Creating opportunities for all people to secure safe and affordable housing, acquire skills and training to maintain employment and achieve financial stability leading toward independence..
UWGNH Vice President of
Finance, Administration & Information Systems Stefanie Boles talks about the income problems facing Greater New Haven and what UWGNH is doing to help.
The New Haven region has the 7th greatest income disparity in the nation when comparing the poverty in our central city (and increasingly in our inner ring communities of West Haven, East Haven and Hamden ) with the wealth of our outer ring suburbs. While jobs are growing in low-wage sectors and shrinking in high-wage industries, the cost of housing is increasing. Today a worker needs to earn approximately $45,000 annually to afford a two-bedroom apartment. The average number of homeless in New Haven each night is 1,200.
United Way is committed to helping close this economic gap by working with partners to create a region where everyone has the opportunity to secure, safe and affordable housing, the skills and training needed to succeed in decent paying jobs and the means to be self-sufficient. United Way investments and leadership around supportive housing, job training, foreclosure prevention, and free tax preparation not only improve the lives of individuals and families but also strengthen our entire region.
Statistics
CT has the second-most unequal household income distribution in the country. Over the past several decades, CT has had the greatest growth in household income inequality. (CT Voices 2007)
Since the late 1980s, the real income of low-income families in CT has gone down by 17%. (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities)
33% of New Haven children live below the poverty line; 77% of New Haven students qualify for free and reduced price meals. (Census 2000; CT Voices)
The hourly wage needed to afford a 2-bedroom apartment in our region and not pay more than 30% of income is $21.96. This translates into the equivalent of almost three full-time minimum wage jobs. (Out of Reach Report, National Low Income Housing Coalition)
Only 32% of lower-income working families in CT have more than $300 in savings. (UWA National Indicators Data)
Goals
Opportunity Goals
Increase the number of people employed in jobs that provide a livable wage.
Increase the number of youth, adults, and special populations that have the skills and education, including literacy, numeracy, and English-language skills, to be successful.
Increase the number of jobs for youth.
Housing Goals
Increase the number of families and individuals living in safe, affordable and decent housing.
Increase access to affordable, supportive housing for families and individuals with special needs and disabilities.
What We Do
Provide leadership on income issues critical to our communities
Helping to design and create the New Haven Community Center for Working Families, in partnership with the other members of the New Haven Family Economic Success Collaborative.
Mobilize volunteers, business, and other organizations and connect them to community needs
Recruited over 150 volunteers to provide resources to homeless men and women at New Haven’s first Project Homeless Connect event.
Invest Community Fund dollars based on alignment with UWGNH outcomes
Help individuals secure long-term supportive housing that addresses their health and family needs and contributes to their family’s stability.
Provide employability and employment services for individuals who face the challenges of homelessness, mental illness, language barriers, or substance abuse.
Create job opportunities for inner-city youth.
Support free tax preparation assistance through VITA sites to help low-income families claim the Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Care Tax Credit to which they are entitled.
Identify additional resources to address community needs
Make almost $500,000 in federal emergency food and shelter investments possible in our community by serving as the managing organization for these funds.
Distribute IBM computers to local programs that focus on employment.
Make possible philanthropic contributions to local non-profits
Measure and communicate results, needs, and successes
