United Way of Olmsted County announces 2012-2013 Funding Investment Awards | Arts & Culture

The Board of Directors of United Way of Olmsted County announced today the investment of more than $2.5 million in program funding awards for 2012 -2013.  These awards support 49 programs across 31 human care organizations targeting outcomes in education, income, health, and community basics. 

Here are some highlights:

Education:

Preparing children to succeed in school and youth to succeed in the community is receiving $1,113,911 which represents the largest investment.  Education programs like school preparedness and the Imagination Library seek to improve the proficiency of children entering kindergarten.  Other programs, like those associated with the Community Gang Initiative, provide connections with caring adults and opportunities to learn and demonstrate leadership.

Community Basics: 

Programs that help stabilize lives by helping to meet basic needs for food, shelter, safety, and inclusivity were awarded $729,394. “Safety net” programs provide services such as access to nutritious meals and short-term shelter. Other community basic programs support independent living for persons with disabilities and vulnerable seniors.

Health:

$400,000 was awarded to health programs that promote wellness and health care access. These programs provide preventative dental care and education to underinsured and uninsured children and youth; assist uninsured residents in obtaining and retaining health insurance; and, providing early interventions for mental illness to uninsured persons.

Income:

The income community impact area, with goals to move people toward financial independence, received $225,500 in awards. This funding includes support for the Job Training Partnership, the Financial Stability Partnership, and other programs aimed at stabilizing families and building their assets.

Two capacity building efforts that support this collective work were also awarded funds. The Community Information Sharing System ($30,740) enables participating agencies to work more efficiently and generate community-wide data useful for measuring progress, quantifying needs, evaluating initiatives and allocating resources. Community non-profit capacity building ($35,435) provides training to non-profit organizations to enhance and extend their ability to deliver on their missions and services.

In addition to these program awards, $484,871 was directed by donors to 277 non-profit organizations of their choice.

More than 14,460 individual donors from more than 220 organizations showed their commitment to Advance the Common Good in Olmsted County by participating in the 2011 United Way Campaign. 

“United Way and our many partners are creating measurable results to advance the common good,” said Karen Mathison, United Way President.  “Dozens of volunteers thoughtfully evaluate each program receiving funds and thanks to the community financial support, we have these generous resources to continue collectively making progress as a community to improve lives and strengthen Olmsted County.  By tackling the underlying causes to create lasting change in the community, United Way is making a measurable impact in Olmsted County.  We do this by bringing together agencies, donors, businesses, volunteers, government, and community leaders to review data, research, and best practices to identify strategies that achieve community –scale results.  Through this combination of the generosity of our donors and the power of volunteerism, we are able to change lives in our community.  “ 

The United Way of Olmsted County reports that in 2012 – 2013 the cost of administration and fund-raising is 15.95% of its total budget.

A complete list of programs awarded funds and the agencies that provide these programs is available at the United Way of Olmsted County website (www.uwolmsted.org).