New Partnerships Leading to Greater Impact

In December, United Way of Central Carolinas announced the addition of the Lakeview community into United Neighborhoods, a place-based, holistic strategy that drives deep neighborhood transformation. The expansion was supported by two new partnerships, Equitable Foundation and the William F. and Betty G. Mulliss Foundation, each committing $500,000 over the next three to five years.

 

Together, this investment is helping change the trajectory for more than 5,900 residents who live not only in the Lakeview community, but in Renaissance West and Grier Heights, two existing United Neighborhood communities that were launched with the program in 2017.

 

“United Way believes that place-based work is the most effective way to lay the foundation for upward mobility in disinvested communities,” said Clint Hill, United Way of Central Carolinas chief development officer. “We have seen what works in Grier Heights and Renaissance West and thanks to our new partnerships, are incredibly excited to expand this opportunity to Lakeview.”

 

Both investments from Equitable Foundation and the William F. and Betty G. Mulliss Foundation will allow United Way to provide administrative support to the community quarterback, Lakeview Neighborhood Alliance, fund health and human services opportunities identified by the residents and collaborate with other neighborhood associations for best practices and collective impact.

 

“Meaningful and lasting social change requires a place-based approach orchestrated by those on the ground who are intimate with the needs and challenges of the community,” said Jarian Kerekes, head of Social Impact and Equitable Foundation. ”Our partnership with United Way of Central Carolinas will enable us to be a force for good by deploying the right resources across Equitable to help create sustainable change in the Lakeview neighborhood of Charlotte.”

 

William F. and Betty G. Mulliss Foundation Trustee, Larry Dagenhart commented, “Imbedding in the neighborhood gives United Way eyes and ears to know what’s needed and empowers residents. We are excited to be part of this initiative.”

 

Over the next five years, United Way will track and report progress against key milestones to ensure we are continuously learning from and improving upon our work. The collaboration among our community quarterback partners will allow us to measure advancement on critical outcomes, year over year.

 

“I believe that investments like these, from Equitable and Mulliss Foundations, in place-based work through the United Neighborhood program is a great step in the right direction,” said Jamall Kinard, Lakeview Neighborhood Alliance executive director. “To realize the deep systemic change that America’s most impoverished neighborhoods are demanding, we must reorganize the power dynamics in philanthropy to build and demonstrate a trust-based culture, invest in community leadership capacity-building and open up decision-making and information sharing structures.”United Way believes collective giving leads to collective impact. When you give to United Way, you are helping to change the odds for individuals and families living in our region’s most disinvested neighborhoods.

 

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