Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh

5989 Centre Avenue, Suite 1 / Pittsburgh, PA 15206
Website: www.bbbspgh.org / ​Phone: 412-363-6100 / ​Email: [email protected]

For more than 56 years, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh (BBBSPGH) has been serving historically underserved children in the Pittsburgh region by creating a vast network of support and strong partnerships that are helping these youth thrive. The agency was founded in 1965 by local business leaders as an independent affiliate of the national Big Brothers Big Sisters organization. In 2002, BBBSPGH began operating our mentoring programs in Greene County.
 
We believe that children nurtured by a community of positive, caring adults can overcome challenging circumstances, become more self-reliant, and reach their fullest potential. These convictions are reflected in our mission to “create and support one-to-one mentoring relationships that ignite the power and promise of youth.”  Since the beginning, our mission has always involved the time-tested and evidence-based process of intentionally pairing every child (“Little”) in a professionally supported relationship (“match”) with a pre-screened and trained volunteer mentor (“Big”). Once matched, Bigs and Littles spend consistent time together, engage in positive interactions, and ultimately develop strong and enduring relationships that result in positive youth outcomes.  
 
Sarah and Jessica have been matched for four years and enjoy spending time together at our School-based mentoring program. They love to play games, do homework, read together, and just talk about their day.  Since becoming part of our school-based program, Sarah is now reading at grade-level, and is even considering going to college after high-school.                      
 
BBBSPGH’s Mentoring and STEM Career Exploration serves approximately 50 elementary school children at Carmichaels and Jefferson-Morgan Elementary schools.  The program helps prepare participating students for future STEM careers by combining the positive influence of a trained high-school mentor with hand’s-on activities to educate and excite youth.  Teachers and Guidance counselors refer students to the program who could best use the additional support of a mentor. Matches meet for one-hour each week at their school to set goals, do homework together and participate in structured STEM activities.  All programming is facilitated by a professionally trained Case Manager who monitors and supports each relationship to ensure child safety and the development of healthy relationships.