Mentors. Technology. Support. A safe place to go.
A simple recipe to life success. Yet, so many children — especially those 1,500 experiencing homelessness every day in Philadelphia, are left behind. In the wake of a global health crisis, social unrest, and injustice, PEC serves on the front lines, advocating for and providing equitable supports for our city’s most vulnerable families and children.
We envision a city where every child can access high-quality education and a supportive, caring environment. That is why PEC and Youth Service, Inc. (YSI)—two of Philadelphia’s leading social service agencies—are joining forces to expand and strengthen programs for children and youth during their return to school (digitally or in person) this fall. By working together, we can ensure 4,000 youth receive services, technology and support essential to thrive in school and beyond.
Back to school is very different this year. Many families are worried about technology access, internet, headsets for distance learning, and covering at-home meal costs.
Thanks to the support of people like you, PEC, in partnership with our affiliates, is reaching more children and youth than ever before. We have increased our collaborative outreach models. With YSI, we are offering safe spaces for distance learning to 95 students living in shelter. With Action for Early Learning we are distributing books to children alongside our food distribution in Mantua.
PEC's education team has provided homework help, learning activities while school was out, and strengthened our wifi network for our 235 residences. Our food relief team has nearly quadrupled distribution, reaching 45,000 meals, to meet an overwhelming community demand.
Since August we have distributed school supplies to 500 students living in our housing and our neighborhood. We will continue to reach new families throughout the year, especially as the schools move from virtual to hybrid to fully in person models. We anticipate needing another 300 sets of school supplies to meet the additional need, while we continue our efforts to level the educational playing field for everyone that we serve. Visit
pec-cares.org/backtoschool to learn more about our work in educational support for families.
Check out how we helped Irene and Tamara
here.