients. Councilman Corey O'Connor announced the program on Monday. Businesses that hire Pittsburgh Promise alumni would be eligible for grants ranging from $2,000 to $10,000. The Pittsburgh Promise is a supporting organization of The Pittsburgh Foundation.

The Pittsburgh Promise college scholarship board voted Tuesday to extend scholarship eligibility to the Wilkinsburg students who began attending a city high school, Pittsburgh Westinghouse 6-12, last fall. The Pittsburgh Public Schools accepted about 200 students from Wilkinsburg, which closed its high school after 110 years. The Pittsburgh Promise is a supporting organization of The Pittsburgh Foundation.

The Advancing Black Arts in Pittsburgh grants program, a partnership of The Pittsburgh Foundation and The Heinz Endowments, has awarded nearly $308,000 in grants to 18 artists and arts organizations.

Wilkinsburg seniors attending Pittsburgh Westinghouse 6-12 now have a chance to be part of the “Promise family.” The Pittsburgh Promise board voted unanimously Tuesday to make Wilkinsburg students attending the Homewood school eligible for its scholarship. The Pittsburgh Promise is a supporting organization of The Pittsburgh Foundation.