GREATER KALAMAZOO UNITED WAY INC

Programs: Program investments - the united way of the battle creek and kalamazoo region (uwbckr) advances the common good by creating opportunities for a better life for all. We focus on education, income, and health - the building blocks for a good quality life. We all have a stake in creating a healthy, prosperous community. Improving conditions for even one has an effect on us all. . . We all win when a child succeeds in school, when a family becomes financially stable, and when people have good health. Through the generous, undesignated gifts from donors, uwbckr invests in essential services and also supports comprehensive and innovative approaches that addresses the underlying causes of problems. The battle creek and kalamazoo communities each have committees of knowledgeable volunteers who determine which programs would have the greatest impact on the respective community from uwbckr resources. Recipients of uwbckr resources are carefully monitored to ensure they are providing the services needed to address some of the community's most pressing issues. One such program involves promoting social emotional learning at k-8 after-school settings. When youth participate in social emotional learning focused programs, they gain 11% on gpa, score higher on standardized tests and are less likely to engage in high risk behaviors. Social emotional learning data collected from four uwbckr-funded after school youth development programs indicated that the percentage of students who are categorized as "in need of social and emotional learning" in the first rating period decreased from 38% to 29% (national norm = 16%). Approximately 4. 23 million pounds of food were supplied through uwbckr supported programs and initiatives; each dollar invested resulted in $10 worth of food into the community. More than $6. 4 million was brought back to the battle creek and kalamazoo region by over 100 trained volunteers filing over 8,600 combined income tax and credit returns for low-to moderate-income workers through the volunteer income tax assistance initiative.

donor designations - uwbckr allows donors to designate gifts to other united ways or other qualifying agencies. Approximately 5,100 donors designated their gifts to 661 agencies in the 2014 campaign.

community impact/service divisiondedicated staff devoted to advancing the common good by optimizing opportunities for systems change and improvement in the areas of education, income, health and community supports. This is accomplished through ongoing collaboration, assessment and work with community volunteers and a network of community partnerships to understand the needs and to invest funds in targeted outcome areas and community programs with measurable outcomes. Handson, battle creek: handson (a program of uwbckr) mobilizes volunteers and connects people, information and services to build a strong, caring community. Handson also serves as the 211 coordinator for calhoun, barry, st. Joseph, ionia and montcalm counties.

grants and initiativesin addition to the program investments noted above, uwbckr volunteers and staff provide funding and grants for various initiatives throughout both communities. Uwbckr provides support for the kalamazoo county 211 call center. In battle creek, uwbckr has worked with other partners to provide $300,000 in emergency assistance to address those needs in the areas of food, shelter and access to healthcare. In kalamazoo, the community investment cabinet awards additional programming grants to community partners in the areas of education, income and health. Over $340,000 in grants were awarded to area programs this year. Uwbckr is also able to provide services to the community by leveraging funding from sources other than the annual campaign. Some examples include:community engagement: through community engagement, uwbckr seeks to learn more about members of the community including donors, volunteers and other community members so that they can be engaged in the area(s) of work that most interest them. In partnership with the harwood institute and other community partners, battle creek is the first-ever beacon community, which is a national model for uniting individuals and organizations to address community challenges. Eviction diversion: working with other community partners in kalamazoo, the eviction diversion program is designed to assist landlords and tenants in resolving back rent situations before tenants lose their homes. Working with tenants and landlords, the program strives to help tenants avoid eviction and to help landlords avoid the expensive eviction process. The program has gained state and national exposure for its collaborative effort. Kydn: kalamazoo youth development network mobilizes partnerships to improve the status of youth through networking, program improvement, staff training, and agency collaboration. Its mission is to increase opportunities for youth in kalamazoo county to gain skills and realize their potential. Kydn facilitates positive youth development through community partnerships and the delivery of creative, innovative and research-proven programs. These methods foster the continuous improvement of positive youth development in kalamazoo county.