United Way of Elgin announces 2015-17 investment cycle

Over the past decade, United Way of Elgin has evolved from its roots as a fundraising organization to an important community convener that works to mobilize local partners, including businesses, community leaders, public officials and community residents to expand opportunities for people to succeed.

In 2013, United Way of Elgin embarked on a strategic planning process to ensure the alignment of its resources in order to achieve measurable impact.

After months of discussion, including interviews with community leaders, the board identified education as the top priority and adopted an overarching goal of "creating a well-educated community prepared for success."

Within that broad goal, four focus areas were identified: "Success by Six/Early Learning," "Reading Success," "College and Career Readiness," and "Strong and Secure Families."

Education is one of the most powerful antipoverty strategies. While employment may be the trigger that pulls one above the poverty line, education is the primary and most consistent driver of sustained upward growth. People with higher levels of academic achievement earn more and are better able to support their families. Early intervention in the form of high-quality childcare and preschool can help level the playing field early on.

Continuing support through youths' school years and connection to enriching opportunities and caring adults improve outcomes through the lifespan and are important factors in advancing youth toward high school graduation and beyond.

United Way of Elgin also knows that a stable home life is crucial to one's educational advancement.

The "Strong and Secure Families" focus area acknowledges that many in our community face significant challenges that affect parents' ability to meet their family's basic needs, which jeopardizes a child's ability to have a consistent path to growth and development. Therefore, we are also committed to ensuring there is an accessible, secure community safety net to help stabilize those in need.

To identify the very best education programs to help us achieve our goal, United Way of Elgin is accepting applications from community organizations seeking funding in one of the first three focus areas: "Success by Six/Early Learning," "Reading Success," "College and Career Readiness."

Organizations do not have to be located in Elgin, but must serve the greater Elgin area. Application information, including eligibility criteria, timelines, and guidelines is available on the website at www.uwelgin.org. Wednesday, April 1 is the deadline to apply.

Funding for "Strong and Secure Families" programs is limited to currently funded agencies. United Way of Elgin will not accept unsolicited applications for funding in that focus area.