United Way Family Learning Centers

Philanthropic Prospectus

Our kids are in crisis

50% of students entering Chicago Public Schools this year will not graduate. High school dropouts are more
That means half of our kids are dropping out. And while that number is likely to commit crimes, rely on
staggering, it’s no wonder why – More than 2.3 million people in our region
are low income. Nearly 50% of children in low income communities have no government healthcare, use food
medical home. Unemployment has reached 11.3% statewide and is as high
stamps and housing assistance,
at 27% in some communities. The number of homeless children in certain
communities has risen 300%. and are four times more likely
Kids cannot learn when they do not have the basic things they need to to be unemployed.
survive. Food, shelter, healthcare and safety are things many of us take for
granted. But many parents do not have the tools or supports they need to
provide these basic essentials for their kids.
When only half of our students
And they need our help now more than ever are graduating, we are only doing
Kids can’t succeed without a little help. half our job.
But the organizations providing needed services to children, youth and
families continue to struggle in the current economy. This year funding from
both public and private sources is down significantly and state budget cuts
that could reach 30% or more for human services threaten to shut down
agencies and eliminate needed services completely.

But we are not giving up

United Way has a plan to empower parents, engage students and
transform communities into positive places to live and learn.
Family Learning Centers will make learning meaningful and
engaging for students, provide safe and healthy environments for
youth, give parents access to the tools and knowledge they need to
support their kids, and make communities a hub for continuous
learning and improvement.
By making schools the centers of communities, extending the school day,
and bringing services and supports for parents into schools, United Way
is helping communities take charge of the dropout crisis and creating
ways for youth to be successful.
We can get ahead of the problem
Studies show that the transition from middle school to high school is an
especially difficult time for students and families. It is the time between 6th
and 9th grades when a student either stays on track for academic success and
graduation or lags in attendance and performance, increasing his or her chance
of dropping out. By focusing on middle schools, we can address the reasons
students drop out before they get in trouble.

The experts agree

Family Learning Centers are based
on two successful models that use
extended school days and additional
programming to drive student
success—Community Schools and
Charter Schools. In communities that
have employed one of these two
models, academic achievement is
improved. For example, studies show
that for youth attending a Community
School, those who participated
regularly in after-school programs had
significantly better attendance than
non-participatory youth. A study by
the Coalition for Community Schools
showed that in 15 out of 20
Community School initiatives, students
increased their grades and test scores.
A study by the Civic Committee showed
that 34 out of 38 Charter Schools
contained students who outperformed
their peers.

Change can happen

To keep kids on track for graduation
through middle school and into high
school, United Way will use Family
Learning Centers to target the three
main predictors for high school
success: attendance and academic
achievement in grades 6–8, successful
transition into high school (grade 9)
and family engagement at all levels.
Family Learning Centers will extend
the school day in the early morning,
evening and on weekends. These
longer hours mean more time that kids
have the opportunity to be in schools
and engaged in meaningful learning
activities, and more time for parents
to be involved with students at school.
Morning and afternoon Center
activities will focus on child care,
nutrition, physical activity and other
activities for students, younger
siblings and parents. After school,
Center activities will link to core
in-school curriculum through creative
programming and service learning
projects. After 5pm, the Centers will
focus on more intensive one on one
coaching and mentoring for students
with local business professionals and
other adult volunteers. Evening
activities will also focus on adult
learning and workshops for parents
and families, including financial
literacy training, nutrition education
and computer literacy training. Wrap
around services like health screenings
and immunizations will also be offered
during convenient times for parents.
On weekends and in the summer,
Family Learning Centers will continue
to provide workshops and trainings
for parents, including teaching
parents how to become advocates
for their kids and showing parents
how to create learning environments at
home. For students, weekend activities
may include field trips, study support,
motivational speakers, sports and safe
play, arts and cultural activities, writing
workshops and other creative and fun
activities that can enrich learning and
show the relevance of core curriculum.
With all of these components
working together in a coordinated way,
students will be prepared to make a
successful transition into high school
and will continue to be supported and
engaged through graduation.

Graduation
& Workforce
Readiness

Community Meaningful Transition

● Continuing education into High School
Achievement classes
● Tutoring services ● Culture and arts
activities
Mentoring ● Understanding
● Peer-led activities relevance ● Youth sports and family
activities
● Volunteer driven
● Parent/family
reinforcement
● Parent/family
support
You can count on us
United Way is uniquely positioned to do this important work.
As the number one non-governmental funder of health and human services
in Chicagoland, United Way has the experience, scope of knowledge and
relationships to bring the right partners to the table to help our kids. These
relationships are important because Family Learning Centers are not just
houses for community programs, but instead, are community hubs where Reducing the dropout rate by
programs and services are coordinated to help kids succeed within the
context of in-school achievement and parent and student needs. 50% would result in $200 million
Here’s why we’re the right fit for the job— in additional wages for the local
• We know the issues and the players because we work at the intersection economy, 10,000 new homeowners
of state and local government, CPS and local school districts, the City of
Chicago, nonprofit organizations, foundations, private funders, corporations, and 50% of new graduates
civic leaders and other community stakeholders.
continuing on to higher education.
• We can build a solid framework to create community-level change because
we have relationships with experts at more than 275 community agencies.
• We know how to choose the best, most effective community partners
because we evaluate and measure results for more than 700 funded
programs.
• We can create a sustainably funded model because we have relationships
with Chicago’s top funders, corporations and most influential people.

We can make our communities stronger

We cannot ignore kids and communities in need. Every child has the right
to an education, and it’s our job to make sure they get that opportunity. Our Vision is Bold
That’s why we are bringing Family Learning Centers to communities that
need the most help and that show the most promise for change. United Way has four goals
We will launch five centers in five communities across the Chicago Metro for our community –
region. Our efforts will be focused in specific geographic areas based on
need, community assets, infrastructure, support services and graduation 1) Kids are ready to learn by kindergarten
rates. Specifically, we will look at communities in the city and suburbs with 2) Youth graduate high school on time
drop out rates as high as 70%.
3) People live longer, healthier lives
By focusing on communities of need that also have assets to help spur
change, we can make sure Family Learning Centers are sustainable long 4) Families are financially stable
term. For example, some communities have good resources and strong
community partners, yet there is a huge decline in attendance when students
reach their first year of high school. This is often because, unlike middle
school students, high school students are given more freedom and have
less structure at school. Parents are often unsure how to support their
children in education at this level. By creating a Family Learning Center in
these communities we can address this problem by moving upstream and
helping students and their families before the high school years.
 United Way
of Metropolitan Chicago

A Community Investment
It is far too costly for our community, and our kids, to allow the dropout
crisis to continue. Investing in Family Learning Centers is an investment High School dropouts earn an
in the community.
Estimated annual cost per Center: $400,000 average of $400,000 less over
Because we’re utilizing an existing capital asset (schools) we are able to keep a lifetime than their peers with
start-up and operational costs low. The $400,000 price tag is inclusive of all
staffing, programming and operational expenses.
a high school diploma.
Taking an active role, United Way will employ and manage locally-based
coordinators for each Center. These on-site coordinators will ensure the
meaningful coordination between programs and relevant coordination with
in-school curriculum. To ensure the best results, United Way will fund our
most effective agency partners to implement programs like mentoring, parent
workshops, career counseling and other wrap-around services. Each of these
partners will be evaluated at regular intervals to make sure the programs are
achieving results.
Prior to the first year of operation, United Way will build a data management
tool to capture participant progress. We will also use our public relations
expertise and relationships to build ground support for the Centers through
free or donated advertising, public service announcements, viral marketing
and grassroots techniques.

Our kids are worth it

Doesn’t every kid deserve the opportunity to grow into someone
great? You can be the catalyst in changing the statistics.
Please help Chicago children and youth build better futures
by supporting United Way Family Learning Centers.
Your investment is not just great for kids and families, but for our
communities, our economy and the future of Chicago business.

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