UNITECentral Ohio

20

16, IS

SUE

I

COLUMBUS KIDS 2.0

TRANSFORMING INVESTMENTS to REDUCE POVERTY

BUILDING A CULTURE OF INNOVATION

What’s Next for CHAMPION OF CHILDREN

Tiwuan Atchley has faced a lot of challenges in his young life, but with the help of United Way he became the first member of his family to go to college.

Read more inside.

Tiwuan: Larger than Life

“I knew I was going to make it big someday, but I never thought I’d be THAT BIG.”

That was Linden-McKinley graduate Tiwuan Atchley after seeing his 25- by 35-foot smiling image covering a building near Broad and High.

LIVING UNITE

D 2014, ISSUE IV

ENGaGING ThE NExT G

ENEraTIoN of LEaDErS

IN ThE Work of UNITE

D Way

With a population of

80 million, the

generation

born betw

een 1982 and

2000, commonly k

nown as millen

nials,

is emerg

ing as a grou

p with a powerful

combination of great

leadership

potential and new vie

wpoints on so

cial

responsibility

. By 2025, these you

ng

professio

nals will

make up as much

as 75% of the workf

orce. Rese

arch

indicates

they value em

ployers

that

make seri

ous efforts

to engage and

retain them and prefe

r to work

for

and patronize

companies

with strong

corpora

te soc

ial responsibility

goals.

The potential of

this genera

tion to c

reate

positive

change is huge.

They alrea

dy

have an underly

ing service

-oriented

attitude, a

nd many are d

eeply i

nvolved

with improvi

ng their loca

l communitie

s.

United Way of

Central Ohio has been

looking at ways

to effe

ctively

connect

with young profe

ssionals a

s part o

f a

pilot grou

p of United

Ways from

across

the country.

We’ve learned a lot

by

hearing directly

from th

em about their

professio

nal and service

goals. They

are very

community-

minded and want

serious a

nd meaningful volunteer

and

philanthropic

opportunitie

s. They

also

want professio

nal networki

ng events,

but ones

that are p

rimarily

structu

red

around cre

ating change, not

just

mingling.

To help

mobilize this

generation

of

caring, engaged young peop

le, United

Way of Central Ohio h

as just l

aunched

an affinity

group called

LINC – Lea

d,

Impact, Netw

ork, Change.

We are o

ne

of only nine United

Ways acros

s the

country

to pilot

this new grou

p, and it

will roll

out to 25 new market

s in 2015

and nationally

in 2016. The group is

directed

by its members,

led by th

e LINC

Leaders

hip Committe

e and focused

on unique volunteer

ing opportunitie

s,

personal and profe

ssional deve

lopment,

and helping to build a str

onger, more

vibrant community.

Members of t

he LINC Lea

dership Committe

e gather t

o

plan strateg

ies for

United Way of

Central Ohio’s newest

affinity

group aimed at yo

ung people b

etween

the ages

of 22 and 30.

“I want to

give back t

o Columbus, t

o

see it

continue to

improve

, to build

up our co

mmunity and make

it the

best city

in America.”

—Nora

Gerber,

member, LIN

C Leadersh

ip Committee

Learn more

about LINC at live

unitedcen

tralohio.org,

#UWLINC or

contact D

iana Schrimpf at 614.227.8701 or

diana.schrim

pf@uwcen

tralohio.org. You

can read more

about LINC’s la

unch event on

page 6.

Partner organizations re

presented on the

LINC Leadersh

ip Committee

UpCOMING EvENTS

Toy Drive

Drop-off Day | D

ecember 3

, 2014, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

United Way of

Central Ohio

holiday Party

with a Purpose | December 1

1, 2014, 5:30 to 8 p.m.

State Auto I

nsurance Companies

Professional Speaker Series | Ja

nuary 28, 2015 | 5:30 to

7 p.m.

“Why I Turned Down Faceb

ook”

Jeff Schumann, Direc

tor of E

nterprise

Collabora

tion, Socia

l and Marketing, Nation

wide

10 West Nation

wide Bouleva

rd

• AEP

• Alliance D

ata

• Cardinal Health

• City of Columbus

• Columbia Gas

• Columbus

Chamber of

Commerce

• Deloitte

• DSW

• EY

• GBQ

• JPMorgan

Chase & Co.

• Mettler T

oledo

• Nationwide

• OhioHealth

• Print Syndicate

• Simply Vague

• State Auto

• The O

hio State

University

• Tween

Brands

• Wolfe Leg

al Services

LIVING UNITED 2015, ISSUE I

ChampIoN of ChILDrEN raISES awarENESS aboUT

“boyS of CoLor, boyS aT rISk”

ambITIoUS mULTIfaCETED CampaIGN CombINES major EVENTS aND rESEarCh

To mobILIzE oUr CommUNITy

Through a series of events and outreach

efforts, Champion of Children is shining a

bright light on the challenges that face boys

of color in central Ohio.

“If you look at the building blocks for

successful child development—a positive

early childhood experience, a strong stable

neighborhood and economic security for

families—boys of color are really at a

disadvantage across all of these factors,” said

Jason Reece, Research Director of the Kirwan

Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity.

Boys of color experience a disproportionate

level of poverty in our community,

and often

live in neighborhoods that are less safe and

have significant blight. “These young men

then come into school facing many barriers

that other kids in our community don’t fa

ce,”

Reece says. One key barrier is implicit bias

- how people unconsciously apply negative

stereotypes to boys of color.

African American and Latino

males are overrepresented in every

area we associate with failure and

underrepresented in every area we

associate with success.”

— Pedro Noguera, PhD.

In past years, Champion of Children has

focused on the effects neighborhood

environments have on learning and on the

long lasting negative ramifications of the

toxic stress that many children in poverty can

experience. This body of research helps to build

a more complete picture of the challenges

boys of color face and how our community can

come together to support them.

Research cited by education expert Pedro

Noguera, PhD, indicates that boys of color

across the country are clearly in a crisis.

African American and Latino males are more

likely than any other group to be suspended

and expelled from school, and dropout rates

for African American and Latino males in most

American cities are well above 50%. They are

less likely to enroll in or graduate from college

than any other group and lag significantly

in grade point average and on standardized

tests. These national trends are reflected in

central Ohio.

“The challenges our boys of color face are

daunting,” said Champion of Children Director

Elizabeth Trotman. “But we believe that our

efforts will build the awareness we need to

mobilize our community to

action.”

ChampIoN of ChILDrEN

EVENTS aND rESEarCh oN

boyS of CoLor:

• American Promise screening, in

partnership with Key Club -January 29

• 2015 Signature Event - March 10

• Latino Partner Breakfast - March 10

• Champion of Children Report Launch at

Columbus Metropolitan Club - June

• Statewide Education Summit, in

partnership with The Ohio State

University - Fall

2015 SIGNaTUrE EVENT

fEaTUrES pEDro NoGUEra

Don’t miss this year’s Champion of Children

Signature Event featuring a conversation with

nationally-recognized education expert Pedro

Noguera, PhD. Dr. Noguera will have an on-stage

conversation with Ann Fisher, host of the radio

program All Sides on WOSU, focusing on boys

of color.

The Signature Event is the centerpiece of

Champion of Children’s awareness-building

efforts and is one of the most popular and

thought-provoking gatherings in central Ohio.

Dr. Noguera is Professor of Education at New

York University and a regular commentator on

education issues on CNN, MSNBC and National

Public Radio.

ThE ChampIoN of ChILDrEN

SIgNATURE EvENT

Southern theatre • March 10, 2015

Register at

liveunitedcentralohio.org/champion-of-children

“

LIVING UNITED 2015, ISSUE II

THE ROAD FORWARD

UNITED WAY FOCUSES ON INNOVATIVE WAYS TO CONNECT, INSPIRE AND SERVE

In November, 2013, the United Way

of Central Ohio Board of Trustees

approved a strategic plan to guide

our organization through 2020, and

began a period of unprecedented

creativity and innovation. The

plan focused on ensuring that

everything we do helps people

build pathways out of poverty.

With that as a foundation, United

Way volunteers and staff went to

work to research and develop the

most effective ways to accomplish

that goal. The result of that work

is now coming into focus and

it is a comprehensive roadmap

that brings fresh thinking to every

aspect of our organization.

The road map builds on United

Way’s decades of experience in

bringing people together to create

a better central Ohio. It builds on

the trust that the organization has

earned, leverages the unparalleled

network of relationships we have

created and uses the latest digital

technology to connect people to

the work we accomplish together.

As we move forward, we will

keep all of our United Way family

members informed about the exciting changes

to come. For now, here are some key elements

of our road forward:

Collective Impact - For the last two years,

United Way has been an integral part of a

group which includes prominent partners

in the business, education, government

and nonprofit sectors. This a long-term,

community-wide effort that will develop and

champion a road map to strengthen families.

The approach will expand the scope of how

we work together and continue the impressive

MY UNITED WAY ___________________.

A new “My United Way” campaign featuring donors, volunteers and

many more will highlight the many facets of United Way’s impact in

Central Ohio. (pictured: Ohio State President Michael V. Drake, MD)

central Ohio tradition of working together to

solve large issues.

The Power of the United Way Network - Another

way we are bringing people and organizations

together is through increased collaboration

with other major United Ways across the

country. There is a tremendous wealth of

knowledge in the United Way network, and we

are working harder than ever to leverage that

knowledge to learn and innovate. Our first

shared priority is individual engagement. With

the help of our peer United Way organizations

we are exploring innovative new

ways to reach people, engage them,

energize them, and show them

how they can work through United

Way to create the community they

want to live in. This includes

developing state-of-the-art digital

capabilities that make giving,

volunteering and inspiring others

effortless and fun.

My United Way campaign - Our

new marketing campaign is

a departure from the past few

years. It focuses on individuals

celebrating the connection to

others that comes from being a

member of the United Way family.

It invites everyone to share not

only the accomplishments we have

achieved together but the ones we

aspire to achieve.

Integrated investments - We are

exploring new ways to integrate

all our investments to increase the

power of our holistic approach to

improving lives. Our investments

in the interconnected areas of

education, income, health and

home have achieved significant

results, and it is time to take this

approach to the next level and create unified

pathways that move people from poverty to

stability to long-term success.

Over the course of this year and next, we will

share much more information on these efforts

and other aspects of the road forward that

will lead to a re-imagined United Way. One

that can nimbly address our community’s

most pressing issues, engage individuals

effectively to make a difference, and continue

to earn the deep trust that so many people

place in us.

UNITECentral Ohio

20

16, IS

SUE

I

COLUMBUS KIDS 2.0

TRANSFORMING INVESTMENTS to REDUCE POVERTY

BUILDING A CULTURE OF INNOVATION

What’s Next for CHAMPION OF CHILDREN

Tiwuan Atchley has faced a lot of challenges in his young life, but with the help of United Way he became the first member of his family to go to college.

Read more inside.

Welcome to the first issue of our new quarterly magazine, UNITE Central Ohio.This new publication replaces our LIVING UNITED newsletter and as you have probably noticed already, it’s quite a bit different. Let’s face it, in our connected world where access to real-time information is immediate (and constant), the idea of getting news once every three months is pretty antiquated. So, we have completely re-imagined our approach to keeping you informed about the work you support.

Instead of recapping events that may have occurred months ago, we will be looking forward to let you know more about where we are going rather than where we have been. (Our monthly emails will keep you up to date on current news.) For example, if you look just across the page to your right you will see an article about our new investment approaches. We still have to work out a lot of the details on how they will be implemented and they won’t take effect until January 2017, but they are an important part of our shared future and you need to know about them.

We know every organization says, “Hey! It’s an exciting time at (organization name)!” But we are truly sincere when we say, “Hey! It’s an exciting time at United Way of Central Ohio!” More of our staff members are engaged in more exciting projects than ever before. We are transforming the way we do business and throughout the magazine you will see the people who are making it happen, front and center.

You will also see more links to online content including lots of photos and videos. The best way to connect to these great multimedia features is by viewing the magazine at our website: liveunitedcentralohio.org. And while you are online please like our social media feeds. Needless to say, we have a very limited amount of space in the magazine to share all of the events United Way supporters participate in, but you can find hundreds of event photos across our feeds.

We hope you enjoy UNITE Central Ohio magazine and we want to hear your thoughts on how we can make it better. You can email us at editor@uwcentralohio.org, post on our Facebook page or tweet at us at @uwco.

COL-WS-111 United Way

See Tiwuan’s story.2

A New Year, a New Beginning

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Central Ohio faces an unprecedented dilemma. Our economy has recovered from the Great Recession and unemployment is the lowest it has been in years. But the number of people in poverty remains stubbornly high. To address this situation, we have to innovate and develop solutions that go beyond anything we have done in the past.

With this in mind, United Way staff and volunteers have spent months reimagining our approaches to investing our donor’s contributions to maximize their effectiveness. We have made great progress. We have aligned proven strategies with agile funding approaches in a way we believe will transform and accelerate our efforts to reduce poverty. In a nutshell, through our new approaches we will progress from interconnected investments to integrated investments that work even more closely together to expand positive change.

Our new integrated investment model was developed with the leadership and input of hundreds of diverse volunteers and community partners and will take effect on January 1, 2017. We still have a lot of details to work out but we want to share some of the big picture concepts behind the transformation. Stay tuned. We will share much more in upcoming UNITE Central Ohio issues.

Transform and Accelerate

At a county-wide level, we will work to promote public and system policies that reduce poverty by providing opportunities for people who are struggling to succeed.

We know where the greatest needs are and where we can help the most. We will work to provided coordinated and integrated services that put people on a proven path to stability.

We will concentrate some investments in neighborhoods where partners have created momentum for improvement and where United Way’s experience will be the most effective.

3

Building a Culture of Innovation

The world is moving faster. Innovative new ways of approaching issues are being developed and launched all day, every day. In this environment, we realized we had to re-imagine the way we work at United Way. We had to create a culture where seeking opportunities to be more effective at reducing poverty is our constant goal and measure.

So, we banded together with 11 other United Ways across the country and the renowned change management company Kotter International to change the way we do business. We sought ideas from everyone. We had pop-up meetings. Lots of pop-up meetings. We voted on how to proceed. We began to change a top-down culture into a more nimble, innovative one focused on ideas and innovation.

It’s still early days in these transformative efforts but we have already experienced a tremendous boost in energy at 360 South Third Street. Teams of people at every level and from every department are coming together, hashing out new ways to work, building prototypes, testing, failing and learning.

Everyone is involved but three teams—focused on key organizational priorities—have emerged that together make up what Kotter calls a “Guiding Coalition.” The members of these groups are bringing their experience and ideas to bear in determining the best opportunities for making United Way better.

Here’s a snapshot of what the Guiding Coalition teams are up to:

Learn more about Guiding Coalitions.

4

Pop-up meetings are creating energy and innovation at United Way.

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Data and TechnologyGetting concrete, measurable results is in United Way’s DNA. That means we collect and analyze a lot of data. Bringing that data to life through the use of technology is the challenge this team

of internal and external experts has taken on. The potential payoff is not just greater efficiency but the ability to see data in new ways that spur thinking and innovation.

“We started with the question, ‘How do we leverage data and technology in ways that better connect people with the work of United Way?’ That got us thinking about data visualization and finding ways to use real-time data on our results to clearly tell donors what their gift does. We are already working on some exciting prototypes, and there is a lot more to come.”

Prosperity IncubatorThe mission of this team is to create an incubator for innovative, rapid, dynamic and collaborative problem-solving aimed at reducing poverty in our community. The concept emerged as design thinking teams, inspired by work with Kotter International, reflected upon ways to create

culture change and increase internal and external engagement at United Way. The team is looking to model the culture of many start-up tech companies—a place where very few nonprofits currently are operating.

We Reduce Poverty This team is focused on developing simple, powerful ways to talk about the work of United Way that center on the consistent message– WE REDUCE POVERTY. United Way is involved in many, many efforts across the community and

when it comes to telling people what we do and why it is important, messages can become complicated and unclear. This team aims to clear away the clutter and develop a playbook that can inspire everyone.

“Rapid innovation and change requires a staff that is playing from the same playbook, singing from the same songbook. Our team has taken on the task of creating a living culture document, Our Way, that speaks to what we believe and how we behave as we work together to reduce poverty.”

“This project potentially gives us both a conceptual framework and a physical space to be innovative in the work of reducing poverty. It will allow us to show the community that we are really thinking in a different way and moving quickly but deliberately to make great impact.”

MAUREEN HENRY Data Services Coordinator

CHRIS GROVES Director of Digital Marketing

MELANIE MURPHY Volunteer Engagement Manager

5

CHAMPION OF CHILDREN:Focus on Boys of Color in 2016

DELILAH LOPEZ Director, Champion of Children

In 2015, Champion of Children worked to raise awareness about the many challenges facing boys of color. The education initiative did more on this subject than it has for any previous theme, but as it worked to determine its focus for 2016 it was clear that much more needed to be done. So, Champion of Children will continue to look at boys of color in 2016 and dig deeper into the big issues that face them like poverty, implicit bias, and the school to prison pipeline.

The 2016 Champion of Children report will expand on the 2015 report and offer not only an analysis of the plight of boys of color but a concrete, detailed call to action for our community to get involved in activities like mentoring that help boys of color succeed.

Poverty by race/ethnicity, boys under age 18, Franklin County, 2013150,000

131,250

93,750

75,000

56,250

37,500

18,750

0

Total White Non-White or (non-Hispanic) Hispanic/Latino

All boys under age 18

In poverty

100%

25.6%

100%

38.7%

100%

14.6%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 1-year estimates

“People need to understand more about the huge challenges facing our boys of color. Even though we have spent a year raising awareness on this subject, it became clear we need to do more. That’s why we are devoting our efforts in 2016 to going even deeper.”

Learn more about the challenges facing boys of color.

6

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Over the past five years, Columbus Kids and Franklin County Kids coordinators have assessed almost 19,000 preschool children. Many of these children had developmental delays and were referred to services that can help them get back on track. This crucial work of ensuring more children enter kindergarten ready to succeed will remain the core of our efforts as we look to the future.

Using it as a strong foundation, our programs have now expanded to encompass many other factors that have a direct impact on children. We are confident that this enhanced model, Columbus Kids 2.0, will make our work even more effective at achieving positive results.

Columbus Kids 2.0 is off to a fast start. Our coordinators have already begun conducting visits to the homes of young children (ages 2 – 5) that have been assessed as needing services and providing more comprehensive assessments of the whole family. Since we know that the educational success of our children is based on many factors like family health, parent employment and housing, these comprehensive assessments provide the opportunity for coordinators to connect families with a wide range of services. Every service that helps families maintain a stable home life goes a long way toward helping their children do better in school.

Columbus Kids 2.0: Building on Success

CINDY STURNI Senior Director, Early Childhood Initiatives

Coordinator connects father to job training

services

Coordinator connects mother to prenatal medical services

Child enters kindergarten

ready to succeed.

Coordinator connects child to needed

developmental services

Home assessment determines father needs connection

to job training and mother is

pregnant but lacks medical care

Home visit by coordinator to assess

family needs

Child screened and needs developmental

services

Family receives needed

services and is able to

move forward in several

interconnected ways

Coordinator checks in

regularly to ensure family

is linked to services

How Columbus Kids 2.0 Works

“Columbus Kids 2.0 is an exciting new chapter for our program. We know that the success of preschool children depends on many factors, especially the challenges that may face their families, and our new model means we can help the child by helping the family.”

7

UNITE Central Ohio 2016, ISSUE I

United Way of Central Ohio360 South Third Street. Columbus, OH 43215614.227.2700 LiveUnitedCentralOhio.org

Editor: KERMIT WHITFIELD Design: ANDY RUBEY

United Way donors at the highest level ($10K+) have long represented the fastest, most efficient way to reduce poverty in central Ohio. And with a new year, brings a new focus: growing our Tocqueville Society membership, and increasing impact in our community.

Through the campaign leadership of Huntington CEO Steve Steinour and key Tocqueville volunteer leaders, United Way is actively reshaping our Tocqueville Society’s approach and brand. We’re setting ambitious goals to expand the ranks of community leaders in 2016 and beyond who lead through their ideas and their actions. In

Steinour’s words, “To continue making ground-breaking advances in reducing poverty, there are many who must step up—it’s imperative for our city to thrive.”

Toward that goal, our United Way has begun transforming our organization, re-aligning staff, and identifying best practices from across the United Way network. Part of the change involves implementing a three-part plan which includes, among much else, the establishment of an exclusive, signature annual event, the creation of a new donor match fund, as well as invitations to world-class experiences for members.

If there is a community-wide group which cuts across cultural boundaries, where the common thread is desire to help level the playing field for thousands, and, in turn, create a stronger central Ohio, it’s Tocqueville. Call it a who’s who, movers, shakers, players—or just a collection of our most generous neighbors. To us, it’s a group that helps us make great progress towards reducing poverty.

And that’s a group we’d all like to see grow.

ANGEL HARRIS SVP, Resource Development & Chief Development Officer

“Our 2015 Campaign Co-Chairs Steve and Patti Steinour have helped energize our efforts to greatly expand the number of Tocqueville members and set a powerful vision for the future of this important group. Our community has great potential and their leadership is making a significant difference. Our aim is to make the Tocqueville Society the preeminent giving group in central Ohio and I believe the engagement opportunities planned for 2016 and beyond will get us there.”

Alexis de Toqueville Society takes on new focus and energy in 2016.

Society, Higher

STEVE STEINOUR

United Way of Central Ohio

@UWCO

UWCO

United Way of Central Ohio