Thriving Kids
There’s nothing more important than ensuring our community’s children have what they need to thrive. LEARN MORE
- Many of our Youth Success Network partners are wrapping up their summer learning camps. This month we have had the opportunity to visit several of our partners summer programs. Our youth success partners play a vital role in helping young students keep on track with their academic journeys helping to prevent the summer slide while also providing fun enrichment activities.
- Our Youth Success Network Community Events page has been updated! You can now see all the flyers we receive for upcoming events, workshops, and activities happening in our community. Whether you’re looking for family-friendly fun, educational opportunities, or social gatherings, we have something for everyone. Visit the page HERE to explore the latest details, dates, and how to get involved!
- Our Ready for K Alliance recently launched two funding opportunities for community partners. One RFP is for mini grants targeted at community partners doing and supporting work in the early childhood space. The second RFP prioritizes collaboration between R4K Alliance partners to support the overall vision that children enter kindergarten ready to thrive.
- Our Ages & Stages (ASQ) team attended the Help Me Grow Conference in Hartford, Connecticut, in July. There, they had the opportunity to network and learn from organizations across the country engaged in similar work. The team returned with numerous innovative ideas they are excited to implement.
- The Ages & Stages (ASQ) Screening Hub team recently attended the Clark County Library Resource Fair, where they launched a new process to collect attendee contact information. The new approach was a great success and will help strengthen future outreach and follow-up efforts.
- A recent story from our Ages & Stages (ASQ) screening hub:
A long-time Ages & Stages Screening Hub family and survivor of domestic abuse reached out to our team for help navigating an unimaginable abuse and custody situation. In response, the entire Hub team came together to compile a comprehensive list of domestic violence supports, including the Center for Women and Families (CFWF). When the Care Coordinator followed up with her, the mother shared that she had immediately contacted the CFWF and had an hour-long conversation with a staff member. She said it was so good to have someone to talk to. The center connected her to appropriate support groups as well as a caseworker from the Center for Women and Families. The Coordinator will be following up with her to provide additional resources and ongoing support.
Strong Households
When families have what they need, they can break cycles of poverty and work toward a better tomorrow for future generations and our entire community. LEARN MORE
- Without having all their basic needs met, a student’s ability to learn, grow, and thrive will be stymied at best and prevented at worst. Although JCPS employs counselors and resource officers to help students remove barriers to success, connecting students with needed community resources can be challenging and time consuming. Metro United Way, the Association of Community Ministries, and JCPS implemented United Community, a technology platform that enables JCPS staff to connect students/families to their local ACM efficiently and effectively with supports and interventions necessary to improve their health, well-being, and abilities to learn and grow. The pilot focused on implementing United Community in 17 selected JCPS schools (Jan-May 2025).146 JCPS families were involved in this project, with 116 families receiving assistance related to their basic needs. MUW invested $111,000 in this project. Most funds were used for utility assistance, followed by rent, food, and transportation. We are energized by the success of this pilot and look forward to future iterations that positively impact local families and help students remain focused on school!
- Metro United Way continues to offer backbone support to the Housing Alliance of Louisville (HAL). This collective of over forty entities works towards housing justice. The Housing Alliance of Louisville convened for an in-person networking event hosted by Metro United Way. During this meeting, the group kicked off the strategic planning process.
- Through our partnership with the Siemer Institute, we are helping families with children who are unstably housed improve their financial security, so their children have every opportunity to be successful in school. Through the first half of 2025, we have already served 362 families (an increase of 62% from this time last year) who have realized the following results:
- 77% have achieved income stability
- 74% have realized housing stability
- 99% have maintained a level of educational stability by avoiding an unplanned and unsupported school move
We are grateful to the powerful work of our six direct services providers – Americana Community Center, Family Scholar House, Goodwill Industries of Kentucky, Jewish Family and Career Services, Salvation Army of Louisville, and Salvation Army of Southern Indiana – for their diligent efforts in supporting these financially vulnerable families.
- Our workforce financial coaching initiative, funded by Louisville Metro Government, continues to achieve positive impact in the lives of underserved individuals wishing to achieve economic mobility. Through the month of May, we have already well exceeded key performance indicators for this multiple year collaborative, in partnership with Apprisen, Goodwill Industries of Kentucky, and the Louisville Urban League. Over the past two years, these provider partners have conducted a total of 1,861 financial coaching sessions for 439 total individuals, of whom 349 have been engaged for more than once. Among those individuals completing more than one coaching session,
- 260 (74%) have seen progress in one or more financial goal areas, listed as follows:
- 66 have increased their income by a median of $11,043 per year
- 196 have increased their savings by a median of $1,000
- 89 have improved their credit by a median of 25 points
- 124 have reduced their debt by a median of $1,196
- In addition to these valuable gains, we are pleased to share that 32 program participants have purchased automobiles, 9 have gained an educational certification, and 11 have become new homeowners!
- 260 (74%) have seen progress in one or more financial goal areas, listed as follows:
- In the month of June, our 2-1-1 help referral line fielded 1,138 calls from our community. The top request categories were housing and shelter, followed by help with utilities.
Equitable Community
We envision the Greater Louisville region as a place where zip code doesn’t determine destiny and everyone has the opportunity to grow into their full potential. LEARN MORE
- The Black L.O.V.E. Philanthropic Partnership (BLPP) cohort participated in a powerful leadership development session titled “Leading the Work: Mastering The Everyday of Nonprofit Executive Leadership.” The session was facilitated by Carl Williams of 20/20 Strategic Consulting and focused on equipping executive leaders with tools to manage people, priorities, and pace in the nonprofit space.
- Our team facilitated a Racial Wealth Gap Simulation at the JCPS FRYSC (Family Resource Youth Services Center) summer conference, held at Jefferson County Traditional Middle School. The interactive session guided participants—family resource and youth service professionals—through the policy roots of racialized outcomes in housing, education, employment, and food access. The experience deepened understanding of how historical inequities continue to impact the students and families they serve daily.
- A member of our Black Love Philanthropic Partnership Cohort (BLPP), Hip Hop Into Learning (HHN2L), was recently invited to present at the EF Global Leadership Summit in Berlin, Germany in July. HHN2L brought five youth who are members of hip-hop social justice group “The Real Young Prodigy’s (TRYP)” to present on the framework they have used in Louisville to leverage hip-hop as a tool for social change. They assisted in helping youth from around the world create hip-hop verses about 22 youth global issues. Metro United Way helped fund the trip, previewed the presentation and provided feedback, and a member of the Equitable Communities team went with them as a chaperone while they were in Germany.
- Join us virtually on Tuesday, September 30 for our next Beyond Buzzwords event featuring Dr. Jemar Tisby! Learn more and register HERE.