Community Impact Bold Goals 2020-2025
We have one bold goal per impact area: health, education, and financial stability. Within each goal, we are keeping a close watch on 4-5 specific performance measures (denoted with the orange "PM"). To reach our 5-year goals, we have set annual targets. If we reach or exceed our target, we get a green label. If we get close to our target, we get a yellow label. If we do not reach our target, we get a red label. The explanations for the data are available in the "Story Behind the Curve" narratives.
To view multiple years of data and narrative portions, please slide the blue button all the way to the right. Questions? Please contact Anneke Mundel, Community Impact Director, amundel@uwstory.org.
Why Is This Important?
Health is a central tenant of a great quality of life. Good health keeps kids in school, keeps adults employed, which helps keep households stable. By investing in the health of 4,500 more residents in Story County, we can chip away at the inequities that keep people from succeeding. Health services can range from in-home hospice to mental health, substance abuse counseling to healthy food.
COMPELLING CONCERNS:
• 16% of Story County residents are food insecure, representing 14,730 individuals (County Health Rankings, CHR)
• 10% of Story County residents have limited access to healthy food, representing 8,707 individuals (CHR)
• 26.5% of students receive free or reduced-price lunch (Iowa Department of Education)
• 11% of Story County adults reported 14 or more days of poor mental health per month (CHR)
• 12.5% of all youth deaths in Story County were by suicide in 2017 (Iowa Department of Public Health)
*Data from 2019 or most recent year available. While these indicators are not the only ways to assess health in our community, these are data points that illustrate that there is a need in our goal area.
UNITED WAY’S RESPONSE:
Healthy food: We will increase acess to healthy food and nutrition programming.
Mental health services: We will provide awareness programming and therapeutic services.
Social connectedness: We will increase community inclusion and provide social/emotional support.
Why Is This Important?
For years, the work of our local collaboration has been recognized by the national Campaign for Grade Level Reading. This work doesn’t start and end in third grade. We need to give kids a great start by helping support parents, delivering engaging out of school experiences, utilizing proven intervention strategies, and equipping community members with tools to address issues of impact. We also recognize the vital nature of community support in volunteering for mentoring programs and summer learning.
COMPELLING CONCERNS:
• 27.2% of Story County kindergarten students were not proficient in reading in SY18-19 (Iowa Department of Education)
• 26.2% of Story County 3rd graders were not reading proficiently in SY18-19 (Iowa Department of Education, ISASP)
*Data from 2019 or most recent year available. While these indicators are not the only ways to assess education in our community, these are data points that illustrate that there is a need in our goal area.
UNITED WAY’S RESPONSE:
High quality early childhood education: We will increase access to underserved children by providing sliding fee scales and encouraging a focus on equity.
Parenting knowledge and skills: We will support parents in their role of being their kids’ first teachers.
Grade level reading supports: We will increase access for out-of-school learning and proven intervention strategies.
Community-based education and awareness: We will educate community members on issues of impact and empower them with tools to take action.
Why Is This Important?
Thousands of Story County families aren’t in the financial position to weather even a small storm, struggling paycheck to paycheck. The COVID-19 pandemic has been no small storm. The numbers of people looking for help with basic needs is staggering. The work to build financially stable families can range from emergency support to helping families stay in school or maintain employment to strengthening their financial literacy. The final result of this is improved financial capacity and the ability to save for future emergencies.
COMPELLING CONCERNS:
• 21.5% of Story County individuals have incomes below the federal poverty level. This represents 18,527 individuals (American Community Survey, ACS)
• 19% of Story County households experience severe housing problems, defined as households with at least 1 of 4 housing problems: overcrowding, high housing costs, lack of kitchen facilities, or lack of plumbing facilities (County Health Rankings)
• 6.9% of households in Story County receive cash public assistance income and/or food stamps/SNAP. This represents 2,577 households (ACS)
• 20.8% of Story County adults 25 years+ have a high-school diploma or less education (ACS)
• Only 22% of surveyed individuals in Iowa said they had participated in financial education through school, college, or workplace (2018, M20, FINRA National Financial Capability Study)
*Data from 2019 or most recent year available. While these indicators are not the only ways to assess financial stability in our community, these are data points that illustrate that there is a need in our goal area.
UNITED WAY’S RESPONSE:
Emergency food and homelessness prevention: We will provide for basic needs.
Employment support: We will help individuals remain in school and/or maintain employment.
Financial education: We will provide basic personal finance education and other financial programs.
Clear Impact Suite is an easy-to-use, web-based software platform that helps your staff collaborate with external stakeholders and community partners by utilizing the combination of data collection, performance reporting, and program planning.