Urban League of San Diego County
The Urban League of San Diego County (ULSDC), historically, is a civil rights and direct service 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization, founded in 1953, and whose mission is to assist African Americans and other underserved people in San Diego County to achieve social and economic equality through advocacy, bridge building, program services, and research.
Our vision is to be a catalyst for change in San Diego County and become one of the best human service organizations in the State of California. We seek to be the provider of choice for our customers, the employer of choice for our co-workers, the investment of choice for our corporate, government, and philanthropic partners, and a model of integrity and excellence for a community-based organization. We value integrity, innovation, impact, passion, commitment to excellence, and empowerment.
The Urban League of San Diego County has a long history of working with schools, families, and communities to create effective family-centered programs. The Urban League of San Diego County is one of more than 90 affiliates of the National Urban League nationwide. The Urban League has helped more than 7,000 San Diego residents achieve socio-economic and educational equality and sustainability each year. The Urban League has a strong record of assisting under-represented and disadvantaged populations through its core programmatic areas of education & youth development, health and wellness, workforce development, and housing & economic development. Over the years, the Urban League has developed partnerships with several organizations that benefit youth, families, and community revitalization, such as UPAC, Mental Health of America, San Diego, and primarily serving as a LiveWell San Diego Partner and Promise Zone San Diego Partners member.
We are committed to strengthening the family unit by promoting economic self-sufficiency. We help equip individuals with the tools needed to enter or re-enter the workforce through training, career-building, and job placement services. We offer a full range of essential economic resources for low-to-moderate-income individuals to help them succeed in the workforce, stabilize their finances, and build assets.
Mission: Our mission is to assist African Americans and other underserved people in San Diego County in achieving social and economic equality through advocacy, bridge-building, and program services. We accomplish this by helping families transition out of poverty through a continuum of program-enriched services that support education, college prep for youth, social-family-employment counseling, recovery, housing homeownership, and neighborhood preservation and advocacy.
We have Five Pillars:
- Education and Youth Development
- Workforce Development
- Economic Development: Housing, Financial Education, and Small Business
- Health and Wellness
- Civic Engagement
Partners: In addition to programs offered in conjunction with The National Urban League and other California affiliates, the ULSDC has an extensive network of partners from the faith-based community, other community-based organizations, public and private entities with whom it collaborates, including:
- San Diego National Association of Naval Officers
- Logan Heights Community Development Corporation
- MiraCosta College
- UC San Diego
- University of San Diego
- AbbVie
- San Diego Community College District
- CALSOAP
- Comerica
- San Diego Continuing Education
- Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. San Diego Alumnae
- CSU San Marcos
- Grossmont Community College
- Hologic
- San Diego Foundation
- Satterberg Foundation
- SDG&E
- US Midway Museum
- City National Bank
- US Bank
- Wawanesa Insurance
- Wells Fargo Bank
- San Diego Unified School District
- San Diego County Office of Education
- San Diego City College
- Southwestern College
- ADL
CELEBRATING 71 YEARS OF SERVICE TO OUR COMMUNITY
The ULSDC has a legacy of distinguished leadership, including Percy Steel, John E. Jacob, John W. Johnson, Leon Williams, Ambrose Brodus, Rudolph Johnson, Jr., Herb Cawthorne, Cecil Steppe, Ray King, and currently Al Abdallah. Today, Larry S. Reed is the Board Chair. Click on the videos below to view interviews with past CEO and instrumental community leaders

