About — The Philly Service Award

The Philly Service Award funds student teams across every Philadelphia high school to design and lead community projects that serve their neighbors. By turning student ideas into action, we equip young people with hands-on experience in problem-solving, project management, and civic leadership while building lifelong community stewards and a better Philadelphia for all.

Who We Are

Building a Connected, Youth-Led Future Across Every Philadelphia Neighborhood

Through The Philly Service Award, thousands of high school students citywide are receiving a message they rarely hear: They have exactly what it takes to improve their neighborhoods right here, right now.

We don’t ask our young people to wait for adulthood to become changemakers; we believe in them today. By putting $1,000 on the table for student teams across public, charter, private, and parochial high schools, we empower them to walk through their communities with the mindset that there are not only problems to fix, but that they are the solution.

When students are trusted upfront, they find their voice, build a network of peers, and develop a permanent identity as a helper, a giver, and a leader.

An Opportunity for Philadelphia

When we conceptualized The Philly Service Award, we were told Philadelphia schools were too overwhelmed. That perhaps just a handful of schools might embrace the opportunity, and we’d be lucky to get about 12. But that’s not the Philadelphia we know, and we were confident our schools would step up and celebrate the chance to change their city, and they did.

In 2023-24, our first year, The Philly Service Award engaged 47 high schools in neighborhood improvement projects across the city. By 2025-26, we had partnered with over 65% of Philadelphia’s high schools in just 3 years, engaging over 3,000 students through 200+ neighborhood projects.

"I love participating in this. Just trying to be a part of Philadelphia in the community and helping those in need really touches my heart, and I will definitely be participating in more things and events like this."

—Student, Philadelphia Electrical & Technology Charter High School
"I honestly loved this experience. I loved the fact that many schools in Philadelphia came together to make our home a better place for everybody."

Student, Calvary Christian Academy
"This is a good thing y'all have, and I wanted to say I enjoyed every part of it."

—Student, Murrell Dobbins CTE High School
"The Philly Service Award is such a great opportunity for Philly youth to be involved in the community...there are many great ideas and so much work to be done, but sometimes there just aren't enough funds to get started, so I'm grateful for the gap that PSA was able to help close."

—Student, GW Carver High School of Engineering and Science
"I think that The Philly Service Award is an excellent opportunity for students to bring about change in their communities, and I am extremely grateful to have been a part of it with my school."

—Student, Father Judge High School