It was an accidental beginning for the IHAD foundation in the year 1981. But that impulsive move sparked a national movement to positively impact the lives of children in low-income communities. In 1981, businessman Eugene M. Lang returned to P.S. 121, the elementary school he had attended in East Harlem 50 years earlier, to address a class of graduating sixth graders. He intended to tell the students, "Work hard and you'll succeed." But on the way to the podium, the school principal told Lang that three-quarters of the school's students would probably never finish high school, prompting Lang to make an impromptu change to his speech: he promised college tuition to every sixth grader who stayed in high school and graduated.
The response of Lang’s proposition was so huge that from the 54 sixth graders who remained in contact with the organization, more than 90% have earned their high school diplomas or GED certificates and 60% have pursued higher. It was the beginning of a revolution which was adopted by other regions as well. Since then, 199 "I Have a Dream" programs have operated in 27 states, Washington, D.C., and New Zealand, together serving over 15,000 Dreamers.
The program was initiated in Dallas by Bill and the late Elaine Farrell in Sept 1986, after reading about it in the Sixty Minutes. The board members of IHAD-Dallas now includes many dignitaries like
David Disiere of the Deep South Surplus of Texas, Helen M. Dorsey, Dr. Pepper/Seven Up Inc. James W. Loose Galloway-James Inc. and others. The program has been highly successful with more and more children reaching their dreams and achieving great heights in career