Education

 

Did you know?

  • 12% of children in Alachua County start school without adequate language, literacy, emotional and social skills. This rate climbs to 42% at some of our local schools.
  • 28% of third-graders in Alachua County cannot read proficiently
  • 47% of eighth-graders in Alachua County cannot read proficiently
  • By the tenth grade, this number climbs to 56% of students not reading proficiently
  • 35% of high schoolers do not graduate on time. This number climbs to 63% at Eastside High School, when you don't include students in the IB program.

 

EDUCATION: Helping children and youth achieve their potential

United Way is working to increase the number of high school graduates by 2018. It's central to our mission to improve education. It's a big job.

We have to start long before school does. Disadvantaged children come to school years behind their peers, but rarely catch up. The same children struggling to read in the 3rd grade are getting suspended in middle school ---- and dropping out a few years later.

High school graduation is a critical building block for a good life. That's why United Way has put a stake in the ground  ---- and is putting energy, resources and focus behind meeting this ambitious goal.

The Work of United Way:

Success By 6: Since it's inception in 2005, Success By 6 has awarded $1.8 million in grants to programs that are making a measurable difference in improving school readiness. Dental education, parenting education, and home visitation are key services provided by these grants. Thousands of parents and children have benefited from early learning, child care, parent education, health care, and literacy and family resource programs as a result.

Home and Lending Libraries: United Way has set a goal of collecting 10,000 books to provide home libraries to families being served through our partner home visitation programs. Since we know literacy is a major part of school readiness, providing books to children who may not have any is imperitive. Also, we are working with the Alachua County Library District and Shands Hospital to create a hospital-based lending library.

Family Engagement: AT&T and United Way Worldwide (UWW) recently announced that our local United Way has been awarded a Family Engagement For High School Success Grant in the amount of $46,000. This funding is part of a new initiative designed to help parents and caregivers get more involved in their child's education.
 

Strategy 2010-2011 Funding Community Impact: Your gift helps provide…
After-School/Summer Programs and Tutoring/ Mentoring for Low-Income Children & Families $154,000 At-risk children will gain self-confidence, self-esteem and improved mental and physical health. They will avoid drugs, crime and teen pregnancy.  They will enter school ready to learn. They will graduate and get jobs.
Child Care For Working Parents $ 99,500  At-risk children will be ready to learn when they enter school. Parents will maintain financial stability.
Child Abuse & Neglect Treatment and Prevention $214,500 Children will be rescued from abuse and neglect, receive family support and supervised visitation. Programs will reduce trauma and end the cycle of abuse.
  Parenting Skills & Support Through Home Visitation and Parent Education Classes $ 170,000 Parents will raise children who are healthy and ready to learn when they enter school. Parents will be advocates for their children and will have gained parenting skills so that their children ulitmately graduate from high school.

Success Stories