UNITED WAY OF CASS-CLAY
219 7th St S, Fargo, ND 58103 www.unitedwaycassclay.org

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Organizations Filed Purposes: We improve lives by activating resources to solve complex community issues and create lasting social change.

Bold Community Goals:United Way makes investments in measureable progress toward increasing access and reducing barriers for underserved, at-risk and vulnerable individuals to achieve 4 BOLD Community Goals:1. Reduce Hunger & Homelessness2. Prepare Children to Succeed3. Help People be Independent4. Lift People out of PovertyBOLD Goal #1, Reduce Hunger and Homelessness:- The Issue: o Of those experiencing hunger in our community, 37% are children. o An estimated 1,075 individuals are experiencing homelessness on any given night in our community.- The Action: o Working with our community partners we increased access to food, while addressing the root causes of hunger through the Cass Clay Hunger Coalition. o We've worked to increase the number of individuals who are able to attain stable housing by 37% in the past four years.- The Results: o 3,484 children received food on the weekends and during summer when school was not in session. o 93% of individuals were able to maintain stable housing for 12 months while in programming.In July 2019, the United Way Board of Trustees approved an investment strategy to make measurable progress towards BOLD Goal #1, Reduce Hunger and Homelessness. This investment strategy was based on nationally recognized research, housing first principles, and local collaboration and coordination. United Way seeks to make investments towards measureable progress to reduce hunger for families and children through system-wide collaborative initiatives and to reduce homelessness for youth and families with children through system-wide collaborative Initiatives.Housing Navigation Program: As the issue of homelessness continues to grow, we know that innovative solutions are needed to help local people in need be housed more rapidly and for longer periods of time. With the help and expertise of an experienced leadership team, we co-designed and launched this project focused on collaboration and stopping the cycle of homelessness.Housing Navigation is a community-based, solution-focused strategy that assists individuals with complex and frequently occurring issues that prevent them from accessing and maintaining stable housing. The goal of this investment is to create a new culture of service delivery and enhance collaboration and partnerships among homeless-service providers.With this proven approach, our partners create a link between existing resources and case management, thus closing gaps and removing barriers in order to achieve housing stability for our most vulnerable homeless population - men, women and children who are chronically homeless - while reducing the usage of costly community services such as detox admissions, ambulance transports, jail time, emergency room visits and emergency shelter stays. In 2019, 47 active Housing Navigation Program participants were able to attain housing, with 100% stably housed for at least 6 months. There were 24 participants who had been enrolled in the program for at least 12 months and had sufficient data to compare their pre- and post-housing usage of costly community services. These participants reduced the usage of these costly services for an estimated cost savings to the community of $437,932.United Way is proud to partner with Presentation Partners in Housing to continue to implement this innovative strategy. Over the past three years of this program, there has been a combined cost savings estimated at $1,017,445 for our local community!BOLD Goal #2, Prepare Children for Success:- The Issue: o 68% of children in North Dakota and 55% of children in Minnesota ages 3 and 4 are not in preschool. o Students who read proficiently by third grade are 4 times more likely to graduate from high school.- The Action: o We increased the number of children enrolled in quality pre-K programming by 40% over the past 4-years. o We collaborated with community-based nonprofit service providers and school districts to provide school-based behavioral and mental health support in all metro and rural Cass County school districts.- The Results: o 96% of children enrolled in pre-k programs demonstrated age-appropriate skills preparing them socially, emotionally, and academically for kindergarten. o More than 6,000 packed backpacks helped students be prepared to learnStudent Mental Health In response to the growing behavioral and mental health needs of students, United Way partnered with Central Cass, Kindred, Northern Cass, and West Fargo Public Schools to increase access and remove barriers for students needing mental health services. Students receive mental health services on-site at their schools from nonprofit service providers.The best way to make proactive investments into reducing barriers to mental health services for families is to collaborate with our schools and nonprofit partners to provide services where children spend their days. These professionals provide parents and guardians with the information they need to support their child's mental well-being and navigate the medical and insurance system. By providing services in the schools, the barrier of transportation is eliminated for students and their families.During 2018-2019, our partnership expanded services to more schools in rural Cass County. Of those students served:- 97% continued to the next grade level- 80% decreased absenteeism or maintained attendance of at least 90% of school days- 87% reduced behavioral referrals in schoolWith the success we have seen with the Rural Cass Mental Health Initiative, we are excited to replicate these on-site mental health services at West Fargo Public Schools for students in middle school and high school. BOLD Goal #3, Help People be Independent:- The Issue: o Low-income individuals are nearly 2.5 times more likely to have depression. o The average nursing facility rate in North Dakota is $280.44 per day as of January 1, 2019, that equates to $102,360.60 for a year.- The Action: o Our work expanded trauma-informed care and coordination for child victims of abuse. o We expanded navigation services for individuals throughout rural Clay County to stay independent and in their own homes.- The Results: o 72 households prevented from being evicted. o 1,121 individuals were able to maintain appropriate level of independent living. o 4,907 individuals received trauma-informed care and services.BOLD Goal #4, Lift People out of Poverty:- The Issue: o 1 in 9 people live in poverty in our community. o Living in poverty (living on less than $25,750 a year for a family of four) is one of the single greatest threats to a child's development.- The Action: o We expanded the Workforce Development Case Manager program. Six Case Managers provided 400 low-income individuals and new Americans with supportive services necessary to obtain and maintain living-wage employment. o We invested in child care scholarships that provide opportunities for 98 children of low-income working families to access quality early childhood education. o An on-demand public transportation service called TapRide was launched to provide reliable transportation services to individuals in the Fargo Industrial Park.- The Results: o 57% of individuals obtained living-wage employment; the remaining 43% are actively working with case managers. o 96% of children served entered kindergarten socially, emotionally, and academically ready.

Leadership Programs:35 Under 35 Leadership ProgramThe purpose of the United Way 35 Under 35 Women's Leadership Program is to:-Mobilize the caring power of women-Energize and inspire women to make a difference-Deepen leadership opportunities in the Cass-Clay community for young womenSince 2009, 385 local women have participated in the leadership program. The 12th annual program began in January 2020 and participants met monthly for 6 months to focus on various issues pertinent to young leaders. Each session is led and presented by local leaders and includes training and discussion as well as goal-setting, communication, personal growth, board leadership, public speaking, conflict management, and several additional leadership topics.Employers of United Way 35 Under 35 Women's Leadership Program participants benefit greatly from the experience as participants are able to: -Connect with a diverse network of dynamic young women and local leaders-Expand knowledge of the community and opportunities to serve in leadership positions-Gain confidence and skills to lead in current and future positions at their companies/organizationsEmerging Leaders ProgramEmerging Leaders is a network of community-minded professionals who are looking to make connections with purpose while creating real and lasting change in our community. This is an opportunity for leaders to position themselves to take action and learn how to effectively give back their time, talents and resources to make the greatest impact in our community.Through events, Emerging Leaders have the ability to connect and build skills with local professionals who have the same interest to improve our community through United Way's BOLD Goals. They also have the opportunity to roll up their sleeves and volunteer with other Emerging Leaders by sharing their knowledge and skills with the community.In 2019, there were 740 members of the Emerging Leaders program representing over 100 businesses.

Community Investment:United Way hosts three major community volunteer events and programs each year: School Supply Drive, Day of Caring and Imagination Library. School Supply Drive2019 marked the 21st year of the annual School Supply Drive, which provides students in need with a new backpack filled with supplies so they can start the school year confident, ready to learn and prepared to succeed. 6,033 local kindergarten through 12th grade students were equipped with backpacks filled with school supplies. Students enrolled in every school district across Cass & Clay Counties received backpacks and more than 600 volunteers helped in collecting supplies, preparing backpacks, and distributing them to students in our community. Day of CaringEvery year, local seniors request the community's help to prepare for winter by completing tasks from raking and mowing to basic cleaning and organizing. They enjoy an afternoon of companionship as well as assistance from the caring United Way volunteers.2019 marked the 28th annual Day of Caring volunteer event in our community. More than 2,000 individuals volunteered their time to help nearly 600 senior citizens in their homes.Imagination Library 2019 marked the 16th year of United Way's local partnership with this national program. United Way partners with the Dolly Parton Foundation to provide children ages birth through 5 with a free book in the mail each month to help spark a love for reading. Our partnership provides children in Cass and Clay counties the possibility to build a home library of 60 books before they enter kindergarten.Because parents are a child's first teacher, Imagination Library gives them a fun and easy way to get involved with their child's early education. Studies show that 97 percent of parents surveyed reported that the program has encouraged them to read more to and with their children.In 2019, 99,335 books were distributed to 7,931 local children monthly. Additionally, United Way is proud to sponsor the following community events and programs:-VITA | Since 2014, United Way has invested $10,000 annually to two Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) programs. It's more than providing people with education and resources about financial stability; it's giving them support and encouragement and creating connections in our community. In 2019, 1,213 individuals were served by 37 volunteers and received a total of $2,838,113 in both state and federal tax refunds. -Fargo UNITED & West Fargo UNITED | 1,375 youth in our community were impacted by these two projects hosted by both the Fargo Police Department the West Fargo Police Department. The events provided free food, games, and entertainment for all of those in attendance. The event had many members of local Law Enforcement in attendance and officers were able to connect with local youth and families throughout the entire event. The two events helped bridge gaps and show that Law Enforcement in the West Fargo and Fargo Communities can be trusted.-Hunger and Health Summit | 70 attendees joined in for the second annual Hunger and Health Summit held in Cass and Clay counties. This summit highlighted the history of the community's Hunger Coalition, current data and research, innovative and collaborative projects, and what next steps could be taken by individuals and agencies to better work together to end hunger in our community along with a policy panel included local elected officials. United Way held a role in the planning and facilitation of this summit along with co-sponsoring the lunch provided to the participants.-Area Preschool Advocates 2019 Childhood Education Conference | 254 early childhood professionals received training on age specific classroom ideas, management, and tips through this full day conference. These professionals were equipped with new skills and information to return to their programs throughout the community increasing quality of care they provide.

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