United Way Of Summit And Medina

WE IMPROVE LIVES BY MOBILIZING COMMUNITY RESOURCES TO ADVANCE THE COMMON GOOD.

COMMUNITY IMPACT - COMMUNITY IMPACT IS THE EFFORT TO ALIGN RESOURCES AROUND COMMON STRATEGIES TO ACCOMPLISH BOLD GOALS. UWSM BRINGS TOGETHER NON-PROFIT AGENCIES, GOVERNMENT AGENCIES, TOPICAL EXPERTS, VOLUNTEERS AND FUNDERS TO PLAN AND WORK COLLABORATIVELY TOWARD ACHIEVING COMMUNITY-WIDE OBJECTIVES. AS PART OF THAT EFFORT, WE INVEST RESOURCES IN NONPROFIT AGENCIES, INTERNAL PROGRAMMING, AND VOLUNTEER ACTIVITIES THAT HAVE A TRACK RECORD OF IMPROVING EDUCATION, INCOME, AND HEALTH IN SUMMIT AND MEDINA COUNTIES.

SUMMIT COUNTY CARES - BY MARCH OF 2020, IT WAS CLEAR THAT THE COMMUNITY NEEDED TO DEVELOP A SYSTEM FOR CHANNELING STATE AND FEDERAL AID TO THE SUMMIT COUNTY RESIDENTS MOST AFFECTED BY THE HISTORIC ECONOMIC RECESSION TRIGGERED BY THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC. THE COUNTY OF SUMMIT DESIGNED SUMMIT COUNTY CARES, A CONSORTIUM OF UWSM AND SEVERAL OTHER COMMUNITY PARTNERS, AS THE FRONT DOOR FOR RESIDENTS TO ACCESS RENT, MORTGAGE, AND UTILITY ASSISTANCE. UWSM TOOK A LEAD ROLE IN ADMINISTERING THE CARES PROGRAM, WITH AGENCY STAFF COORDINATING WORKFLOW AND CASELOADS AMONG COMMUNITY PARTNERS, PROCESSING APPLICATIONS WHILE PROVIDING CASE MANAGEMENT TO AFFECTED TENANTS AND LANDLORDS, AND DISBURSING ALL ASSISTANCE CHECKS. THIS TREMENDOUS EFFORT INVOLVED THE MAJORITY OF THE AGENCY'S STAFF AND RESULTED IN THE REDIRECTION AND TRAINING OF SEVERAL STAFF MEMBERS AND TEAMS TO ASSIST WITH CASES, THE HIRING OF SEVERAL TEMPORARY STAFF MEMBERS TO ASSIST WITH VARIOUS PROGRAM COMPONENTS AND, OVER THE PROGRAM'S FIRST TWO PHASES, THE DISTRIBUTION OF 24 TIMES THE AMOUNT OF HOUSING ASSISTANCE THAT UWSM TYPICALLY HANDLES IN A YEAR. SINCE THE LAUNCH OF SUMMIT COUNTY CARES, CARES WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR PROVIDING OVER 13,500 RENT, UTILITY AND MORTGAGE PAYMENTS AND OVER $56M. 65% OF APPLICANTS WERE AFRICAN AMERICAN, 72% WERE WOMEN, AND 45% OF THE HOUSEHOLDS SERVED HAD SCHOOL AGED CHILDREN. THIS IS PARTICULARLY IMPORTANT, AS IT HAS LONG BEEN DOCUMENTED THAT SINGLE BLACK MOTHERS DISPROPORTIONATELY FACE EVICTION.

HOUSING SERVICES - OUR HOUSING SERVICES DEPARTMENT SERVES AS THE COMMUNITY'S FRONT DOOR AND CENTRAL INTAKE FOR HUD-FUNDED SHELTERS AND PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING PROGRAMS IN SUMMIT COUNTY AS WELL AS THE LOCAL CONTINUUM OF CARE FOR ADDRESSING HOMELESSNESS IN THE COMMUNITY. OUR HOUSING SERVICES PROGRAM ADMINISTERS THE COMMUNITY'S HOMELESS MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM AND OVERSEES DATA COLLECTION FOR HOMELESSNESS IN THE COMMUNITY WHILE ALSO OFFERING OUR OWN SUITE OF SERVICES TO RAPIDLY REHOUSE HOMELESS RESIDENTS OF THE COMMUNITY AND TO PREVENT HOMELESSNESS FOR THOSE THREATENED BY IT. AS A RESULT OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, QUALIFYING CRITERIA WAS EXPANDED TO MEET THE NEEDS OF THE COMMUNITY. IN THE EARLY WEEKS OF THE PANDEMIC, OUR HOUSING SERVICES TEAM SCHEDULED 173 INTAKES AND ASSISTED 71 HOUSEHOLDS, A VOLUME THAT IS APPROXIMATELY FIVE TIMES THE NORMAL PACE FOR A SIMILAR TIME PERIOD PRIOR TO THE CRISIS. OVER THE COURSE OF THIS YEAR, THE PROGRAM PROVIDED 345 INSTANCES OF RENTAL/SECURITY DEPOSIT ASSISTANCE. OUR CENTRAL INTAKE, WHICH SERVES AS THE FRONT DOOR POINT OF CONTACT FOR HOUSING SERVICES THROUGHOUT THE COMMUNITY, SERVED 1,426 TOTAL HOUSEHOLDS, INCLUDING 1,639 ADULTS AND 963 CHILDREN. OUR OWN RAPID REHOUSING PROGRAM REHOUSED 267 INDIVIDUALS ACROSS 157 HOUSEHOLDS (INCLUDING 116 HOUSEHOLDS WITHOUT CHILDREN AND 41 WITH CHILDREN). ADDITIONALLY, HOUSING SERVICES SECURED FUNDING TO EXPAND ITS SERVICES TO UWSM'S FAMILY RESOURCE CENTERS, THEREBY BROADENING WRAP-AROUND SERVICES FOR FAMILIES WITH SCHOOL AGED CHILDREN. WE ALSO INCORPORATED DIVERSION, A MORE INTENSIVE, ROBUST, AND CLIENT-DRIVEN SERVICE INTERVENTION, AS A PRACTICE IN CENTRALIZED INTAKE. THIS REQUIRED A COMPLETE PROCEDURAL REDESIGN AND EXPANDED HOUSING SERVICES' COLLABORATION WITH 2-1-1.