Hundreds of volunteers gathered to evaluate our community's challenges. Our findings were startling:


Education

• Approximately seven out of 10 children in the Lehigh Valley are not ready for kindergarten
• One in four students are not reading at grade level by third grade. Students are four times more likely to drop out of school because they can't understand the reading material--13 times more likely if they are in poverty. Reading at grade level is a big indicator to track high school graduation rates.

Food Access:

• One out of every 10 people in the Lehigh Valley are hungry--75,000 people. More than half of those are above poverty level (a family of four making less than $23,000/year) and are not eligible for food assistance.

Healthy Aging:

• 28,000 seniors are dependent on others to take care of their own basic care needs. This population will double within two years.

United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley is in the next stage of our journey to positively impact the people in our community.

In 2014, 21,000 generous individuals and 400 companies raised $10,809,390 to support children, families and seniors in the Lehigh Valley. Mike Perry, CEO and President of Crayola, was the 2014 UW Campaign Chairman who said, “What’s amazing to me is that the needs are so great, but there are solutions in place due to United Way’s efforts. United Way really does work. If we can all give more, we can do more in the community.”

Your United Way has launched an eight-year plan to substantially change the Lehigh Valley by 2022. Our current investment plan (2014-2018) connects individuals and families across Lehigh and Northampton Counties to programs and services to help children succeed in school, families to have access to quality food, healthy aging and emergency services. This year's funding supports 109 programs at 61 non-profit partners.

 

United Way is the largest non-profit in the world and we know how important measured results are. Yes, we fund programs but more importantly, we make sure those programs are being successful.

What Gets Measured Gets Done.

Your United Way takes those words very seriously.

Three little letters with big outcomes – R.B.A. – Results based Accountability. One area that differentiates United Way is our commitment to accountability and validation of our partner agencies through a rigorous vetting process. R.B.A. changes the model from funding non-profits that do great work to measuring results of programs and services. Knowledgeable, well-trained volunteers and experts from across our community carefully screen and select the programs funded by your United Way contribution. The recommendations for funding are then reviewed and approved by our volunteer Board of Directors. This citizen-review process is United Way’s assurance that contributions are being responsibly managed and monitored.

United Way connects hundreds of human service agencies, government, education partners, and dedicated volunteers around a common vision to solve the greatest needs of our community.

 

Mobilization Creates Better Outcomes, Faster

Coalitions are the perfect vehicle for implementing community-level environmental strategies specifically because their implementation requires a wide range of people taking on many tasks.

United Way Alliance on Aging (Healthy Aging Coalition)
United Way Alliance on Aging is a nationally-recognized Collective Impact movement that complements the work being done by United Way’s non-profit program providers. The Alliance convenes over 300 seniors and employees at 100 for-profit, non-profit and government entities throughout the Lehigh Valley to ensure seniors stay healthier and have a better quality of life.

United Way Community Schools
Community Schools are a prime example of a community coming together to focus on a common issue–to raise graduation rates in the Lehigh Valley.

The model of the Community School consists of a corporate partner, lead agency, community volunteers, educational partners, and programs and services from local non-profits focusing on students in the Lehigh Valley with the greatest need.

Food Coalition
United Way co-founded the Easton Hunger Coalition and the Lehigh Valley Food Policy Council, consisting of over 250 organizations to focus on the issue of hunger and access to healthy food and to expand SNAP for low-income residents.

Collective Impact occurs when organizations from different sectors agree to solve a specific social problem using a common agenda, common measures and mutually reinforcing activities. This approach also maximizes the dollars that United Way is able to invest. With strong community resources, United Way is able to bring several groups together to focus on one challenge, or hundreds of challenges.

When a community comes together and supports one another with the same common goals--which is what it means to “Live United"--great things indeed happen.