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William Penn Foundation Welcomes Barbara Wong as New Director of Creative Communities

August 17, 2022

PHILADELPHIA (August 17, 2022) – The William Penn Foundation announced today the appointment of Barbara Wong as its new Director of Creative Communities. Wong will oversee more than $30 million in annual grantmaking to ensure people and communities across...

William Penn Foundation

The Great Outdoors Plays Critical Role in America

Op-Ed by Stuart Clarke, Watershed Protection Program Director, William Penn Foundation Established by President Clinton in 1998, and continued under the Bush, Obama, and Trump administrations, this celebration of Great Outdoors Month in June recognizes...

OpEd by Stuart Clarke published in MyChesCo

Barriers to equitable river access persist, but they’re not always what you expect.

Pictured: RiverFest at Bartram's Garden. With the official start of summer, on-water recreation season has arrived. Here in the region, if you’ve walked the newly renovated trail along Delaware Avenue , cast a line from the Schuylkill Banks, pedaled in...

Philly-area trail network gets nearly $6 million from William Penn Foundation to improve and expand

The William Penn Foundation has announced $5.9 million in grants designed to help extend the Circuit Trails.

Philadelphia Inquirer

William Penn Foundation Approves Nearly $6 Million in Grants to Advance Circuit Trails Network in Nine-County Region in Pennsylvania and New Jersey

The William Penn Foundation has announced its most recent round of grants – $5.9 million – to 12 organizations in the regional Circuit Trails Coalition.

William Penn Foundation

Initiative to Expand High-Quality Early Learning Grows with $3.8 Million Grant from William Penn Foundation

For eight years, the Fund for Quality has increased the availability of high-quality early childhood education for children across Philadelphia PHILADELPHIA (May 31, 2022) – Today, the William Penn Foundation announced a $3.8 million grant to Reinvestment...

William Penn Foundation

A collage of images featuring a woman speaking at a podium, a panel of speakers, and members of the audience.

Building Momentum for Teacher Diversity in Philadelphia (Part I)

Think about your K-12th grade teachers. Did you have teachers who shared your racial or cultural background? Did you have teachers who did not? I hope the answer to both questions is “yes.” However, for many students of color the answer to the first...

WPF and 23 Other Foundations Send Open Letter to the White House About the Shared Opportunity in the America the Beautiful Challenge

On April 11, 2022, the William Penn Foundation and 23 other philanthropic institutions sent a letter to the Biden-Harris administration expressing interest in further collaboration around the new America the Beautiful Challenge.

William Penn Foundation

SEPTA stations get makeover for reading campaign

Underground, at the Broad Street Line’s Tasker-Morris station in South Philadelphia, there’s now a mini-library. Riders, by placing their hand over touchless buttons, can now get free short stories, printed on store receipt-like paper. Many of the tales...

Metro Philadelphia

A colorful new childhood literacy campaign featuring real Philly kids is rolling out across SEPTA

SEPTA has never looked this vibrant — and never this much fun. Welcome to Come Aboard the Reading Promise, a brilliantly hued, early literacy campaign that was officially rolled out on Wednesday, April 6, featuring the words and faces of real Philly...

Philadelphia Inquirer