Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility Rep. Keith Harris: More than $2 million awarded to local youth initiatives

Rep. Keith Harris: More than $2 million awarded to local youth initiatives

State funding will help bolster youth anti-violence programs, among others

Rep. Keith S. Harris    April 16, 2026 | 10:05 AM

PHILADELPHIA, April 16 – State Rep. Keith Harris, D-Phila., today announced more than $2 million in state grant funding is being awarded to local organizations to continue youth initiatives, including anti-violence programs in neighborhoods across Philadelphia.

The funding comes from the state’s Violence Intervention and Prevention and Building Opportunities Through Out-of-School Time grant program which is designed to support a wide range of local community violence prevention and intervention strategies, including prevention for at-risk school-age youth.

Local funding awarded includes:

  • $500,000 for PowerCorpsPHL to expand its trauma-informed, workforce-focused model for out-of-school and out-of-work young adults ages.
  • $500,000 for Big Picture Philadelphia to expand its mentorship-based career development programming for youth and high-school students in Kensington and Sharswood.
  • $500,000 for the Urban Affairs Coalition and One Day At A Time to expand its youth-centered violence prevention program in north Philadelphia.
  • $500,000 for Eastern State Penitentiary, to help fund a 16-week reentry and workforce-development initiative for adults returning from incarceration in Philadelphia.
  • And $75,000 to We Reign to expand its mentoring and leadership program.

“As we get ready to debate the state budget in Harrisburg, these grants are an important reminder that state funding is more than just numbers in a spreadsheet, and has real-world impacts on our communities and people,” Harris said. “I know firsthand how important programs like these are to helping young people escape violence and to better themselves, and I want to congratulate and thank all of the organizations and people who have worked on these initiatives.”

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