United Way works with a broad range of individuals and organizations in order to identify and resolve pressing community issues. We believe education is the foundation for a better life and the LITERACY 2.O effort will change the lives of thousands of individuals and families.
Northern Santa Barbara County United Way (NSBCUW) is committed to building a stronger community by providing people with opportunities to improve their lives. LITERACY 2.O, our newest initiative, is a unified, collaborative effort to provide a platform for school-aged youth to begin saving/investing with a goal-setting mindset. Keep reading to learn more!
Overview
Sponsors, donors and financial institutions will provide a stable platform for students to realize a financially secure future.
Literacy and family engagement programs offered by United Way provide the resources for personal growth.
Three Parts
- Birth to Age 5In partnership with Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, our United Way is dedicated to inspiring a love of reading by gifting books to children.
- Birth to age 13+The Ready 4K & Beyond program provides high-quality messages through a text-based application to support family engagement and encourage parent and child development through age 13 with proven results
- Age 9 and BeyondThe Sammy Rabbit Money School, coupled with the United Way Today 4 Tomorrow Savings Challenge, will change the futures of thousands of local families as community partners work to take it to scale.
How it Works
Establish Sammy Rabbit Money School curriculum in local schools and directly with families and community-based organizations. This curriculum will teach young children the importance of setting goals and achieving dreams through saving for the future.
Students and families who complete the six-week curriculum will be invited to open a custodial savings account in the child’s name. Funds in the account will be restricted until the child turns eighteen.
The United Way will deposit forty-four dollars ($44) in the account as seed money. Sponsors, donors and financial institutions will provide a stable platform for students to realize a financially secure future.
The family and the child will agree to make regular savings deposits based on lessons learned during the course. Literacy and family engagement programs offered by United Way provide the resources for personal growth.
Literacy 2.0 – What it Means to Us
United Way believes education is the foundation for a better life. United Way believes the literacy 2.0 effort will change the lives of thousands of individuals and families as we go to scale.
- Our process begins with the Imagination Library, in partnership with the Dolly Parton Foundation. Read more below.
- The Ready 4K and Beyond provides high-quality digital content through age 13. Read more below.
- The Sammy Rabbit program provides financial literacy curriculum to help children develop savings habits and goals.
The Real Cost Measure in our County
The Real Cost Measure (RCM) estimates the amount of income required to meet basic needs for a given household type in a specific community. In our county, 43,188 Households are below the Real Cost Measure.
The Real Cost Measure builds a bare-bones budget that reflects constrained yet reasonable choices for essential expenses: housing, food, transportation, health care, taxes and child care.
Read the Report>>
WHY NOW?
Many foundations and philanthropic organizations are placing greater emphasis on financial stability to address the wealth gap.
States, counties, and cities need public-private partnerships to implement proven solutions. The growing social interest is fostered by the rapid expansion of struggling populations, including seniors on fixed incomes.
One of those solutions builds upon growing awareness of Social Impact Investing, which is a significant component of the LITERACY 2.O plan.
Each year, we reach approximately 30,000 people through initiatives focused on impacting education, financial stability, and improved health – the building blocks for a high quality of life.
Over 90% of our clients qualify as low-to-moderate income.