United Way for Greater Austin received a 2015 United Way Common Good Award for our work in early childhood development. The award comes from United Way Worldwide, the umbrella organization that guides nearly 1,800 local United Ways around the world. UWATX is one of only three United Way chapters worldwide to be honored by United Way Worldwide as a 2015 recipient for strengthening communities by advancing the common good through innovative practices that are making a measurable impact in education, income and health.
United Way Common Good Awards recognize promising and effective practices from communities around the world that are applying a range of solutions to community challenges along the impact continuum. This year, the award recognizes excellence and effectiveness in the areas of Program Solutions, Impact Initiatives and Community Solutions.
UWATX earned the Common Good Award for Impact Initiatives in recognition of the School Readiness Action Plan. The first School Readiness Action Plan was published in 2012 to address the needs of all children in achieving the cognitive, physical, social, emotional and language skills needed to thrive in an educational setting.
Currently, only half of children living in Central Texas enter kindergarten prepared for school success. Research indicates a strong correlation between high-quality early education and overall school success. To address these needs, UWATX formed a coalition of early childhood advocates, experts, parents, service providers and business leaders to ensure school readiness is a priority in Austin/Travis County.
“It is a tremendous honor to be recognized as a role model for other United Way chapters worldwide,” Debbie Bresette, president of United Way for Greater Austin, said. “UWATX has and will continue to work diligently to support our local families to ensure their children enter kindergarten prepared for success.”
The United Way Common Good Award winners demonstrate strong collaboration across a variety of sectors and are engaging stakeholders to develop outcome-focused strategies that are rooted in the community’s agenda. They exhibit effective use of data to inform their strategies and show successful engagement of volunteers and advocates.
Learn more information about the United Way Worldwide Common Good Award, including the other two 2015 Common Good Award recipients.