United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania

Community Impact

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Investing in Results
EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN

LIVE UNITED:
Investing in Results

REAL CHANGES
REAL IMPACT
REAL RESULTS

PREPARING CHILDREN & YOUTH TO SUCCEED IN SCHOOL AND IN LIFE

SUCCESS BY SIX

REAL CHALLENGES

Quality early childhood education has been proven to have long-term social and economic benefits. But the pace of investment in assuring that quality is not keeping pace with what our region needs.

While science has shown that 85% of a child’s brain is formed by age three, less than 4% of taxpayer dollars are invested in ways that support child development public investments in education and development have occurred by that time.
Public investments in education and development are more than seven times greater during the school-aged years ($5,410 per child) than during the early learning years ($740 per child).
According to a 40-year study that followed infants into adulthood, every $1 invested in early learning saves $17 down the road.
Only 30% of conditions such as speech impairments, learning disabilities, emotional problems, mental retardation and sensory disorders are detected in young children before they enter school.
Pennsylvania ranks 23rd in a respected national survey measuring child health and well being.

A UNITED APPROACH

United Way has led a region wide campaign to improve the quality of early childhood education for many years. Our early research demonstrated that with mentoring and technical assistance, day care centers could graduate into early childhood education centers, and that all it takes to guarantee that every child in our region enters school ready to learn is a clear strategy and the will to invest in that strategy. United Way invests in early education, early intervention and family support programs that help ensure that children are healthy, nurtured and ready to succeed when they enter school. Throughout our region, we’re supporting proven approaches such as:

Improving the school readiness of 20,000 more children per year by bringing their child care centers to the highest levels of quality.
Developing creative ways of helping parents support their child’s early learning
Teaming with the business community to educate employees about how to find quality care that fosters early learning and why it’s so important for their – and their neighbor’s - children
Advocating for smarter public investments in expanding high-quality early learning opportunities. United Way was a leader in the 2008 advocacy campaign that resulted in new pre-K opportunities for 11,000 additional Pennsylvania children.

WE ALL WIN WHEN YOUNG CHILDREN ARE READY TO LEARN

REAL CHANGE

United Way is creating lasting change by investing in innovative, research-based programs that focus on healthy development and school readiness.

Since mid-2007, United Way’s technical assistance has helped 54 child care centers in the southeastern Pennsylvania region reach the Star 3 quality rating in the state’s Keystone Stars program –this represents over half of the total number of the region’s STAR, which impacted 4,000 children per year.
Over 3,000 parents improved their skills in how they could themselves help their children enter school ready to learn.

STAYING ON TRACK FOR HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION

REAL CHALLENGES

We all know that a high school diploma is a critical foundation for building self-sufficiency and family financial stability. But:

6,000 young people drop out each year in Southeastern Pennsylvania.
The number of school-aged children in Chester, Delaware and Philadelphia counties who are at high-risk for social and academic failure would fill Citizens Bank Park two and a half times -- over 100,000 children.
Philadelphia ranks 79th out of the country’s 100 largest cities in terms of the percentage of the population that has a high school diploma. And this problem is not just a Philadelphia one – 2/3 of Pennsylvania’s dropouts are in the state’s other 66 counties, and it’s not just an urban problem either – statewide, 1 of 8 children in suburban districts fails to graduate.
More than half (56%) of all new jobs in our region’s related to growth sectors will require at least a post-secondary certificate or an associate degree.
The average dropout earns on average only $457,000 in their entire lifetimes – almost half of what a high school graduate will earn.
Almost half of Philadelphians who don’t have a high school diploma rely on cash benefits from the government at some point in their lives – and they are 8 times as likely to end up in prison as those who graduate.

A UNITED APPROACH

United Way invests in mentoring, leadership development, academic enrichment and career exploration programs that provide the support that children at risk need to stay on track and complete their education.

Through our Center for Youth Development, United Way has worked with hundreds of after-school and other youth programs to help them meet the highest standards for assuring positive youth development.
As co-chair of Project U-Turn with the Philadelphia School District of Project U-Turn, United Way has helped lead a citywide strategy that has leveraged over $42 million to improve the quality of our high schools, re-engage dropouts, and lay the ground work of a strategy that aims to increase the city’s graduation rate to 80% over the next five years.
Through our Campaign for Mentors, United Way provides training to new mentors and offers specialized professional development programs to help mentors meet the challenges that today’s urban youth present.
As a founding member of Communities for Public Education Reform, funders collaborative, United Way participated in a coalition that led to serious public education financing reform in 2008 – assuring adequate funding and high standards for children attending public schools in our region for years to come.

WE ALL WIN WHEN YOUNG PEOPLE SUCCEED.

REAL CHANGE

United Way is engaging and inspiring youth so that they stay in school, remain safe, and graduate with positive options for the future.

The first College Access Center in Delaware County was opened in Chester, spurred by a challenge grant from United Way. Over 1,000 young people have been helped in getting to college in just the first year.
1,062 high-risk young people improved their school attendance – and over 3,400 improved their grades
Youth programs serving over 5,000 children benefited from United Way’s quality improvement initiatives.
Over 500 dropouts returned to school and got their HS diploma

Impact on Education

Preparing Children to Succeed in School and in Life

Your Community Impact Funds support our regional campaign to:

Enhance the quality of early education child care centers serving 20,000 children each year.
Equip parents and caregivers to successfully meet the challenges of childrearing.
Expand the availability of high-quality youth development, mentoring and career exploration programs to keep at-risk children on track to high school graduation – and beyond.

A sample of your investment’s performance, YEAR ONE:

Goal		Actual
53	Childcare centers quality ratings improved	80
169	Childcare provider educational training increased	181
8,337	ABC’s of Youth improved (Attendance, Behavior and/or Course grades)	6,945*
1,380	Out-of-school youth completed HS diploma or GED	1,549
*This shortfall is due primarily to the loss of government funding for a number of the agencies funded in this area, resulting in fewer children being served in the related programs.