UNITED WAY OF CENTRAL IOWA BLOG

United Way of Central Iowa and their partners help adult students achieve a high school equivalency diploma that leads to a sustainable career pathway and financial independence through Bridges to Success.

United Way of Central Iowa released its Legislative Agenda for the 2021 session of the Iowa General Assembly at a virtual event held yesterday for elected officials and members of the community.

United Way of Central Iowa has been advocating to eliminate the childcare “cliff effect” for well over a decade. This effort is a current priority of central Iowa’s OpportUNITY Plan to take action against poverty in our region.

Two years ago, I accepted a position at Central Iowa Works under the leadership of Pat Steele. I quickly learned that Pat had a tremendous passion for those underserved and often marginalized in our community, especially people with disabilities. Pat made it his life’s work to make it so that anyone who wanted to work had the opportunity to work in a good job that gave them a sense of purpose and sufficient income to be as independent as possible.

At today’s virtual LIVE UNITED celebration, United Way of Central Iowa announced progress toward the Community Goals for 2020 in Education, Income, and Health with the release of its 2020 Community Impact Report, along with honoring organizations and individuals with the annual LIVE UNITED Awards.

Save, spend, or support? These six steps can help you make a decision.

On December 19, 2019, the U.S. Census Bureau released its 2018 five-year estimates for different data points, including population, housing, and income. Within the release, the results showed improvement from the previous year for the percentage of individuals in central Iowa who are financially self-sufficient, increasing from 67.0 percent to 67.7 percent.

Though 0.7 percent may seem small, it translates into 11,000 more financially self-sufficient central Iowans than in 2017, and more than 36,000 financially self-sufficient central Iowans than 3 years ago. It’s also 0.7 percent closer to our Income Goal of increasing the percentage of central Iowans who are financially self-sufficient to 75 percent by 2020.

At the LIVE UNITED celebration on April 24, 2019, United Way of Central Iowa announced progress toward the community’s Goals for 2020 in Education, Income, and Health with the release of its 2019 Community Impact Report. The event also honored Athene with the Spirit of Central Iowa award, along with several organizations and individuals for their efforts to improve central Iowa over the past year.

Poverty seems like an impossible problem to solve. Many barriers prevent individuals from achieving financial stability, and the solutions seem just as puzzling. 

Yet, there is something we all can do. It starts by asking this one question: How can I help? 

The percentage of central Iowans who were financially self-sufficient increased to 67% in 2017, up 1.1% from the previous year and up 1.8% since 2015, according to the latest U.S. Census data released this December.