United Way of Central Indiana

Family Opportunity Strategy: Our Family Opportunity strategy is grounded in the practice of the Two-Generation Approach (2Gen), which combines investments, programs and services in education, workforce development, and overall health and well-being to create positive outcomes for children and the adults in their lives together. 2Gen is a poverty reduction strategy, aimed at breaking intergenerational poverty while removing barriers to opportunity. Service delivery is accomplished through research and evaluation, grantmaking and community investments, capacity building and community engagement, advocacy and public policy, thought leadership and convening, and programming such as the Centers for Working Families, Parent Advisory Council, and ReadUP. One of the largest investments of the Family Opportunity strategy is its Family Opportunity Fund (FOF). In 2022/23, UWCI awarded $8 million in FOF grants to 29 CBOs. These grants served 10,431 families. 3,624 people were served through the Center for Working Families program; 2,251 people received financial counseling; and 2,134 people received employment counseling. Since 2019, the number of people served through Family Opportunity increased by 81% and the number of services provided increased by 240%. During 2019-2021 45% of families continuously served saw an increase in household income year-over-year, and 70% of parents/caregivers that were continuously served during this period obtained full-time employment. As part of our Family Opportunity strategy, UWCI advocated for public policy focused on improving access to quality early childhood education and, college tuition assistance, and strengthening workforce development programs. We also invested time, talent, and resources in building capacity for local 2Gen programs, early childhood education providers, and community organizations.

Basic Needs Initiatives: Our Basic Needs initiatives provides essential services to our most vulnerable neighbors and life-saving assistance to those in crisis situations - helping those in immediate need survive today so they can thrive tomorrow. UWCI accomplished this through a number of programs and activities: In 2022/23 UWCI granted $8.3 million to 64 organizations through our Basic Needs Impact Fund. These grants helped 40,752 struggling individuals gain access and retain affordable housing; helped 55,661 people access healthy food and nutrition programs; provided 25,800 individuals with access to physical, mental & behavioral health services and provide 13,420 transportation services. We facilitate the federally-funded Emergency Food and Shelter Program for CBOs throughout Central Indiana. We also engage in a number of other Basic Needs programs including Indy Free Tax Prep to assist in tax preparation, and winter assistance for households ineligible for the federal energy assistance. As part of our overall Basic Needs strategy, UWCI advocated for public policy focused on increasing access to temporary assistance funds and simplifying applications for SNAP benefits.

Sector Support: United Way of Central Indiana (UWCI) addresses Central Indiana's most pressing needs in education, financial stability, health, and basic needs. Much of this work was accomplished in fiscal year 2022/23 through support of accredited CBOs across the human services spectrum. These CBOs are part of a rigorous evaluation process that assesses organizational governance; leadership; diversity, equity & inclusion; financial stability; strategic planning; community responsiveness; sustainability & scalability; and ability to market and engage funders to support their work. UWCI also supported these CBOs' general operations through donor designated and other directed gifts ($1.8 million); capital projects ($2.1 million), technology ($579,000) and facilities maintenance grants ($787,000); and evaluation, capacity building, contingency, staff support, and other activities. In addition, UWCI administered donor designated dollars to a wide range of unaffiliated organizations across the non-profit sector ($3.9 million across 1,000 organizations).

Other Program Services: UWCI ensures that all programs and initiatives are backed up with research and data, implemented with fidelity, and leveraged with other community resources. In this fiscal year, these included: community needs/human services research; public policy advocacy; volunteer training, development, and deployment; nonprofit leadership education and training; and convening community leaders and funders to align resources around shared community goals. We also deployed $950,000 to 11 organizations through our Social Innovation Fund grants. These funds were used to establish a thriving retail industry, and build sustainable and scalable businesses for Black and Latinx entrepreneurs; create employment pathways and provide training to previously incarcerated and/or individuals below the poverty line; provide essential health and disease prevention services to the Black community through a barbershop business model; serve immigrant families with a focus on basic needs and well-being activities; and create a partnership between parents and foster parents, so children can achieve positive outcomes. United Way's Social Innovation initiatives supports human service organizations that test promising ideas and practices which ultimately improve program efficiencies, effectiveness, and outcomes for individuals and families in Central Indiana.