Since 1979, we have been working diligently to renovate and restore our facilities to replicate the ancient (jenn-nay), a great and flourishing 13th Century City renowned for the imaginative architectural design of its buildings.

In October 1996, the House of Umoja embarked upon the final phase of its capital building project, the Umoja Boystown. Since 1979, many of the facilities have been renovated and restored to replicate the ancient West African City of Djenné, a once flourishing city renowned for the imaginative architectural design of its buildings.

Since the inception of the project, we have successfully completed 50% of our construction and we are striving for 100% completion by September 2004 when the House of Umoja celebrates its 36th Anniversary. We have been granted $1.5 million Building Project Grant by the State of Pennsylvania and the City of Philadelphia. We are attempting to match this amount with $1 million.

Umoja staff believe that the tools for building self-esteem, increasing motivation, and restructuring families can be found in the extraordinary heritage of African Americans. This unprecedented building project will crystallize an important aspect of African American culture and provide Umoja youth with a sense of cultural wholeness, pride and respect.