The Urban Erie Community Development Corporation (UECDC), incorporated in 1997 as a Pennsylvania Non-Profit Corporation (501c 3), provides educational services and employment preparation skills to the impoverished, disadvantaged and at-risk individuals of the Erie Community. This is accomplished through the implementation of Adult Basic Education, English as a Second Language, General Education Development and more. UECDC also provides a comprehensive after-school educational program focusing on math and reading skills development. UECDC partners with many community initiatives from local businesses – profit and nonprofit—, educational institutions and community-based organizations.

UECDC is dedicated to developing, coordinating and operating services that promote self-sufficiency and reduce barriers affecting the quality of life for Erie’s economically disadvantaged. Urban Erie has established partnerships with other agencies to enhance services that will improve the quality of life for their clients and address the multi-faceted problems that they encounter, such as unemployment, substance abuse, inadequate education and vocational training, insufficient financial resources to meet basic needs, and growing violence in their own communities.

Urban Erie’s afterschool and youth programs thrive with focuses on reading, math and computer skills for disadvantaged youth. The program is also able to offer services to older students, as UECDC is able to offer high school seniors assistance with college planning and preparation, including application assistance, financial aid assistance and scholarship search and preparation.

One of the more creative aspects of the UECDC’s educational concentration is the planning of the annual Walking In Black History program, which has been impacting thousands of Erie community students since 1992. The program is designed to complement and enhance the formal learning about of African-American culture and American Civil Rights history. In addition to the educational aspect of the program, Walking in Black History enables students to gain experience in museum etiquette, public speaking and event planning skills and in the documentation of their experience through the keeping of a journal, a camera and a post-trip reflection essay.

Below is an excerpt from the 2003 winning essay:

"From this trip I received one of the greatest gifts ever to man-kind... something that helps me know that I can always be strong and keep my head up... something that tells me to be proud of who I am and where my people come from and where they are today and even when they are going... This gift is pride... to look my future right in the face. This trip has not only taught me a lot about my history and heritage, but has also taught me a lot about myself."

-Erin Ewing, Villa Maria Student, 16 yrs old, 2003 Essay Winner