THIS YEAR
THE OFFICIAL LAUNCH OF THE REPORT
On Tuesday, November 17, The Urban League of Greater Philadelphia publishes State of Black Greater Philadelphia: Advancing Community-Centered Solutions for Economic Mobility, the first edition of the report since 2007. It follows six drivers of economic mobility across Southeastern Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey, with essays from ten experts across the region.
On December 18 we launch it at the Luncheon, in a room filled with leaders from government, business, philanthropy and the community, and the people who wrote it.
THE ROUND TABLE
TEN VOICES. ONE TABLE.
The heart of the program is a round-table conversation with the contributing essayists of State of Black Greater Philadelphia, the researchers, practitioners, educators, physicians and business leaders who wrote its chapters, on what the report found and what it will take to act on it.
Emily Dowdall
President of Policy Solutions, Reinvestment Fund
Rev. Mike Robinson, MS
Director of Community Outreach and Hiring, Temple University
Dr. Chad Womack
Founder and Chair, iRise PHL
Arthur Mitchell
Executive Director, STEM Equity Alliance
DJ
Dr. Darryl Johnson Jr.
Principal, Carver High School of Engineering and Science
TG
Dr. Toorjo “TJ” Ghose, MSW
Associate Professor, School of Social Policy & Practice, University of Pennsylvania
James Sanders
Chairman, Board of Directors, African American Chamber of Commerce PA-NJ-DE
Dr. Delana Wardlaw
Twin Sister Docs
Dr. Elana McDonald
Mike O’Bryan
Twin Sister Docs
Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Humanature
MASTER OF CEREMONIES COMING SOON
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 18, 2026
WHAT TO EXPECT
DOORS 11:00 AM · PROGRAM 11:30 AM · PHILADELPHIA
01
DOORS OPEN
Registration and networking.
02
WELCOME
The program opens with Dr. Darrin W. Anderson Sr., President and CEO.
03
THE LAUNCH
The official launch of State of Black Greater Philadelphia 2026, with printed copies in the room.
04
LUNCH IS SERVED
Lunch comes to the table as the conversation begins.
05
THE ROUND TABLE
The contributing essayists on what the report found and what it asks of the region.
06
TWO AWARDS
Honorees will be announced here.
THE 2025 LUNCHEON
07
CLOSING
A call to fund the work the report calls for.
MC COMING SOON
FULL PROGRAM COMING SOON
VENUE DETAILS COMING SOON
WHO SHOULD BE IN THE ROOM
IF YOU HOLD THE DECISION, TAKE THE SEAT
Economic mobility is decided by people who rarely sit at the same table. The report closes every chapter with calls to act. Answering them takes the people below, in one room. If one of them is you, this table is yours.
POLICYMAKERS
LAWS SET THE LIMITS
Budgets, zoning and statutes decide how far a family can move. The people who write them should hear this report argued in person, by the people who wrote it.
FUNDERS
MONEY SETS THE PACE
Every chapter ends with work that needs a backer. Come see that work up close, and leave knowing where your next dollar does the most.
EMPLOYERS
HIRING SETS THE LADDER
Who gets hired, what they are paid and who gets promoted decide whether a job becomes a way up. Employers hold those decisions.
EDUCATORS
SCHOOLS SET THE PATH
Whether a diploma leads to a career is settled in classrooms, counseling offices and admissions. Educators decide where the pathway goes.
HEALTH LEADERS
HEALTH SETS THE FLOOR
A family cannot build while it is sick, uninsured or far from care. Health systems and insurers shape mobility as surely as banks do.
COMMUNITY LEADERS
TRUST SETS THE REACH
The organizations already doing this work know what it takes and who it reaches. The room needs their judgment. The work needs their reach.
Bring the people who can act. Reserve a table for your organization.
THIS IS THE ROOM
Every December, corporate and community partners, elected officials, advocates and neighbors fill the Luncheon to put real pathways to economic mobility on the table. Here is last year’s room.
The 23rd Annual Luncheon, December 2025
WHAT YOUR TICKET FUNDS
YOUR SEAT FUNDS THE WORK
The report closes every chapter with work that has to be done. Your ticket, your table and your sponsorship pay for The Urban League of Greater Philadelphia to do it, all year.
That means counseling that gets families into homes and keeps them there. Connections to jobs that pay. Scholarships and a path from the classroom to a career. A way back to work after prison. Coaching and capital for the entrepreneurs building in our neighborhoods. And a permanent home in West Philadelphia where free healthcare sits beside every other service a family needs.
HERE IS WHAT THAT WORK DELIVERED
A STABLE HOME
OFFICE OF HOUSING & DIVERSION SERVICES
2,722
families strengthened their financial readiness, and 379 received Philly First grants toward a first home.
A JOB THAT PAYS
OFFICE OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT & CAREER SERVICES
650+
job seekers connected to employers across hiring and career events.
AN EDUCATION THAT LEADS SOMEWHERE
OFFICE OF YOUTH & EDUCATION
$145,000
in scholarships for 29 graduating seniors, with 165 young people in Youth & Education programs.
A REAL SECOND CHANCE
OFFICE OF REENTRY PROGRAMS & SERVICES
648
people placed into employment since the program began, from 755 enrolled.
CAPITAL TO BUILD WITH
URBAN LEAGUE ENTREPRENEURSHIP CENTER
$5.4M
in contracts secured by participants, and $1.5 million in financing obtained.
THE HEALTH TO SEE IT THROUGH
ULGP HEADQUARTERS & CENTER FOR WELLBEING
2027
Opening in 2027. Ground was broken in June 2026 in West Philadelphia on a permanent home that will bring free healthcare together with seven more services.
Program results from The Urban League of Greater Philadelphia FY 2025/2026 Impact Report.
SPONSORSHIP
PUT YOUR NAME BEHIND THE LAUNCH
Sponsors stand with The Urban League of Greater Philadelphia as the report goes public, and fund the programs behind every chapter of it. Sponsorship includes seats at the Luncheon for your guests.
Talk with the Office of Development
info@urbanleaguephila.org · (215) 985-3220
IN THE NAME OF WHITNEY M. YOUNG, JR.
Whitney M. Young, Jr. led the National Urban League from 1961 until his death in 1971, and pressed the country’s most powerful institutions to open their doors to Black workers, families and businesses.
The Luncheon carries his name because it carries his method: bring the people who hold the decisions into the same room as the facts, and ask them to act.