United Way For Southeastern Michigan

Creating youth opportunity: united way's works with educators, students, parents and caregivers to help prepare children for success in school and life. Through our in-school and out-of-school programs, we focus on strengthening the whole child, preparing them to learn, grow and succeed in a rapidly changing world. We work to make quality child care more accessible and affordable to all. Our literacy and stem education work fills gaps that traditional systems may not always reach. Core programs include community schools, my home library, building foundations and summer discovery. Combined, these programs benefitted more than 30,000.

Promoting prosperity: a family's economic stability impacts the long-term well-being of multiple generations. United way for southeastern michigan works to address the root causes of the generational poverty by identifying and removing barriers to financial stability and wealth building-helping families establish a strong financial foundation for the future through financial and employment coaching, free tax preparation, barrier-busting transportation support and more. In 2024, our coalition partners filed mort than 22,000 tax returns and claimed more than $29m in tax refunds for alice families. Core programs include: tax assistance and finacial coaching.

United way for southeastern michigan funds, supports and administers several additional programs that support the overall health, well-being and equity of our community and its residents. United way for southeastern michigan's work is guided by the alice (asset limited, income constrained, employed) report, which shows that while an unacceptable number of people in every community are struggling to make ends meet, there are significant disparities when analyzed by age, race, and gender, with traditionally marginalized groups being far more likely to fall below the alice survival threshold. We work to engage our community and shed light on these disparities while promoting equity as a core value of our work. Last year, our racial equity fund invested $1.2 million into 35 organizations across our four counties. Since the fund began in 2022, a total investment of $3.2 million has gone toward supporting the elimination of racial disparities. We are also working to close the digital divide. Last year, we distributed over 900 devices to local students as a part of our efforts to ensure families in our region have equal access to the skills, devices and technology needed to engage in the digital world and prosper. We also mobilized thousands of volunteers and advocates to roll up their sleeves and help their communities and use their voices to push for policies that help working families. Lastly, we provide grants and pay designations to more than 120 nonprofit agencies that provide direct service to the communities of southeastern michigan. More than1 million people are impacted through the investment of resources in education, income, and basic needs.