throughout his life haas was active with many charitable organizations, including the united way of southeastern pennsylvania, the boys and girls clubs of philadelphia, the natural lands trust, and the opportunities industrialization center of america, established by baptist civil rights leader leon sullivan. as a civic leader, john haas helped to found the balch institute for ethnic studies in 1976, served on the board of governors of temple university health system, and was a trustee emeritus at the massachusetts institute of technology.