Over $620,000 is being invested into community programs and services through United Way Services of Geauga County. Approximately $285,000 of those funds will be targeted towards education, income, and health strategies. Volunteers from the community, including members of the Board of Directors, and from the Education, Income and Health Collaboratives, which were newly formed in the fall of 2014, made funding decisions.
The Collaboratives include representatives from local school districts, businesses, nonprofits and the community working to improve education, financial stability and health. These groups identified the greatest needs in Geauga and developed solutions to address them.
United Way is utilizing a Community Impact funding model, which focuses more on solving specific problems than funding a variety of programs. “We are becoming more focused in our approach,” says Dave Chew, Board Chair at United Way. “For example, United Way previously would fund any program that improved education. Now, we are specifically focused on funding programs that increase early school success for economically disadvantaged students. We want to make sure every child is prepared for kindergarten and every Geauga student passes their 3rd-grade state reading test.”
“Creating long-term impact is the goal,” says Kimm Leininger, Executive Director at United Way. “We are addressing the biggest problems in our community and we are doing this together with other partners, using a collaborative approach. It is not one program or even one agency that can change the course of the community. The Education, Income, and Health Collaboratives in Geauga County defined the direction for service provision and helped us recognize that if we want to create a lasting impact, we need to work together.”
Newly funded initiatives include support for working families who are unable to pay for preschool, workplace resource coordinators who will assist individuals in the workplace to overcome barriers and remain gainfully employed, and the development of a community wide, evidence based substance abuse prevention plan for local youth.
United Way’s transition to a new funding model has changed the way dollars are invested into the local community. As a result, those programs that have received long-time support from Untied Way will be receiving half of their traditional funding for fiscal year 2016 (July 1, 2015 – June 30, 2016). Starting with fiscal year 2017, all of the funding provided through United Way will be community impact and strategy focused.
“Our goal is to change community conditions, and we can’t do that when we are spread so thin. Many of our legacy partners have applied for and will be receiving funds through this new process. The difference now is we are all working toward the same end goal,” said Leininger.
United Way could not do what they do without the generosity of the Geauga community. “We are so thankful to all our donors who entrust these dollars to us so we can impact our most at-risk population,” says Dave Chew, Board Chair at United Way.
For detailed information about United Way Services of Geauga County’s strategies and funding, please visit www.uwsgc.org.
