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City High helps keep our students and families connected with helpful resources in their communities. Along with our many Internship partner sites, we also maintain strong relationships with with local community organizations, businesses and non-profits throughout Pittsburgh and Allegheny county.

For more information, or to connect with City High, please contact info@cityhigh.org.

Check Out Previous Opportunities

Student Opportunities

City High provides students with information about and access to a variety of community opportunities both during the school day and after school and on weekends.

City High provides students with information about and access to a variety of community opportunities both during the school day and after school and on weekends. This page is updated every week to ensure accuracy!

Volunteer Opportunities

Hilltop Urban Farm Open Volunteer Day!

WHEN: April 18th, 9am-12pm

WHERE: Hilltop Urban Farm, 700 Cresswell St, Pittsburgh, PA 15210

Hilltop Urban Farm is a neighborhood resource that grows food, grows farmers, and grows community in the Hilltop neighborhoods. This event is a part of their Saturday Open Volunteer Days, which happen the third Saturday of every month!

Volunteer for a rewarding day of hard work on the farm, be it cleaning up the land, maintaining crops, or harvesting!

Registration is not required but recommended!

Earth Day Inspired Squirrel Hill NFL Draft Redd Up!

WHEN: April 19th, 9am-12pm

WHERE: In front of Squirrel Hill Carnegie Library

Help make Pittsburgh a standout host for the 2026 NFL Draft by volunteering to keep our city clean and our community beautiful during festivities! If you're interested, you can also volunteer to help clean throughout the week starting April 17 and ending April 24.

Registration is not required but encouraged for attendees!

Volunteer w/ Allegheny Cleanways!

Looking for something that fits your schedule during the spring break? Allegheny Cleanways is doing a variety of cleanups in April across Allegheny County. There are several opportunities in different neighborhoods, both land and water cleanups, that you can volunteer for!

You can see the list of cleanups on Allegheny Cleanways website!

All opportunities with Allegheny Cleanways requires registration and a filled out waiver. Please make sure you register before showing up!

Opportunities for Growth

Find a Sweet Job: Teen Job Fair & Ice Cream Social

WHEN: April 21 @ 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm

WHERE: CLP – Main (Oakland), 4400 Forbes Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15213

Teen Job Fair & Ice Cream Social participants will have the opportunity to speak with more than 10 hiring representatives from restaurants, entertainment venues, stores and more. Teens will get a chance to network with potential employers while enjoying Ice Cream! This event will take place in the Teenspace on the 1st floor of the Main library.

Fun Community Events & Programming

Join the Pittsburgh Film Academy!	WHEN: Mondays and Wednesdays, 4-8pm All summer Mondays through Thursdays (subject to change) WHERE: 1917 Brownsville Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15210 Join the Pittsburgh Film Academy for Production and Media Mentors! Film School 101 Workshops & Classes — learn Storytelling, Cinematography, Audio Production, Lighting, and Editing with industry tools and gear from experienced professionals. Crew Club — Work with other aspiring teen filmmakers to create films, documentaries, event coverage and other media to submit to film festivals and create a portfolio of work to help you move forward as a professional. Questions? Contact magichour.Trisha@gmail.com
Join the Point of Pittsburgh Sailing League	DEADLINE: April 22, 2026 Interested in learning how to sail? Applications are open for the 2026 cohort of the Point of Pittsburgh Youth Sailing League! Open to rising 9th graders and older No prior experience necessary Gender inclusive Taught by US Sailing Association certified instructors You can contact ekinchington1@pghschools.org if interested! Apply online here!
Pittsburgh Center for Creative Reuse Presents Trophy Remixing!	WHEN: April 8 @ 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm WHERE: CLP – Carrick, 1811 Brownsville Road Pittsburgh, 15210 Participants will explore trophy-making as an art form! They will use parts from disassembled trophies and other fun materials to make a reclaimed trophy. They will learn about sculpture, reuse and nuts-and-bolts making. The end result will be a trophy that celebrates their own individuality, or a gift for someone special! Whatever you’re excited about winning, we have the materials to make a unique and personalized celebratory memento.
Visual Storytelling Lab Intensive w/ Carnegie Libraries!	WHEN: April 9 @ 3:00 pm - 4:30 pm, April 16 @ 3:00 pm - 4:30 pm WHERE: CLP – Main (Oakland), 4400 Forbes Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15213 In this 4-part series, teens can learn the ins and outs of different photography styles, filmmaking, and visual storytelling, just like the pros! Registration is strongly encouraged. For teens grades 6-12.
Create & Connect: Pittsburgh Themed Collaborative Zine for 412 Day!	WHEN: April 12 @ 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm WHERE: CLP – Allegheny, 1230 Federal Street Pittsburgh, PA 15212 Join us to learn how to make a creative craft, learn about our resources, and connect with others in the community. Bring your current project or use our basic supplies provided while they last.
SLB Radio Youth Media Center April Programs!	WHERE: 10 Children's Way, Pittsburgh, PA 15212 Drop In Hours Monday - Thursday, 3-6pm Saturday, 10am-2pm Workshops Recording the News April 7th, 4:30pm-6pm April 18th, 12-1:30pm Poetry Cafe - Free & Formal Verse April 11, 12-1:30pm Promoting a Broadcast Pt. 1 April 14, 4:30-6pm Promoting a Broadcast Pt. 2 April 21, 4:30-6pm Finding Your Voice: Cartoonish Characters April 25, 12-1:30pm Citizen Journalism & Reporting April 28, 4:30-6pm Weekly Events PYMC Meet-Ups Every Monday 4-6pm Voices of the Mercy Corridor Every Thursday 4-6pm Dungeons & Dragons: the Underdark Every Wednesday 4-6pm *Please note that SLB Radio will be closed for Spring Break (April 1-4) and the NFL Draft (April 23-25).*

Contests & Competitions

Allegheny County Council Civic Engagement Competition

DEADLINE: April 30, 2026

To encourage and celebrate civic engagement amongst Allegheny County youth, the County Council is holding a Civic Engagement Competition and invites all residents of the county to nominate an exemplary young resident who has stepped up and brought other young Alleghenians together to address a matter of public concern. The contest winner will be invited to join the Council for a meeting as the County's first Junior Councilmember.

Rules

Must be no older than 19 years old and a a resident of Allegheny County
Must have facilitated civic engagement amongst their fellow youth on or after January 1st, 2025
Must be nominated by an individual not immediately related to the entrant
- Your parents, siblings, or other family members cannot nominate you.
- Good people to ask for nominations
  - One of your teachers
  - An administrator
  - A coach or mentor
  - An employer

Nominating Packet & Other Required Materials

Receive a nomination (see above under rules)
Complete the nominating packet (click the link below to download) and return to Kenneth.Varhola@AlleghenyCounty.US no later than April 30, 2026.
Student must write an essay to support their nomination. The essay should:
- Describe how you have uniquely promoted civic engagement amongst your peers and what it means to you.
- Size 12 font, double spaced
- Between 1 and 3 pages
- No plagiarism or AI is allowed—you will be disqualified if your essay is not your own work.

Prizes

Winners will be announced on May 15, 2026!

1st Place

The first place winner will be invited to attend a meeting of the Allegheny County Council as the County's first ever junior councilmember. The junior councilmember will be seated on the dais with the rest of Council, and will be invited to partake in that meeting. The junior councilmember may speak on issues before the council that day and represent the views of our young residents.

(As voting rights on the Council are a matter of law, the junior councilmember will not be permitted to vote on business). The 1st place winner will also receive a proclamation which celebrates their work in civic engagement, which will be presented on the date they join the Council as a Junior Councilmember.

Runners Up

Four runners-up will be selected. Each runner-up will be presented with a proclamation celebrating their work in civic engagement. The proclamation will be presented to the applicant either at a meeting of the County Council, or at their school or another proper location.

DOWNLOAD THE APPLICATION FORM!

Ralph Munn Creative Writing Contest

Deadline: All entries must be submitted by 9AM on Monday, May 11, 2026

All top-rated submissions will be published in the 2026 Ralph Munn Creative Writing Anthology, a book of creative work distributed to all Allegheny County public libraries.

Writing Categories:

Poetry
Short Prose

Prizes:

1st Prize: $250
2nd Prize: $100

Prizes will be awarded in both categories. All applicants will be notified whether or not they have won an award by the middle of August.

Contest Rules:

Contest is open to all high school students (grade 9 – 12) in Allegheny County.
No more than two (2) entries per individual will be accepted. These two (2) submissions can be in any combination of categories.
Category requirements:
Poetry submissions may not exceed two (2) pages and must be typed in 12 pt. font.
Short Prose submissions may not exceed 4,000 words and must be typed in 12 pt. font.
All submissions must be original work by a single author; no plagiarism and no work containing copyrighted characters (including fan fiction) will be considered.
Submissions must be previously unpublished but do not need to be created specifically for the contest. Creative work written for school assignments, workshops or other contests is acceptable.
Entries must be in .doc or .docx format and must not include your name or any other identifying details. Your personal information should only be entered in the required fields of the submission form.
Submissions must not be generated by artificial intelligence (AI).
Submissions that do not conform to contest guidelines will not be considered.

Category Descriptions

Short Prose: Writers may submit original works of fiction or creative nonfiction no greater than 4,000 words in length. Short stories, personal narratives, essays, memoirs and commentaries are all acceptable for this category. In evaluating short prose submissions, judges will consider originality of content and style, development of plot or themes, technical attention to grammar and mechanics, and the author’s command of language.

Poetry: Poems of any form, including –but not limited to– free verse, sonnets, villanelles, sestinas, slam-style poetry and narrative poetry are accepted. Poems will be selected based upon the exemplary clarity, economy, and freshness of language, use of sound and rhythm, complementary nature of the form and content of the poem, and ability to evoke an intellectual or emotional response. Poetry submissions may not exceed two (2) pages in length.

For questions or help getting started:

Visit any Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh location or any Allegheny County Library to ask a teen specialist for assistance, call 412.622.3114 or email info@carnegielibrary.org.

Community Connections

City High works with a variety of non-profits and community organizations around the Pittsburgh and Allegheny County metropolitan area.

Some of our partners include: