Penn Hills High School will get a new synthetic turf football field thanks in part to a $200,000 grant from the Pittsburgh Steelers through the National Football League Grassroots Program, it was announced today.
The grant, awarded by the Steelers, the NFL Youth Football Fund and Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), is part of $2.5 million in field refurbishment awards allocated this year.
The Penn Hills School District will install new synthetic turf along with new bleachers and a scoreboard. In addition to the school district's athletic department, local community groups also will use the field.
The NFL Grassroots Program, a partnership between the NFL Youth Football Fund and LISC, the nation's leading community development support corporation, has resulted in the construction or renovation of 256 football fields nationwide in the past 14 years. During that time, the NFL Youth Football Fund has granted more than $32.5 million to revitalize playing fields in underserved neighborhoods. Fields are newly built or significantly renovated, with improvements such as irrigation systems, lights, bleachers, scoreboards, goal posts and turf. Grassroots grants are issued once established funding thresholds are reached for each project.
"We are pleased to award Penn Hills High School with the grant through the NFL's Grassroots Program," Steelers President ART ROONEY II said. "It is exciting to see our Youth Football initiative impact so many young football players in our area and I'm glad Penn Hills will be able to utilize the grant for their football stadium project."
LISC identifies local, nonprofit, neighborhood-based agencies which have an interest in building or refurbishing football fields in schools and parks in underserved neighborhoods. Through the program, the local agencies are provided with the necessary financing and technical assistance to improve the quality and safety of fields in their neighborhoods. The local agencies oversee the construction, maintenance and programming of the fields.
"Building sustainable communities – good places to live, work, do business and raise families – is a priority for LISC," said Michael Rubinger, LISC's president and CEO. "Developing recreational facilities is a key part of that, and the NFL and the NFL Players Association have been committed partners in making it happen."
About the NFL Youth Football Fund
Established in 1998 by the NFL and the NFL Players Association, the NFL Youth Football Fund (YFF) uses football as a catalyst to promote positive youth development, support youth and high school football needs nationwide and ensure the health of amateur football participation. Through the YFF's youth football initiatives and support programs, young athletes are provided with opportunities to learn the game of football, get physically fit and stay involved in productive after-school activities with adult mentors. The YFF also provides youngsters with safe and accessible places to play, as well as programs and initiatives that address the importance of proper coaching, health and safety and life skills development. For more information, visit http://www.nflyff.org/.
About LISC LISC combines corporate, government and philanthropic resources to help nonprofit community development corporations revitalize distressed neighborhoods. Since 1980, LISC has raised more than $12 billion to build or rehab more than 289,000 affordable homes and develop 46 million square feet of retail, community and educational space nationwide. LISC support has leveraged nearly $33.9 billion in total development activity. For more information, visit www.lisc.org.
