Every year, something remarkable happens in Sheboygan County – thousands of individuals and companies donate approximately two million dollars to help the community through United Way of Sheboygan County (UWSC).  These dollars make a real impact on the lives of local people through programs and services administered through this United Way and our affiliate agencies.

United Way of Sheboygan County is the county’s largest community-based investor in health and human services.  We believe everyone deserves opportunities for a quality education that leads to a stable job, family-sustaining income through all of life’s stages, good health and a safe home.

As those who donate the funds to make this investment and, in many cases, who benefit from the services we fund, we want you to understand how our funding process works and what we are looking for in the investments we support.  In short, we are looking for performance and outcomes.

UWSC allocates funds to programs in a manner that measurably improves the quality of life of Sheboygan County residents.  We invest in programs within affiliate agencies annually, as long as they effectively address one of United Way’s strategic areas: Education, Income or Health, and are in good financial standing as an agency overall.  To accomplish this, UWSC utilizes an outcome-measurement process to evaluate program results.

Outcome measurement is the process and set of procedures for regularly assessing the results of an agency’s program on its clients.  Outcome measurement answers the question, “so what?”  What difference does a program really make?  Outcomes typically relate to changes in knowledge, attitudes, values, skills, behaviors or conditions.  They are what participants know, think or can do; how they behave; or how their condition has changed because of the program.

We at UWSC want to see lasting changes in the community.  We believe that the best path to accomplishing this lies in identifying root causes of problems and developing partnerships and strategic approaches to eliminate those problems.  Through our community investment process, we fund programs at our affiliate agencies, which addresses current needs.  But we also look to go upstream to address the root cause of an issue.  We want to find the end solution of an issue, and fund its success.

To make investment decisions, volunteers learn about the importance of building a stronger community by investing in a system of quality agencies that help people in need.  Training includes an overview of key issues in the nonprofit community, the allocations process, and UWSC’s strategic goals. UWSC holds each partner program to a high standard of accountability by measuring program results and monitoring agency administration and financial actions.                

We are now in the process of allocating the yearly campaign dollars as defined by the board.  Briefly, the process works like this:

Agencies request funding based on their particular needs and programs.  Funding requests can be as basic as operating costs to as advanced as developing a new program.  Based on the knowledge gained through the allocations process, volunteers now must come to consensus about how much money each agency will receive in the coming year.  Volunteers determine funding based on the merits of the request and the capacity of the agencies.

Once all of the allocation recommendations are compiled, they are vetted through a three-part approval process, ending with a final decision by the United Way Board of Directors.  Following approval, funds are distributed to the agencies in the next fiscal year. 

Also, don’t forget about Dine Out for United Way, February 15-28. Visit uwofsc.org for participating restaurants!