Form 990 for tax year 2022

Totals

Total revenue

$16,353,601

Total expenses

$14,340,572

Contributions and grants received

$15,948,295

Grants paid

$10,120,587

Program service revenue

$267,088

Investment income

$128,484

Other revenue

$9,734

Total assets, end of year

$21,900,180

Total liabilities, end of year

$4,349,830

Net assets or fund balances, end of year

$17,550,350

Program services expenses (Part IX)

$12,118,308

Management and general expenses

$1,146,516

Fundraising expenses

$1,075,748

Program service expenses (Part III)

$12,118,308

Program services were 84.5% of total expenses calculated — Part IX's program-services column over total expenses, both as filed.

Line items

Every line the filer filed in Parts VIII, IX and X, as filed and in filed order. Blank columns are left out, and the lines are not forced to add up to the totals above.

Mission and programs · 2022

• COMMUNITY IMPACT: UWCF's premiere Community Investment Process mobilizes more than 130 volunteers on 15 teams around their focus areas of EDUCATION, INCOME, HEALTH and SAFETY NET. These volunteers visit program sites, review previous investments, program goals and outcomes, and make recommendations about the most effective way to meet critical community needs. EDUCATION: The Early Literacy Initiative helps at-risk children develop the language skills they need to succeed in school. Given the right start, children learn to read, succeed academically and are more likely to graduate from high school. Academic Achievement Initiative helps children in grades K-12 pass achievement tests at grade level and graduate on time. FINANCIAL STABILITY/INCOME: The Financial Stability initiative helps families improve financial stability with GED and job training, credit and budgeting classes, money coaches, financial education and savings match programs. Improved credit scores, increases in emergency savings accounts, increases in job related credentials and/or increases in family income measure success. HEALTH: The Health Initiative helps people of all ages to improve or maintain good health. United Way improves access and utilization of health services and increases knowledge and personal responsibility about health issues that lead to improved blood pressure, weight control and other specific health indicators. United Way also works to reduce avoidable hospitalizations and incarcerations with prevention services and treatment for those with addiction. SAFETY NET: The Safety Net Initiative provides relatively short-term, crisis intervention services that vary widely, but meet one or more of the following: 1) Must verify that the service helped to stabilize a crisis, 2) Must refer clients to sources of on-going support (counseling, health clinic etc.) as needed, 3) Must verify quality of services using approved indicators selected by experts on a Safety Net Steering Team, 4) Crisis includes but is not limited to: health emergency, domestic violence, rape, child abuse, fire, teenaged runaways, hospice care, hunger & homelessness. END HUNGER INITIATIVE: The End Hunger Initiative helps to eliminate hunger and food insecurity by increasing the access to food and helps families to find financial stability. In 2020-23 our food distributions were able to provide food to over 950,000 visitors in Polk, Highlands, and Hardee Counties. In the first three years of this initiative, over 6,000,000 meals were provided to communities in need. COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP SCHOOL INITIATIVE: The Community Partnership School Initiative helps to provide a full-service health clinic, financial education and academic support for Polk's first Community Partnership School. In 2020, Crystal Lake Elementary, A Community Partnership School began operations under guidance from the University of Central Florida. Five core partners of this project are Southeastern University, Heartland for Children, Central Florida Health Care, Polk County Public Schools, and United Way of Central Florida. Crystal Lake Elementary, A Community Partnership School received statewide certification from the UCF Center for Community Partnership Schools in 2023.

  Expenses $7,538,043 · Grants $6,161,300 · Revenue $276,822

• Health Initiative: The UWCF Community Wellness initiative is a $6,000,000 grant in collaboration with the Polk County Indigent Health Care Department. Polk County is on an October1-September 30 fiscal year. During the 2022-23 Polk County fiscal year the grant provided a $300,000 administrative fee to UWCF, up to $500,000 to fund a team of UWCF Community Wellness Navigators, and $5,200,000 to fund behavioral/mental health and prevention/early intervention programs through an open Request for Proposals (RFP) to 501(c)(3) organizations. The navigator program's main purpose is to assist in connecting eligible Polk County residents with the Polk HealthCare Plan and additional community resources.

  Expenses $2,035,528 · Grants $1,644,510

• Disaster Relief: Provides immediate assistance and long-term recovery support in the event our community needs urgent disaster relief. UWCF develops partnerships to address the many challenges and/or emergencies that our community faces. UWCF meets with partners to coordinate the efforts of government, businesses, non-profit and faith-based organizations involved in disaster response. UWCF continues to respond to disasters through food security efforts and other assistance. With the support of local partnerships, UWCF was able to provide the following support: -The United Community Relief Fund was formed in partnership with GiveWell Community Foundation in 2020 to provide COVID-19 pandemic response. In the wake of Hurricane Ian in 2022, over $259,600 was distributed to nonprofits and their clients suffering direct losses as a result of the storm. -Publix Super Markets Emergency Relief provided $120,288 to support individuals who have experienced hardships due to various emergencies where other assistance is unavailable. This fund also provided $469,604 in Hurricane Ian relief both locally and to areas hardest hit in Southwest Florida. -2-1-1 referrals have remained high due to increasing needs faced by citizens of Polk, Highlands and Hardee counties: including the housing crisis, inflation of all goods, supply chain woes, fuel prices, childcare crisis, and staffing shortages.

  Expenses $1,385,048 · Grants $2,314,777

• OTHER PROGRAM SERVICES: Success By 6: Success By 6 (SB6) mobilizes volunteers from local organizations, businesses, government, churches, civic groups, educators and human services to ensure that all children, by the age of six, have the physical, emotional, social and mental foundation to succeed in school and in life. Since 1995, UWCF's SB6 has focused on early literacy to help children enter school ready to succeed. In total Success By 6 programs placed over 60,000 books in the hands of children in FY 22/23. In addition: -110 Parent Lending Libraries were in childcare centers serving low-income families; with 29,236 books checked out. -To increase awareness of the importance of early childhood education, Born Learning, a $90 million early childhood awareness campaign developed by the Ad Council, Civilian provided more than 300,000 messages to citizens of Central Florida. These included bus signs, billboards, newspaper advertisements and parent education materials placed in key locations throughout the area. Success By 6 events and staff provided 7,575 pieces of Born Learning and other literature into our community. -Dolly Parton Imagination Library mails a book each month to the homes of preschool children. 22.692 books were placed in the homes of 1,891 children ages 0-5. Let's Grow is a Success By 6 initiative facilitated by UWCF to improve language skills of children at-risk of school failure. Language skills predict the ability of children to learn to read. Of middle/high income children, 8 of 10 enter school with the skills they need. However, only 2 of 10 low income children have sufficient skills. Children who enter school ready to succeed, learn to read and graduate on time. Let's Grow partners provide early literacy interventions improving vocabulary scores by an average of 5 months for every 1 month of exposure to the interventions. Carol Jenkins Barnett United Way Children's Resource Center (CJBUWCRC), formerly Family Fundamentals, opened in November 2022 in our new location within the Florida Children's Museum at Bonnet Springs Park in Lakeland. As a community and family outreach of Success By 6 - CJBUWCRC is a parent resource center which mobilizes partnerships with more than 42 human service organizations providing parents and family members with activities, classes, reading, tutoring and other programs designed to strengthen the development of our children and family relationships. MASTER TEACHER: AN OUTREACH OF SUCCESS BY 6 SCHOOL READINESS - THE EXPANDED MASTER TEACHER INITIATIVE TARGETS NEIGHBORHOODS WHERE CHILDREN CONSIDERED AT-RISK FOR SCHOOL FAILURE RESIDE. IT PROVIDES AN INTERNSHIP FOR CHILDCARE INSTRUCTORS USING FOUR MASTER TEACHERS, ALONG WITH PARENT EDUCATION CLASSES, TO HELP INSTRUCTORS AND PARENTS PREPARE CHILDREN TO ENTER KINDERGARTEN READY TO SUCCEED. READINESS SKILLS FOR CHILDREN IN CLASSES WITH TEACHERS TRAINED BY A MASTER TEACHER IMPROVED AN AVERAGE OF 3 MONTHS FOR EVERY 1 MONTH WITH THE NEWLY TRAINED CAREGIVER. 2-1-1: The 2-1-1 program provides information and referrals to families/individuals and community groups concerning local services and resources. 2-1-1 also identifies gaps in services; assists in creating remedies to meet local needs; connects individuals/families to resources; and advocates on behalf of individuals/families for access to resources. It also works to provide better service, accessibility and information to the Hispanic community. From July 1, 2022-June 30, 2023, 211 received 32,682 contacts for services through calls, chats, texts, and e-mail inquiries. In addition, there were 77,049 webpage views for end hunger, 211, CJBUWCRC, free tax prep, and other needed community resources. Women United - ReadingPals: In Spring 2012, UWCF received a first-year grant to begin ReadingPals. Planning and implementation include collaborations with Polk and Highlands County Schools, the Early Learning Coalition of Polk and Learning Resource Center. From 2012-2020, Carol and Barney Barnett invested over $8,500,000 in 17 regions throughout the state of Florida to improve early literacy. ReadingPals focuses on engaging, training and deploying volunteer tutors to increase the number of students reading at grade level by the end of 3rd grade. It is important to our community, to the Barnetts, to all businesses and families in Florida that we make a united effort to reduce the close to 50% of children who are not reading at grade level. The program experienced lower numbers in 2020 and 2021 due to COVID's interference with volunteering in schools. ReadingPals traditional (in person) program transitioned to virtual on a limited basis in 2020. In 2021 the in-person program was scaled back to six schools and less than 50 volunteers. In 2022 the program secured over 100 volunteers and served over 320 children at 14 schools. In 2023 the program has expanded to 15 schools and 60+ classrooms and is working hard to secure over 250 ReadingPals volunteers. When fully staffed the program will serve 512 children.

  Expenses $1,159,689

As filed on the 2022 return. The filer continues this part on Schedule O, which is not shown here.

Listed in Part VII

Compensation is as filed in Part VII: reportable pay from this organization and from related organizations, other compensation, and hours per week. The total, marked calculated, is our sum of the three dollar columns, with a blank column counted as $0; the form itself has no total. On a Form 990-EZ the columns are Part IV's instead, and on a Form 990-PF Part VIII's — compensation, contributions to benefit plans, and expense account — and the total sums those. A Schedule J breakdown is as filed: base pay, bonus, other, deferred compensation and nontaxable benefits from this organization, with any from related organizations beside each, and the filer's own total. It is shown with the Part VII listing of the same name on the same return. The form gives no key between the two, so that pairing is ours, and is marked matched by us.

Schedule J

Part I's answers as filed. A line not listed was left unanswered; on lines 1a and 3 that means the box was not checked.

Grants on this return

• Early Learning Coalition-Polk County

  $769,240

  Donor Designated for General Support, Donor Designated for Program Costs, Donor Designated for Disaster/ Emergency Relief, Program Operating Cost

• Boys & Girls Clubs of Polk County

  $451,181

  Donor Designated for General Support, Donor Designated for Program Costs, Donor Designated for Disaster/ Emergency Relief, Program Operating Cost

• Peace River Center

  $448,887

  Donor Designated for General Support, Donor Designated for Program Costs, Donor Designated for Disaster/ Emergency Relief, Program Operating Cost

• Talbot House Ministries

  $441,511

  Donor Designated for General Support, Donor Designated for Program Costs, Donor Designated for Disaster/ Emergency Relief, Program Operating Cost

• United Way of Lee Hendry & Glades

  $400,943

  Donor Designated for General Support, Donor Designated for Disaster/ Emergency Relief

• Tri-County Human Services Inc

  $300,262

  Donor Designated for General Support, Donor Designated for Program Costs, Donor Designated for Disaster/ Emergency Relief, Program Operating Cost

• Salvation Army Serving Western Polk (Lakeland)

  $288,974

  Donor Designated for General Support, Donor Designated for Program Costs, Donor Designated for Disaster/ Emergency Relief, Program Operating Cost

• Central Florida Speech & Hearing Center Inc

  $254,788

  Donor Designated for General Support, Donor Designated for Program Costs, Donor Designated for Disaster/ Emergency Relief, Program Operating Cost

• Mulberry Community Service Center

  $251,161

  Donor Designated for General Support, Donor Designated for Program Costs, Donor Designated for Disaster/ Emergency Relief, Program Operating Cost

• Lakeland Volunteers In Medicine

  $240,482

  Donor Designated for General Support, Donor Designated for Program Costs, Donor Designated for Disaster/ Emergency Relief, Program Operating Cost

The 10 largest by cash amount. The API serves every itemized grant.

Taxable family on this return

Schedule R Parts I, III and IV, as filed. These record ownership and control, not shared board members or money moved.

Provenance

Return type

form_990

Tax year

2022

Filed

16 January 2024

IRS schema version

2022v5.0

Source object

202430169349303558

Check it against the return as filed: the GivingTuesday Data Lake hosts a public copy of the original XML.

The source document this was parsed from is served over the API, which is where bulk and document access live.