Value Statement 

At THE PROGRAM for Women and Families we believe individuals should be treated with dignity and respect and, given the opportunity, are capable of making positive changes in their own lives and meaningful contributions to society.

A Brief History 

The agency was founded in 1980 as the Lehigh Valley branch office of THE PROGRAM for Female Offenders, Inc. in Pittsburgh as part of an expansion that included offices in Harrisburg and Philadelphia.  With funding from the Pennsylvania Department of Community Affairs, the Department of Public Welfare and the United Way, all of the branch offices focused on the special needs of female offenders, with a shared commitment to providing advocacy and counseling services to women in prison.

In 1982 the branch office in Allentown became a locally operated affiliate under the direction of a community-based Board of Directors.  In 1986 we were incorporated independently as a Pennsylvania domestic non-profit corporation.

Over the years we learned that women cannot be effectively treated in a vacuum.  They have children and husbands/partners, and so we expanded our services to address the needs of other family members.  In 1993 THE PROGRAM for Female Offenders of the Lehigh Valley officially changed its name to THE PROGRAM for Women and Families, Inc.

Today the agency employs more than thirty full- and part-time staff with an annual budget of over one million dollars.  Every year THE PROGRAM for Women and Families provides over 2,000 individuals in the Lehigh Valley with more than 50,000 hours of direct service.

THE PROGRAM for Women and Families, Inc. is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization.

Annual Reports and Financials (pdf reader needed)

2006 Annual Report     2006 Annual Report Financials

2005 Annual Report     2005 Annual Report Financials

2004 Annual Report     2004 Annual Report Financials

Transitions - THE PROGRAM's Newsletter, Summer 2007; Summer 2006; Fall 2005.

This site last maintained July 15, 2008