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| In the Spotlight |
Views of Spring Days of Caring
Teams from more than 20 local businesses gave their time to UWCA's annual Spring Day of Caring. This year, the event expanded to include three separate days of service during National Volunteer Week. In total, more than 1,000 individuals donated 3,729 hours of volunteer time to support 40 projects in the Austin area.
View a slideshow of photos from the day here. Highlights include:
- Students from The University of Texas Austin McCombs Business School helped 25 Decker Middle School students learn and practice life skills such as how to make healthy and budget-friendly choices at the grocery store, dress professionally and stay physically active.
- A team of Walgreens directors and managers worked tirelessly at Scooter's Learning Center to completely renovate the local child care facility. The team installed a canopy over the playground, built shelves for toys and supplies, painted the entire interior and more!
- Volunteers from New York Life installed a Born Learning Trail, Regions Bank helped with landscaping at UWCA and Freescale Semiconductor made site improvements at Little Dudes Child Development Center and harvested produce at YouthLaunch Urban Roots.
Special thanks to the presenting sponsor, Freescale Semiconductor.
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Getting Connected
Volunteer Project Leader Training
Are you ready to learn how to be a leader? UWCA's Volunteer Project Leader Training equips participants with leadership skills and tools to lead volunteer projects. Last year, more than 200 people completed training and are actively working in our community. These leaders have completed more than 200 projects, from school gardens and painting murals to building improvements and many other projects through UWCA Days of Caring.
Wed., June 15 -- 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
United Way Capital Area
2000 E. MLK Jr. Blvd.
Waterloo A conference room
Please register no later than Fri., June 10 by here.
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Your Local United Way in Action
UWCA Employee Honored by Local Professional Organization
Jackie Rogers, UWCA's state and federal campaign manager, has been named the Emerging Public Administration Professional of the Year. She was recognized by the CenTex Chapter of the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA).
Greenlights for Nonprofit Success Researches Local Nonprofit Boards
Boards of Directors are a core component to any nonprofit and, while nearly 40,000 Central Texans serve in these essential roles, there are more than 7,000 empty board seats. In an effort to learn more about the specific needs of Central Texas nonprofits and their boards, UWCA supported Greenlights for Nonprofit Success in conducting an intensive research study to evaluate Central Texas boards of directors and the issues with which they struggle.
Greenlights research found that for the most part, boards are satisfied with the work they are accomplishing and continue to identify ways to work more effectively. Greenlights identified eight key growth opportunities, including:
- Boards need more diversity, both in ethnicity and age.
- Boards find it difficult to recruit new members. Seventy percent of boards report difficulty recruiting qualified, passionate people to serve as board members.
- Most boards are not orienting new members. Only 49 percent of board members participate in a structured in-person orientation.
Read more of the results in the "Central Texas Board Report" available at www.greenlights.org.
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Friends and Partners
Frameworks Director Named as Finalist
Joyce McDonald, executive director of Frameworks Community Development Corp. Inc., was named one of 14 finalists for Ernst and Young LLP Central Texas Entrepreneur of the Year awards. The awards recognize standout local entrepreneurs selected by a panel of past winners, CEOs and business and community leaders.
Frameworks CDC, a UWCA partner agency, is a local non-profit housing counseling agency that partners with banks to provide loans to underserved markets including low-to-moderate income households and minorities.
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In this issue
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Living United
"I chose to become a (Volunteer Project Leader) because it enables me to work with an excellent group of volunteers, contribute to a meaningful cause and hone my leadership skills. Through a project I led with Mainspring Schools, I not only made new friends but also got to know the nonprofit better. I saw my actions mattered to other people and by the end of the day it was absolutely the best feeling! Eventually, I joined the Board of Directors of Mainspring Schools and now I am helping raise funds for this amazing school."
- Bo Zhai
Volunteer Project Leader
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Your Impact
In Travis County, more than 37,000 children under the age of five are living in low-income households. More than half of these children are not served through formal child care before they enter kindergarten. Through the generosity of UWCA donors, Success By 6 is making an impact in the lives of families. In the past five years, 16 percent of child care centers have had access to a mental health consultant; up from 4.5 percent in 2005.
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By the Numbers
This year, UWCA's Helpline answered more than 6,700 calls for free tax preparation services at centers throughout the Austin area. Community Tax Centers, a partnership of UWCA and Foundation Communities, filed 16,927 returns and helped community members secure $29 million in refunds during the 2011 Tax Season.
Ask Debbie
How do the national United Way and United Way Capital Area help people in times of disaster, such as the recent tornados and flooding in the Southeast?
"In the wake of natural disasters, United Ways in the affected areas engage in long-term recovery efforts. They work hand-in-hand with private, faith-based and community partners to help responding agencies provide food, shelter, emergency health and transportation.
Locally, the UWCA Helpline works closely with response organizations and answer calls to 2-1-1 around the clock to provide timely information to those in need."
- Debbie Bresette, President,
United Way Capital Area
Let me know what's on your mind.
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