Education is a cornerstone for success in school, work and life. It also benefits the whole community: high school graduates have higher earning potential, contribute more to their local economies, are more engaged in their communities and are more likely to raise kids who also graduate and go on to higher education or work.
United Way of Marshall County (UWMC) envisions a community where families and individuals achieve their full human potential through education, financial stability and healthy lives. It takes everyone – parents, teachers and caring adults – to help a child succeed in school and in life. The return on investing in education for children and adults is phenomenal. Graduating from high school will determine how well a person lives for the next 50 years of their life. And those who have access to quality education from cradle to career will give back to their community ten-fold.
United Way is about more than short-term charity for a few: United Way is about lasting solutions that build opportunity for all. United Way looks at the big picture to assess which resources are lacking or need strengthening, then addresses those gaps to keep kids on track to graduation and beyond.
Through the work of initiatives such as Kindergarten Countdown, Project Lead The Way and the Marshall County Career Success Coalition, United Way of Marshall County is bringing together people and organizations across the county to help solve the education puzzle and build stronger communities.
Project Lead The Way
Initiated in 2014 through a $4.4 million match grant program, this 5-county regional initiative now provides thousands of Marshall County students Grades K-12 access to Project Lead The Way’s world-class STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) curriculum.
Kindergarten Countdown
Through a $50,000 match grant from the Indiana Association of United Ways (funded by Lilly Endowment) and supported by new and increased local giving, four Kindergarten Countdown programs launched in Marshall County in 2015 through partnerships with the following school corporations: Argos Community, Plymouth Community and Triton. Designed for incoming kindergartners with little or no pre-K experience, the camps provide essential academic and social development skills so that children are ready to learn on the first day of school.
Marshall County Career Success Coalition
With support from an Indiana Association of United Ways grant and a partnership with Learn More Indiana, organizations of all types are working together to make a difference in the economic health and vitality of Marshall County communities by helping students and adult learners make decisions that will open doors to education, training and career opportunities. Community partners of all types have agreed on bold goals for Marshall County: By 2025, 90% of high school graduates will have access to a higher level of education (certification or degree) and 65% of adults 25 years and older will have attained a higher level of certification or degree.
In addition, below are several United Way supported agencies providing education programs in Marshall County:
– Adult Basic Education
– Boy Scouts LaSalle Council
– Boys and Girls Club of MC – Plymouth
– Boys and Girls Club of MC – Bremen
– Community Coordinated Child Care (4C’s)
– Boys and Girls Club of MC – Culver
– Girl Scouts of Northern Indiana-Michigan
– Junior Achievement Serving MC
– Marshall County 4-H
These projects and programs align with UWMC’s vision of a world that fosters hope and opportunity for everyone – where all children receive a quality education that offers a pathway to a brighter tomorrow, where the cycle of poverty and financial dependence ends, and productive livelihoods begin for even the most disadvantaged, and where everyone receives effective health care that improves the quality of life.
This year’s Campaign Chairs, Cindy Rash and Susan Wagner, are leading the charge and their message is clear, “Together we CAN, Marshall County! United Way volunteers are actively seeking your support. Help make a difference in your community on these issues – whether that’s through dollars, your time or your voice. Only by working together can we help all Marshall County residents, children and adults, unlock their full potential.”
For more information or to make your online donation, go to marshallcountyuw.org, or email info@marshallcountyuw.org. Stop by the United Way offices 2701 N Michigan Street, Plymouth, or call 574.936.3366.
ABOUT THE UNITED WAY OF MARSHALL COUNTY
For over 50 years, the United Way of Marshall County has continuously conducted annual fundraising campaigns in support of local health and human service not-for-profit organizations. The United Way has been the conduit for helping thousands of individuals, regardless of income level, contribute to a united community cause. United Way volunteers have spent millions of hours advocating for much needed programs and services that help build a stronger community and, as a result, the United Way has allocated more than $8 million to local agencies for everything from basic necessities like food to tutoring programs for youth to helping the elderly get to the doctor. The United Way of Marshall County remains committed to igniting the caring power of the human spirit to help meet the most basic needs of education, health and financial stability. Together we create a stronger future for Marshall County.
