Latest News
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All Aboard for PHLF’s “People & Places” Trolley Tour
For the first time, PHLF will be offering a trolley tour for fourth-grade students in two Pittsburgh Public Schools that will help them learn about the person for whom a Pittsburgh place is named. Then, students will draw a building, bridge, or park that they imagine could be designed, or restored, and named for them in the future, based on what they hope to accomplish in life.
“Our fieldtrip begins in the Dollar Bank Heritage Center,” said Louise Sturgess, executive director of PHLF, “where so much biographical information is presented about a diverse group of early Pittsburgh immigrants who opened accounts at Dollar Bank. The trolley route also includes several buildings and a park in the Cultural District and three bridges leading to the North Shore, as well as the August Wilson Center for African American Culture, August Wilson House, and Freedom Corner.”
“This fourth-grade tour builds upon our third-grade trolley tour to five historic Pittsburgh places,” added Karen Cahall, education coordinator at PHLF. Ten schools will be participating in PHLF’s “Building Pride/Building Character” trolley tour this spring. Over the years, many third-grade students have called the full-day tour to the City-County Building, Allegheny County Courthouse, Fort Pitt Museum, Fort Pitt Block House, Duquesne Incline, and Points of View statue on Mt. Washington “the best fieldtrip ever.”
With Molly’s Trolleys back in business, PHLF is happy to be expanding its trolley tour opportunities.
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Oakmont Country Club Offers Free Historic Tours May through December
Few golf courses in the world have the fabled history, tradition, and legacy of Oakmont Country Club. Recognized as a National Historic Landmark and host of 19 major championships to date, Oakmont tells the history of the game of golf in our own backyard.
Golf historians will lead participants through the handsomely preserved 116-year-old clubhouse and share information about the founding of the club and the Fownes family that made it possible. Historic photographs, memorabilia, and artifacts in the History Hall document some of the legendary moments during the nine U.S. Opens held at Oakmont, and there is a collection of USGA trophies to admire as well. The tour includes a walk through the original men’s locker room. Weather permitting, guests will tour the historic “inland links” golf course and see the extraordinary vistas, narrow fairways, treacherous sand bunkers, and iconic “Church Pew” bunker. Guests will be able to test their putting skills on Oakmont’s world-renowned putting surfaces and visit the Oakmont Professional Shop.
Tours are offered on the following Monday mornings in 2019, from 8:45 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.:
- May 13 and 20
- June 3 and 24
- July 8 and 22
- August 5, 12, and 19
- September 9, 16, and 23
- October 7, 14, and 21
- November 4 and 18
- December 2 and 9
Essential information:
- The tours are free of charge. Donations are welcome, with the proceeds going to the Fownes Foundation.
- Each tour is limited to 15 people. Advance reservations are required!
- For reservations, contact Oakmont Country Club at 412-828-8000.
- For further information about the tours, contact the Oakmont Country Club Archives at 412-828-8000, ext. 257 or by email at archives@gmail.com.
- All tour participants must arrive at the club by 8:45 a.m. on their tour date. Light refreshments will be provided by the club. Casual attire and comfortable shoes are encouraged, but please NO JEANS OR DENIM.
- Photography is welcome.
- Disabled access is available.
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Landmarks Scholarship Opportunity for High School Seniors
Thanks to funding support from PHLF’s Brashear Family Named Fund, the McSwigan Family Foundation Fund of The Pittsburgh Foundation, and others, PHLF offers a scholarship program for high-achieving, community-minded, high-school seniors in Allegheny County who will be attending college or university in the fall of 2019. If you would like to donate to our Landmarks Scholarship Program to help it grow and to ensure that it continues, please click here or contact Louise Sturgess, executive director of PHLF. Thank you!
“The Landmarks Scholarship recognizes students who have achieved academic excellence and possess the potential to make a difference in the Pittsburgh community and beyond,” said David Brashear, a PHLF trustee and the program founder. “The students selected by our committee already feel connected to the city and its history and will hopefully continue to serve the region as leaders in promoting PHLF’s values.”
Since 1999, PHLF has awarded scholarships to 72 high school seniors who care deeply about the Pittsburgh region. The scholarship award of $6,000, payable over four years to the recipient’s college or university, is for book and tuition expenses only. In addition, PHLF has awarded Honorable Mentions (a one-time gift of $250) to 14 students since 2016. Thirty-four of these 86 recipients attended Pittsburgh Public High Schools and 52 attended other schools within Allegheny County.
Click here to learn more about the eligibility requirements and criteria and to download an application. The application deadline is Wednesday, April 17, 2019.
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PHLF’s Educational Programs Build Pride in Pittsburgh Public School Students
PHLF staff and docents have involved more than 660 students from nine Pittsburgh Public Schools in several innovative educational programs since January, thanks to corporate funding support through the state’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) program, and from the McSwigan Family Foundation Fund of The Pittsburgh Foundation and Eat’n Park Hospitality Group Fund of The Pittsburgh Foundation.
“Whether it’s participating in our Portable Pittsburgh or Career Awareness programs that are presented in their schools, or in field trips to Carnegie Mellon University or Chatham Village for creative writing and art experiences, the students are immersed in the activities, eager to learn about their school and community, and encouraged to be proud of their hometown,” said Karen Cahall, education coordinator.
The following comments from Pittsburgh Public School teachers express the value of PHLF’s “Building Pride/Building Character” educational program and their appreciation to our donors:
- Portable Pittsburgh: “Excellent, knowledgeable presenter; great artifacts. It was so nice that the students were trusted to touch and feel so many old and valuable things.”
- Poetry & Art at CMU: “This experience was priceless. I loved giving our students a view of their world (and city) outside of what they already know.”
- Poetry & Art at CMU: “Thanks so much for continuing to fund this program!”
- Career Awareness: “Students were able to explore different careers. They were able to see what tools and education are needed.”
- Career Awareness: “Many of the careers presented use math in various ways. Students see the importance of learning math skills for their future.”
- Career Awareness: “Students understand/learn how education ties into future careers.”
- Career Awareness: “It helped build background knowledge that is essential for students’ ability to read and understand increasingly complex text.”
- Writing Enrichment: “The students learn about the Underground Railroad and African American history in the classroom. What a wonderful experience for them to follow a trail and see an actual house involved with the Underground Railroad. It brings the learning to life.”
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Corporate Gifts Fund PHLF’s “Building Pride/Building Character” Program
Several thousand school students, teachers, and PHLF thank the following corporations for donating to PHLF in 2018 and 2019 through the state’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) program:
- The Buncher Company
- Dollar Bank
- First National Bank of Pennsylvania
- Frank B. Fuhrer Wholesale Company
- Hefren-Tillotson, Inc.
- Huntington Bank
- Maher Duessel CPA
- PNC Bank
- UPMC
“These generous contributions will help fund the participation of 12 Pittsburgh Public Schools in a variety of enrichment programs this January through June,” said Karen Cahall, PHLF’s education coordinator. “Our programs––including poetry and art workshops, in-school presentations, and field trips––help students connect classroom learning to the built environment and build hometown pride in the process.”
“Funds from the McSwigan Family Foundation Fund of The Pittsburgh Foundation and from the Eat’n Park Hospitality Group Fund of The Pittsburgh Foundation also help underwrite program expenses,” added Louise Sturgess, PHLF’s Executive Director. “We have partnered with the Pittsburgh Public Schools for 13 years through the state’s EITC program and always welcome the opportunity to work with the students and teachers.”
The January 25th field trip to Carnegie Mellon University helped students deepen their understanding of community history and allowed them to make goals for their future, according to one teacher. Several students added the following comments:
- “I liked looking at all of the sculptures! I really loved writing poems and drawing with charcoal.”
- “What I liked doing was really everything. I really liked the tour and the poetry and art.”
- “The most exciting part I liked doing was walking around campus and seeing all the cool and unique (different) sculptures and buildings. Also seeing how many people come here and how many people have been here. Today, I learned a ton of history facts at CMU. I would totally recommend coming here in the future.”
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Thank You, Interns
Natalia Ruano and Sophia Vayansky––both from Duquesne University––and Erin Witt from the University of Pittsburgh successfully completed volunteer internships with PHLF in December 2018.
Natalia, who will be attending graduate school in New York City for Museum Studies, helped with the Architecture Apprenticeship program and created a series of worksheets to help students learn the Spanish words for features in our built and natural environments. She also created a word search in Spanish and a Bingo game.
Sophie, who is a Public History MA student at Duquesne University, was especially helpful in proofreading the December issue of PHLF News, suggesting website improvements for the Education pages, and analyzing our tour activity from 2012 through 2018. She also opened a Trip Advisor account for PHLF. Tour participants are now able to give feedback more easily and their comments will help promote our tour program.
Erin graduated from the University of Pittsburgh’s History Department in December 2018. She attended many of the Free Friday walking tours in September and October, taking photographs and developing a list of best techniques and tips based on her observations. She also assisted PHLF’s Archivist and realized that she wants to pursue archival studies in graduate school.
We are grateful to Natalia, Sophie, and Erin for volunteering their time and talent and wish them much success. They summed up their experiences at PHLF in the fall of 2018 with the following comments:
Volunteering at PHLF has been a great experience. I got to do many exciting things, from learning about the city in the downtown walking tours to helping second graders learn about their community in Mount Lebanon. Pittsburgh is an amazing city, and every new day being at PHLF showed me a different side of the organization. PHLF has several programs that deal with many communities and involve diverse people from all age ranges and groups. With my bilingual skills, I was able to help the foundation by designing worksheets in Spanish to help children learn about the city and architecture in a fun way. I also got to help in the Architecture Apprenticeship program for high school students, by having some background in Architecture, and appreciate the effort that the architects and urban designers made to inspire the high school students in pursuing that profession. I take this opportunity with me in the next step of my life, moving to New York City to get a master’s degree and pursue a career in Art History. It was definitely a worthwhile experience; I learned so much and would love to return as a volunteer in the future. ––Natalia Ruano, Duquesne University (History)
Attending the free Friday walking tours was such a fun way to get to know Pittsburgh and meet the committed docents! Everyone was so kind and passionate. I could really get a great idea as to why PHLF is so needed and appreciated! I also loved assisting with projects in the Frank B. Fairbanks Rail Transportation Archive. It was so rewarding to get practical archival experience that helped inspire my professional goals! –– Erin Witt, University of Pittsburgh (History)
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High School Students Present Their Ideas for a Vacant Lot in Homestead
December 4, 2018 marked the fifth and final session of PHLF’s Architecture Apprenticeship program for high school students from various schools in Allegheny County. After touring the Carrie Furnace site and Bost Building, the students presented their designs for a vacant lot at 307-09 East Eighth Avenue in Homestead.
Kirsten Compitello of Michael Baker, Nicole Kubas of citySTUDIO, David Lewis, a distinguished urban designer and resident of West Homestead, Sarah Medwig of GAI Consultants, Patrick Shattuck of the Mon Valley Initiative, Jessica Stuck of PWWG, and Daniel Valentine, a developer in Homestead, critiqued the student projects and commended them for their concepts that would energize the main street and serve the community.
The students proposed developing the following mixed-use projects in the vacant lot at 307-09 East Eighth Avenue in Homestead:
- a laundromat with a café and daycare/after-school center;
- a candy store with apartments above;
- shops with biking and hiking equipment, a gym, and a green roof;
- a community meeting space, greenhouse, and rental space for offices;
- a community center with coffee and pastry shops, a library, martial arts studio, gym, and rock-climbing wall rising vertically through the three-story building;
- a toy store with apartments above;
- a collaborative community space and library with a green roof;
- a restaurant, office, and apartment building;
- a computer and counseling center with a deli, food bank, and library.
Their designs are shown in the gallery of photos below.
David Lewis reminded the apprentices that “buildings house human beings and human beings always house history and culture. The joy of being an architect is getting to those roots and giving them voice.”
When asked to describe their Architecture Apprenticeship experience in five short phrases, the students wrote:
- Eye-opening; informative; worth missing school for; more than I expected; fun, even if you want nothing to do with architecture.
- Immersive; valuable; educational/informative; decision-changing; perhaps the best opportunity I’ve had.
- Valuable; learned about Pittsburgh history; improved my drawing/presenting skills; educational; rewarding opportunity.
- Educational; enlightening; historical perspective; appreciate the city; walking tour.
- A great time; enjoyable; eye-opening; interesting; fun.
- Historical; kill two birds with one stone; informational; unexpected (in a good way); inspirational.
- Growth; problem solving; challenges.
- An experience (great!); educational; exciting; exposure; creative.
- Awe-inspiring; building connection; creating interest; experiencing design; learning about green and clean design.
- Historical perspective; professional exposure; walking tour; Chick-fil-A—David Lewis; conceptual (the “big picture”).
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Grants from the McSwigan Family Foundation Fund of The Pittsburgh Foundation Support PHLF’s K-12 Education and Scholarship Programs
PHLF is one of the only organizations that offers year-round outdoor tour opportunities for schools. We believe in education through exploration and design tours in the real world that are connected to content the students are learning in the classroom. This helps make learning more relevant, meaningful, and memorable.
“The McSwigan Family Foundation Fund of The Pittsburgh Foundation recently approved two grants for PHLF: $5,000 in support of our Landmarks Scholarship Fund and $30,000 in support of our K-12 Education Programs,” announced PHLF Executive Director Louise Sturgess. “This is tremendous news and we are extremely grateful.”
PHLF’s education staff and docents will be able to continue a series of programs for thousands of students, including walking tours, architectural design challenges, and poetry and art workshops; expand certain programs to increase their impact on young people; and undertake several new initiatives, such as distributing Neighborhood Stories, Including Mine, produced by fourth-grade students from Pittsburgh Colfax, to many more school students in the new year.
Since 1999, PHLF has helped 86 young people from Allegheny County pursue undergraduate degrees through its scholarship program. As the cost of higher education rises, the need for our scholarship program increases. More than 1,000 people have applied to our scholarship program during its 20-year history and, with increased funding support, we will be able to help more young peopleWe have established wonderful relationships with many of our scholarship recipients and are proud that some have found jobs in Pittsburgh. For example, James Washabaugh (a 2004 recipient) has established Engine 30 Architecture in Pittsburgh. In addition, Kezia Ellison (a 2001 recipient) and Todd Wilson (a 2002 recipient) are both trustees of PHLF.
It turns out that this year two of our awardees who graduated from different Pittsburgh Public High Schools actually attended Pittsburgh Phillips as third-grade students and participated in our “Building Pride/Building Character” field trip. Chandler Searcy and Giovanna Varlotta are pictured in this photo from March 6, 2009 on the deck of the Duquesne Incline! It’s fair to say that PHLF played a part in developing their love for Pittsburgh.
Our K-12 Education Programs and Scholarship Program clearly have a positive impact on many thousands of young people. We are grateful to the donors who support them.
