Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh (JCC)

At the JCC, you can trust that your child is safe, secure and appropriately challenged. Here you find caring, nurturing adults that encourage your child to thrive. The JCC offers a program structured enough to satisfy a child's need for routines, yet diverse enough to broaden his or her horizons with exciting new experiences. The philosophy of the Early Childhood Development Center [ECDC] believes that discovery and play are a young child's most important ""work."" It provides countless opportunities for children to develop skills and confidence, as well as just plain have fun! The staff respect the uniqueness of each child, and consider parents our partners, maintaining regular communication with all families. Together, we maximize your child's feelings of self-worth and independence for a successful pre-school experience. To the young child, the JCC's ECDCs are a place to crawl or run and romp with friends, splatter paints at creative will, and giggle at silly songs. But there's more to it than just having fun. As each parent knows, your child is growing and changing in amazing ways...at an amazing pace. And, a sense of comfort is key to engendering the confidence each child needs to explore the world. With accreditation from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Keystone STARS program and licensed by the Department of Welfare, the ECDC is a certified program that provides a complete background for entry into formal education.

Recognizing that Allegheny County has one of the largest populations of older adults in the country, AgeWell at the JCC provides a comprehensive approach that keeps vulnerable older adults living independently, eliminating or deferring the need for more costly and restrictive skilled care. A partner of the AgeWell Pittsburgh collaborative that has been recognized by the United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania for the past two years as a "best practice" model, the department provides a wide range of programs and services to older adults in the community. The mission is to provide support for older adults so they can live as independently as possible with the highest possible quality of life. To accomplish that mission, AgeWell offers seamless service delivery, has a client-centered approach focusing on quality of care, integrates services with staff cross-training, is a leader in exploring and offering Evidence-Based Programming, and is cost effective through collaborative efforts.

For over a century, JCC camps have been a special place for children during the summer. The Center promotes a positive sense of identity and encourages children with values rooted in Jewish tradition that includes helping others, welcoming people of all backgrounds, and respecting the environment. There is an emphasis on team building and sportsmanship with a professional staff who provide quality, age-appropriate programming and who are committed to excellent communication with families. Camps are staffed by experienced professionals who support children on journey of self-discovery helping them develop confidence in a community of friends. Full-time JCC professionals provide ongoing security training for counselors, specialists and unit heads throughout the summer. JCC camps are a summer home for both typical children and those with special needs who are fully integrated into camp activities.

The JCC offers day care and preschool, summer camps, after-school care, senior programming, fitness and wellness programs, sports and athletic facilities, arts and cultural activities, programs for young people and adults with special needs, and scores of special events for people of all ages and interests. The primary departments include: Membership, Camps, Early Childhood, Sports and Recreation, Senior Adult programming, and the Center for Loving Kindness and Civic Engagement. During the past year, nearly 350 children from 21 different nationalities participated in early childhood programs; over 3,000 children and teens participated in JCC sports classes, leagues, private lessons and specialty programs; approximately 2,500 young people were served in JCC day and overnight camps; and 1,135 new participants enrolled in the JCC's AgeWell Independent Adult Services programs joining more than 5,000 existing participants.

The JCC Clubhouse After-School Program is your child’s home after school. Our caring and creative staff, diverse programming and high quality facilities allow us to nourish your child’s physical, emotional and social well-being after a long day in the classroom. We offer a wide variety of fun and stimulating activities for children in Kindergarten through grade 6 in our large gym, club time and grade appropriate homerooms.
Our program is licensed by the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services. The purpose of this licensing is to ensure that the care of children in a childcare center is safe and healthful. We must comply with their standards to protect the health, safety and rights of children and staff and to reduce the risks to children in our care. Our license is renewed annually through a rigorous inspection that examines our environment as a whole, and also the files of staff and children to make sure that all background checks, certifications and trainings are updated and complete.

The Center for Loving Kindness and Civic Engagement was established in 2017 to counter the demoralizing rhetoric of public discourse to strengthen the fabric of community by amplifying the long-held values of Love Your Neighbor as Yourself and Do Not Stand Idle While Your Neighbor Bleeds as we redefine NEIGHBOR from a geographic term to a moral concept.

•We host public forums on topics of community concern focused on seeing the humanity in all of us.
•We host hopeful conversations to strengthen interfaith bonds and spark action.
•We spur Pittsburgh police officers and spiritual leaders to build relationships.
•Igniting people of good will move to action, 70+ UPstander volunteers show up for neighbors in numerous ways.
•We worked to ensure that every resident was counted in the 2020 Census.
•We present art and humanities programs that help us relate to each other’s lived experiences.
•We re-imagine Jewish holidays by linking traditions with social action.