THE PITTSBURGH PROJECT HAS BEEN A VITAL PART OF THE NORTH SIDE FOR DECADES, PARTICULARLY FOR AREA YOUTH.
by Ethan George, For New Pittsburgh Courier
La’Keita Snyder was in the third grade when she first attended The Pittsburgh Project on the city’s North Side on North Charles Street. “I’m an only child, so being here where it’s so family oriented, I felt like I had a bunch of new siblings,” Snyder said.
It was such a family-oriented place that she decided to stay.
Today, Snyder works as one of The Pittsburgh Project’s youth and families assistants for K-5, a position she accepted after finishing the high school program, attending the Project’s Leaders in Training (or LIT) camp and working as a summer camp overseer before becoming an after-school teacher.
The Pittsburgh Project began in the 1980s, when city residents got together to form a program to buy and renovate houses on the North Side. In recent years, the nonprofit transitioned over to a new model, one focused on education and empowerment. These days, the program is an afterschool and summer camp that encourages kids to pursue their artistic and creative interests.
La’keita Snyder, front row, second from left, is joined by some of The Pittsburgh Project employees on the steps of the North Side’s after-school program located on North Charles Street. Snyder said as an only child, it was the family atmosphere at The Pittsburgh Project that kept her coming back as a student. Today, she works as a youth and families assistant for students in grades K-5.
“I do notice myself, like, saying the things my teachers said to me and it’s weird because I’m watching them go through the same things as me,” said Snyder, about what makes working for the project so rewarding.
On a recent afternoon that was warm for February, the students and staff made good use of the early spring temperatures as the youth played in the park across the street from the old elementary school that is now The Pittsburgh Project headquarters.
As Snyder talks about the family camaraderie, this spirit is on full display: While the kids play outside before going indoors for their daily activities, a mother in an SUV pulls up to ask about her child.
“Is my son here?” She concernedly asked one of the team members, who promptly inquired who her child was and then pointed him out on the playground.
“He never tells me when he’s coming here after school. Will you tell him to come straight home after?”
The whole interaction is brief, yet it demonstrates the community that has been built here. A place that is strong and trustworthy. A place where kids want to spend time even after a full day of school.
As playtime comes to an end, the staff organizes their respective classes quickly before announcing that they’re heading off to electives for the day. Students have a choice to either take some time in the Maker’s Space also called the “DREAMlab” or attend chess club.
In the DREAMlab—a space designed in partnership with the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh—students can pursue creative hobbies like clothing design, drawing, painting, and sculpture building.
Student artwork adorns hallways everywhere. Paintings of Goku, Sonic the Hedgehog, and more surround other art pieces like the string-board map of Pennsylvania with a heart where Pittsburgh is located. Nearby, bulletin boards are filled with Bible verses and inspirational quotes. On the floor, hopscotch squares fill the hallway floors.
For more than three decades, The Pittsburgh Project has been providing city youth with more than an additional family. It has also been teaching youth the “soft skills” needed at every level from elementary to high school.
Rick Mason, executive director of the program, said these skills are usually things most students don’t get taught in regular academic curriculum. Skills such as visual arts and writing, cooking, job training and swimming lessons. It is much more than mere tutoring, which is also available for students struggling academically.
“We try to teach the kids the love we see in the world and the love that Jesus shows,” said Mason, as he described on what the faith-based program models their practices. Emphasizing the point that the program is not strict with its religious beliefs, he said kids of all denominations are welcome to join. Most of the participants are from the North Side.
Mason also explained that most of the kids in the program do begin in elementary and middle school, typically following the program all the way through their high school careers and usually returning in some capacity to help the program and its new students.
“The most fulfilling part for me, by far, (is) definitely getting to see the young people start to grow and mature; you know they make mistakes and transition into adulthood. Then also when they come back after the high school program to work for our team,” Mason told the New Pittsburgh Courier.
He added that three current team members—including Snyder—graduated from the program themselves a few years prior.
Mason said he and his staff work hard to make the after-school program a fun experience for the kids as they learn and complete lessons. The students filter in each weekday from schools across the city. Some arrived by bus while others walked or were driven. The Project organizes with some public and charter schools —like Propel Northside and Pittsburgh Allegheny—to arrange transportation after their school day ends.
Natasha Thrasher, the youth family coordinator, said that creating a positive relationship with the kids is an important and rewarding part of the process—although a challenging one, as well.
“It’s a job that requires a certain type of person,” Thrasher said, adding she and the team work to fit the specific needs of each kid as they help them develop their creative abilities, interests and important life skills.
The Pittsburgh Project runs throughout the school year, transitioning from after school to summer camp as the academic year ends. Students from anywhere in the city can enroll to take part in the second family that the Project builds for students who want to receive a well-rounded learning experience.
(Editor’s note: Enrollment for the summer day camp, which costs $250, began on March 16. Kids from all over the city are permitted to enroll. Additional information is available at https://www.pittsburghproject.org.)
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