At United Way of Dane County, we know that the well-being of our children and families directly impacts the overall health of our community. In short, family well-being = community well-being! We also know that there’s so much work yet to be done to dismantle racial and systemic inequities that prevent many families and individuals from leading thriving lives – and the only way we can overcome these barriers is by working together towards collective impact.
By working with our hundreds of nonprofit and community partners, we aim to be a catalyst of systemic change, helping more families and individuals get what they need in the areas of early childhood, education, income and health so that they may lead healthy, thriving and secure lives that meet their own defined goals.
Our vision for a brighter future in Dane County includes these strategic goals:
Early Childhood
Build family well-being by intentionally and simultaneously working with children under five and the adults in their lives together.
Research and community input consistently show that coordinated, holistic programs and policies that help meet children and caregivers’ goals simultaneously lead to increased family stability and mobility from poverty – leading to greater success across generations.
We’re invested in 15 local nonprofits and 23 local programs to identify and address the historical and structural barriers that undermine a family’s overall well-being. Through these partnerships, we work with the family to solve problems and provide new resources to meet their goals.
We know success when children have quality early childhood experiences, setting the foundation for high school graduation, obtaining employment, securing a home and having access to quality health care. We’ll evaluate this measure’s progress by the decrease in number of children under 5 experiencing poverty.
Education
All students succeed academically and graduate high school prepared for higher education, career and community.
Individuals who finish high school are more likely to have the skills required to be successful in postsecondary education, an increasingly complicated job market and society. And adults with higher education levels are more likely to gain employment with family-sustaining wages.
We’re invested in 18 local nonprofits and 32 local programs that help prepare youth for the classroom and life beyond through mentorship, tutoring and social-emotional learning. We’ve also partnered with AmeriCorps for our Schools of Hope Program, providing individualized literacy instruction in elementary schools for over twenty years.
We will measure progress by tracking the percent of Dane County students who graduate high school.
Income
More people are on pathways out of poverty.
When more individuals have jobs earning family-sustaining wages and safe and affordable housing, they are less stressed and more able to provide for themselves and their families – better positioning the entire community and our economy to thrive.
We’re invested in 16 local nonprofits and 32 local programs that help more families get what they need to become economically stable. We also partner with six local agencies and 50 employers through our HIRE initiative – a free program which focuses on helping adults prepare for and find steady employment.
We will measure our progress by tracking the percent of Dane County individuals with a household income 200% above the Federal Poverty Level – which is what a family of three needs to rent a two-bedroom apartment in Dane County. We acknowledge that barriers exist to accessing affordable housing in Dane County, which we are also working with partners to address.
Health
A Dane County absent of racial health disparities.
While Dane County remains a top place to live, raise a family and retire, for our BIPOC neighbors (including Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Southeast Asian and people of color), education, income and health inequities and disparities remain consistent. Unfortunately, in Dane County the color of your skin and the ZIP code in which you live have a significant impact on your quality of life, life expectancy and a wide range of health outcomes.
It is important that we work actively to reduce these disparities and ensure all have equal access to health care by supporting community-based health programs. To address this issue, we’re invested in 14 local nonprofits and 14 local programs that aim to reduce health disparities faced by our BIPOC community members.
We will measure progress by tracking life expectancy in Dane County – a good measure of the population’s longevity and general health.
With your support, we can continue to mobilize the caring power of our community to create lasting, meaningful change that spans generations.
Together, we are The Power of Many. Working for All.
