Helping 10,000 Local Kids Excel in School

Square One - Helping Kids Excel in School For the past 100 years, United Way California Capital Region (UWCCR) has brought people together to fight poverty by building stronger, healthier, and more compassionate communities. Since 1923, we have grown and sharpened our work with a wide array of tools to continue working toward our mission. 

School is Square One for ending family poverty because education is the great equalizer. Education is the ladder out of poverty. It opens the door to jobs, resources and skills that help people not just survive, but thrive. Our Square One approach provides a continuum of services aimed at ending poverty for local families, starting with education. 

From providing books to preschoolers for their own home library, and kindergarten readiness for those who didn’t have the opportunity to attend preschool, to a reading tutoring program for grade-schoolers, and helping emancipated foster youth with financial literacy and support. Your local United Way is dedicated to improving the opportunities for children to ensure they have the educational foundation to succeed as adults.

100th Anniversary Goal As we enter our 100th anniversary year, our goal is to expand our education program and help 10,000 kids excel in school by 2025. We invite the community to pave the way for a brighter future for our region's children and donate today! All donations will be matched $1 for $1 by the Capital Region Foundation. 

Helping Kids Excel in School Programs

Dolly Parton Imagination Library

Access to books is critical to ending illiteracy. Early access to books is an important first step to exceling in life. The most significant factors influencing a child’s early educational success is an introduction to books and being read to at home prior to beginning school. The Dolly Parton Imagination Library ensures children receive new books every month until they turn five-years-old.

KinderCamp

According to the US Department of Education 6 out of 10 children are not prepared for kindergarten. KinderCamp, a school readiness program for incoming kindergartners, prepares children who didn’t have the opportunity to attend preschool - setting them up for success in school. 

Students & Tutors Achieving Reading Success (STARS)

Pandemic-related learning disruptions have caused many students to fall further behind. Through STARS students receive consistent and sustained reading support, which is known to increase academic achievement and other important outcomes for students, in one-on-one settings throughout the school year.

Foster Youth IDA Program

The pandemic has been especially cruel on the older youth in foster care and those who have recently aged out of the system as they face isolation, staggering levels of job loss and food insecurity. Many lack the financial skills required for the independence they face after exiting care. To increase the likelihood of self-sufficiency after aging out of the foster care system, UWCCR works with key nonprofit partners to enroll foster youth into Individual Development Accounts (IDAs) and provide ongoing case management and financial literacy.