United Way works to end America’s education crisis
Education is the cornerstone of individual and community success. But with more than 1.2 million children dropping out each year, America faces an education crisis. The cost? More than $312 billion in lost wages, taxes and productivity over their lifetimes. These trends are reversible, but only when communities and public, private and nonprofit sectors work together.
Our Goal
To provide a solid educational foundation for all students to achieve their potential. More than 30% of our students are ecomonically disadvantaged which contributes to lower proficiency scores. Our goal is to decrease barriers to learning. It’s an ambitious goal, but by utilizing our core strengths — committed partners and public engagement capacity — we can achieve it.
Our Strategy
We can’t focus on high school alone. High school dropouts are 12 years in the making, usually starting early childhood education behind schedule. United Way's model focuses on supportive communities, effective schools and strong families . Tackling the education challenge requires providing early learning opportunities, youth mentoring programs and assistance in overcoming barriers to learning.
How You Can Help
To reach our goal, we need your help. The strategies proven to work are those that connect communities to their schools: parent involvement; literacy volunteers in the classroom; mentors for disadvantaged students; business leaders engaged in early childhood advocacy. Volunteer to help.