The ultimate outcome of Orange County United Way's investments in Youth Development is that youth are prepared to graduate from high school and pursue post-secondary education.
To meet this outcome, United Way seeks to increase the on-time graduation rate by 17 percent in low-performing schools and the percentage of countywide graduates prepared for state university to 50 percent.
Orange County United Way seeks to employ a number of strategies to accomplish our goals. These include (1) direct grant funding to external programs that support United Way goals, (2) internal programs of Orange County United Way, such as the Success By 6® Star Quality Rating and Improvement System (Star-QRIS), (3) leadership roles and (4) participation in other collaborative partnerships in the community.
More on Youth Development.
DROP OUT PREVENTION SUMMIT:
With a grant from America's Promise Alliance, Orange County United Way will host a Dropout Prevention Summit to learn more about the high school dropout problem, focusing specifically on Anaheim and Santa Ana. Action teams from each of these cities will devise an Action Plan to address the problem and to increase the rate of on-time high school graduation. Learn more at http://www.unitedwayoc.org/eventsandcalendar/UWOC_Spec_Events_Show.asp?c=171
DEVELOPMENT ASSETS PROJECT:
In 2006, Orange County United Way convened a group of youth development and after school organizations into a Learning Community to utilize the 40 Developmental Assets as a framework for program evaluation and improvement.
Currently more than a dozen organizations continue to meet monthly to support each other as they build assets in youth and to promote the message that everyone can be an asset-builder!
RESEARCH:
In 2005, Orange County United Way's Keeping Kids On Track initiative, in collaboration with the Orange County Department of Education, initiated a survey of after school programs in Orange County.
The survey collected information about location of programs, program descriptions, demographics of clients, funding sources, and other relevant information. Also as a result, parents and others may access a database of after school programs on the OCDE website.
