The United Way for Southeastern Michigan blog

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A $200 million rebirth for Detroit education

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 16:06:00 +0000

Foundations, teachers, parents aim to model DPS on what works
BY CHASTITY PRATT DAWSEY and ROBIN ERB
FREE PRESS EDUCATION WRITERS
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100306/NEWS01/3060358/-1/WEATHER0802/A-plan-for-Detroit-schools&template=fullarticle

In less than a decade, public schooling as we know it in Detroit could be transformed. In what one think tank calls the biggest educational movement since the state adopted a charter-school law, a group of local foundations has teamed up on a $200-million plan to start 70 new schools for Detroit kids.

Led by the Skillman Foundation, the group expects to announce details of its education plan on Thursday.

One organization, Michigan Future Schools, already was given enough money to start up seven new high schools through 2012, with a goal of opening 35 new high schools in all by 2018. The first school is to open in the fall.

The plan to replace low-performing schools with high-performing ones apparently has the support of Robert Bobb, the emergency financial manager for Detroit Public Schools. The district got a $50,000 planning grant from Michigan Future Schools to study the feasibility of a new science and medical high school.

"If we can do this, it's a game-changer," said Lou Glazer, president of Michigan Future Inc., a nonpartisan think tank that started Michigan Future Schools. "Most of the schools Detroit kids go to -- whether it's charter, DPS or a suburban school -- are not quality schools. We want to change the whole system."

The plan, reaction

The group is planning to offer start-up funds to attract organizations and educators capable of opening high-quality public, charter or private schools in Detroit or neighboring suburbs accessible to Detroit students.

What's driving the initiative is low achievement in many of Detroit's public and charter schools. About half of the high schools on the state's draft list of the lowest-performing schools in Michigan are in Detroit Public Schools, in addition to some charter schools.

"This is definitely not about trying to replace the Detroit Public Schools," said Tonya Allen, vice president of program for the Skillman Foundation, a nonprofit that has invested millions in Detroit-area schools. "It's about figuring out how we scale up as many good schools as possible. It's about trying to replicate what we know works."

The group expects to release details of its education plan on Thursday.

It sounds good to parents

But already parents say the idea sounds worthwhile.

David Smith, a short-haul truck driver, said his 11-year-old son, Kyle, has struggled in the three schools he has attended, one a DPS school, the other two charter schools.

Since his sixth-grader did his best work at a DPS school, Smith said that any new school should be part of the existing district.

Still, the idea of new schools is exciting because it would re-energize students, teachers and parents.

"It's like getting a new car. You take care of it. You wash it," he said. "It would attract new students and parents."

DPS is on board with the part of the plan that calls for 35 new high schools. It was granted $50,000 to study opening a new science and medical high school.

"To dream, plan and actualize a quality high school where students thrive academically and graduate prepared for success in college can serve as a model for new school development throughout the city and beyond," said Barbara Byrd-Bennett, chief academic and accountability auditor for DPS.

$13 million committed

Four of the foundations that have joined the partnership -- Skillman, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Kresge Foundation and the McGregor Fund -- have already committed $13 million to Michigan Future Inc., an Ann Arbor-based think tank that plans to start up 35 of the 70 new schools as college preparatory high schools.

That initiative, called Michigan Future Schools, plans to ultimately raise $38 million more to help open the schools by 2018. The $13 million will be given to educators who apply for and get the grants to open the first seven high schools by 2012.

The first grant -- $850,000 -- was given to the Detroit Edison Public School Academy to open a high school this fall.

Michigan Future wants to fund schools that follow a similar model to that of the University Preparatory Academy. To win a Michigan Future grant, applicants must be able to prove their school will graduate at least 85% of students, send at least 85% to college and provide a counselor to help at least 85% of graduates get a college degree.

The organization was involved in starting University High in Ferndale and wanted to do more, an official said. The new high schools will be small -- 500 students at the most -- and located south of 12 Mile Road and east of Telegraph Road so that Detroit students can easily attend them.

"We don't care if they're public, charter or private," said Lou Glazer, president of Michigan Future Inc. "As long as they can convince us it's going to be quality."

A look at the future

Doug Ross, founder of the University Preparatory Academy charter school and a new charter school that opened a campus in the Detroit Science Center last fall, said the plan represents the future of city schools.

"Making the old ones better doesn't work," Ross said. "They need to be closed and new schools created by people with track records."

The Skillman Foundation has been leading the Excellent Schools Detroit effort, which convened six community meetings since the fall and surveyed about 600 residents on problems and solutions to the city's educational crisis. The group includes such organizations as United Way for Southeastern Michigan, Think Detroit PAL, New Detroit Inc., Detroit Regional Chamber and the Detroit Parent Network.

Talks about the education plan -- prompted by Skillman -- were under way in December when the sobering test results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress were released, said David Campbell, president of the Detroit-based McGregor Fund, one of the initiative's major supporters.

Detroit's students had tested the lowest of any district in the U.S.

Though they were "devastating news," the scores also added to the urgency, Campbell said.

"We recognize the educational outcomes for Detroit kids need to be improved if we're going to make progress in economic development and in reducing the need for human services," he said.

A focus on the educational foundation for metro Detroit children, in addition to the collaboration from so many different sources, will mean sweeping and lasting change under the new plan, said W.K. Kellogg Foundation spokeswoman Joanne Krell.

"This is a measured, intelligent approach to transforming education in Detroit. I think there's a lot of good reason to look forward," Krell said.

Waiting on specifics

Both Campbell and Krell declined to discuss money or specifics of the plan.

Otis Mathis, president of the DPS board, said he had not heard about the plan until contacted by the Free Press late Friday, but said he was not surprised.

The attention to DPS's woes has drawn plenty of plans and ideas. But as in too many of those plans, the DPS board once again had been left out of those discussions, he said.

Contact CHASTITY PRATT DAWSEY: 313-223-4537 or cpratt@freepress.com

CEOs for Cities: Where the work is

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 16:01:00 +0000

Click here to read the original blog post.

All eyes are on Detroit, and so are ours. This week CEOs for Cities traveled to the Motor City to co-host the national Opportunity Dividend Summit with United Way for Southeastern Michigan, which serves a six-county area in what CEO Mike Brennan referred to as "the epicenter of the contraction."

Last year, Brennan and his 100-person staff experienced a contraction of their own when they moved from a 12-story office building to an edgy new space in downtown Detroit. In the process two-thirds of them gave up their desks. Now, instead of having cubes to call their own, United Way employees plug their laptops into cozy community workstations situated throughout their open floor plan office, which is indeed open and available for community use. Brennan says this not only reflects the way they do business but also frees his staff up to work "where the work is." He should know, as he is among those who made the change.

The Detroit Free Press profiled the space earlier this year, giving the concept a name (hotelling) and denoting it "the office of the future." For Brennan and his staff, it means saving $300,000 annually and still serving 400,000 callers a year through their vast 211 call center network.

Next time you are in Detroit, ask for a tour. You’ll want to move in or duplicate it in your own city, just like we did.

Detroit Community Rallies Around School Improvement Efforts

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 01:29:00 +0000

From the Ed.gov blog:

More than 250 community leaders, government officials, educators, parents and students discussed turning around the Detroit area's lowest-achieving schools with Director of Community Outreach Alberto Retana at two local summits Feb. 24, hosted by United Way of Southeastern Michigan's Greater Detroit Education Venture Fund.
The visits were part of Retana's community engagement tour throughout the U.S. to strengthen grassroots support for transforming America's lowest-performing schools, and to inform communities about Title I School Improvement grant funding available for those efforts.
This spring, ED will award states a total of $3.5 billion in Title I School Improvement grants to turn around their lowest-performing schools. The funds will be awarded by formula to states, which will then make competitive grants to local education agencies (LEAs). Michigan is eligible to receive $135.9 million to turn around its lowest-performing schools.
Retana said that strong community support is required to ensure success of school transformation efforts.
"It's not enough to have funding, it's not enough to have charismatic leaders, and this is not just about opening another charter school," Retana said to the morning session's crowd at Detroit's Cody Academies. "It's also about community mobilization. We need a movement of people to stand up and say, 'we will no longer accept low expectations for our children.'"
Retana also brought a similar message to Melvindale High School in suburban Detroit. Both Cody Academies and Melvindale High School are undergoing turnaround efforts supported by funding through the Greater Detroit Education Venture Fund. Both sessions also included panel discussions with educators and students that generated dialogue about what is and isn't working with their respective transformations.

Click here to see pictures from both the Cody High School and Melvindale High School events.

File your taxes for free

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 00:27:00 +0000

Did you make less than $58,000 last year? If so, you can file your taxes for free online. Check out www.MyFreeTaxes.com/sem

MIchigan Future: Charters for Adults?

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 16:32:00 +0000

By Lou Glazer • on March 4, 2010

I attended a terrific conference this week – co hosted by CEOs for Cities and United Way for Southeastern Michigan – on reducing poverty. The mission was to identify local actions that can significantly reduce poverty over the next two to four years. In my presentation, unfortunately, I said we don’t know how to do that.

Nationally there are two areas that can make a big difference in reducing poverty in the short term: full employment and an expanded safety net. Both are powerful tools for large scale poverty reduction. Local efforts that can achieve at scale poverty reductions are hard to identify. Yes we should do whatever we can to boost job creation. But as I have written in previous blogs state, regional and local levers to do that are not strong. And yes we should build a regional transit system so that city residents – where poverty is concentrated – can access jobs in the suburbs.

Visit MichiganFuture.org to continue reading.

In Detroit: Kindergarten = Crowd Control

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 19:33:00 +0000

From Annemarie Harris, Director of Early Childhood Initiatives

My son, Tommy, is 5 and in kindergarten at Monteith School in the Grosse Pointe School District. This week, I learned that the School Board approved all day kindergarten for all students, beginning in 2010-2011. That's a good thing - studies show that all day kindergarten improves academic outcomes for students beyond kindergarten. Grosse Pointe Schools isn't perfect, but it does provide a quality learning experience for children. Tommy is in a class with 22 other children. His teacher, Mrs. DiVirgil has an aide, Mrs. Farnsworth, who supports the classroom throughout most of the day. The children follow high curriculum standards (Tommy can count to 100 by 2!), time for play, specials (library, art, gym, music) and access to high quality learning materials.

Click here to continue reading.

One D editorial: Regional Transit Needed to Facilitate Help

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 18:58:00 +0000

This editorial originally appeared on the One D editorial website at http://editorials.oned.org/2010/03/01/mike-brennan-president-and-ceo-united-way-for-southeastern-michigan-leadership-message/

True to our mission, the United Way's perspective on regional transit stems from access to help. Lack of adequate, efficient public transportation consistently hinders the efforts of the United Way and other community organizations working to assist people in need. As such, the lack of a comprehensive regional transit system has been a major barrier to the improvement of the health of individuals and families.

About 700,000 people in Southeast Michigan don't know where they will find their next meal. We receive calls into our 211 information referral help line from those looking for resources, including access to food. Many have children to feed, and are making decisions on whether to pay rent, utility bills, or to buy groceries. There are wonderful organizations in the area that can help them – but unfortunately many people have no way of getting to these places. If help is not near where people live and they don't have any access to transportation, we have a gap between the demand for help and the available helping resource. Regional transportation will bridge that gap.

Building that bridge requires regional collaboration. Communities in Southeast Michigan have traditionally favored self-interest over partnership. Metro Detroit is beginning to transform as a result of the economic challenges of recent years. A shift in consciousness is occurring, creating a willingness of individuals to work together and cooperate in ways that they never have before. That has birthed a different level of awareness about the strategic role mass transit plays to economic vitality and growth - attracting capital, development, and young talent. Communities are beginning to see what this investment will return.

Practically, we've got to tangibly demonstrate what rapid mass transit would look and feel like. We should have it underway and utilized in order for people to fully understand it. The best thing that we can do is ensure that the early projects that are in development, such the Ann Arbor to Detroit rail or the M-1 line, get launched and operational. It is tangible experience that draws people to imagine a bigger and brighter future. In using mass transit, they can imagine how it might be useful in their town, by their place of work, and they can envision it as a part of their everyday lives.

As transportation improves for everyone, quality of life increases. As quality of life increases, our region will be in a better position to ensure that citizens in need can receive the help they deserve.

Tax prep assistance available

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 18:52:00 +0000

http://www.theoaklandpress.com/articles/2010/02/28/news/local_news/doc4b89d90ab9506778471377.txt

The United Way for Southeastern Michigan's Regional Asset Building Coalition is offering free tax preparation assistance to low-income individuals and families.

Three tax assistance sites are open, through April 10, in Pontiac at the following locations:

Accounting Aid Society at Lighthouse Community Development, 46156 Woodward Ave. Hours: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Closed on April 3. E-File available by appointment only. Call 248-920-6200.
Accounting Aid Society at Oakland Livingston Human Service Human Service Agency, 196 Caesar Chavez. Hours: 5 to 8 p.m. on Wednesdays; 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays. E-File available in February only.
Accounting Aid Society at Pontiac Consumers Energy, 1030 Featherstone. Hours: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays.

In addition, the coalition, in partnership with the Wal-Mart Foundation, provides a online tool for individuals who earned less than $58,000 in 2009 to prepare and file state and federal income taxes themselves, free of charge. To access this tool, known as The Beehive, visit www.myfreetaxes.com/sem. An e-mail address is required to take advantage of this service.

For additional free tax preparation sites throughout metro Detroit or more information, visit www.michiganeic.org/freetaxprep or call United Way at 2-1-1 or 800-552-1183.

- Special writer Leah English

Food navigator program part of larger effort to close hunger gap

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 18:46:00 +0000

By Sherri Welch
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20100228/SUB01/302289992

United Way for Southeastern Michigan's food navigator program is part of a three-pronged approach to meet the rising need for food in a depressed economy.

United Way is using a report completed last summer by Minneapolis-based McKinsey & Co. as a guide.

The report, funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the Kresge Foundation, projects that by 2013 one in four people living in Southeast Michigan won't have enough food. It also identified a current gap of about 120 million meals and projected demand would outpace supply by about 300 million meals by 2013.

Based on the report's recommendations, United Way is focused on three goals:

Increasing the number of people registered for public benefits.
Increasing the capacity of the local nonprofit food distribution system.
Advocating policy changes that will make more people eligible for benefits.

Currently, about half of the emergency food coming into the region is through public programs such as free lunches, food stamps and the Women Infants and Children program. Friends and relatives of those in need contribute another quarter of emergency food assistance.

Gleaners Community Food Bank of Southeastern Michigan and Oak Park-based Forgotten Harvest distribute another 6 percent of the total emergency food coming into the region — about 45 million pounds per year at last count.

"Clearly our strategies are around the best ways to eliminate the gap," said United Way President and CEO Michael Brennan.

Bank of America recently made a $400,000 grant to United Way to help fund its efforts to improve access to benefits.

The Michigan Association of United Ways is developing a Web site — supported with a $275,000 grant from the DTE Foundation — to serve as a portal for eligible Michigan residents to apply for benefits and reduce the amount of public benefits currently left on the table, Brennan said.

Aligning with another study recommendation, United Way last year designated $600,000 over three years to develop additional client choice pantries, which look and operate much the same as a grocery store and offer longer hours of operation.

United Way also is overseeing grants targeted to the pantry network for purchasing food and improving access to it, Brennan said.

The agency is also chairing a local board that's overseeing more than $2 million in federal funds from the Emergency Food and Shelter Program to support local efforts to feed and house needy people.

Sherri Welch: (313) 446-1694, swelch@crain.com

United Way plans program to help schools feed more kids

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 18:39:00 +0000

By Sherri Welch
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20100228/SUB01/302289994

The United Way for Southeastern Michigan plans to launch a pilot program in March to embed "food navigators" in school districts in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties to make free and reduced-cost meals more accessible to needy students.

The program also hopes to increase the number of students registering for existing programs.

The state of Michigan requires districts with needy students to offer free and reduced-cost lunch programs and to offer breakfast programs if more than 20 percent of students enrolled qualify for the programs.

But no such mandate exists for making after-school snacks, suppers and summer meals available to students, said Bill Sullivan, director of the 2-1-1 health and human services hot line for United Way.

Offering other free meals "is at the will of the school or district. Schools are relying on their own assessment of need and their capacity to provide those programs," he said.

Parents often are unaware of free meal programs, and for some, illiteracy prevents them from filling out applications to enroll their children in the programs.

Union rules and unwillingness among some administrators and teachers to offer free meal programs at the start of the school day, rather than before it, also presents challenges at some schools, Sullivan said.

"Schools ask where they would get money to staff the (free) meals, keep the lights on, or bus the students home," he said.

The money to develop and run free meal programs at schools is reimbursable from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, he said.

"But throwing money at the problem isn't the answer. I think it's about introducing new ways of (schools) doing business," Sullivan said.

Enter the food navigators.

United Way plans to hire four people to serve as food navigators by March and another six by the end of the year, Sullivan said. The navigators will help set up free meal programs at schools that express readiness to put them in place, Sullivan said.

They also will be called on to help willing schools and districts shift their breakfasts to the beginning of the school day, rather than before it, so more children get fed.

"We want to help so that kids who are hungry can be fed. We think the food navigators will help schools achieve this, and by doing so ... permanently (change) the system."About 290,000 children in the tri-county area are eligible and most are receiving free lunch, Sullivan said. But less than a third of them are getting free breakfast.

Research shows that offering breakfast to all students in low-income districts at the beginning of school day decreases tardiness and absenteeism and improves performance, said Madeleine Levin, senior policy analyst at the Food Research and Action Center, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit working with United Way.

According to FRAC, 81.5 percent of schools in Michigan provide a breakfast program.

"But the problem is it's harder for kids to participate in breakfast than in lunch because ... the buses would have to get there on time," Levin said.

There are also other barriers to participation, she said.

"Kids that walk to school in Detroit may want to hang out in the school yard with their friends rather than eating breakfast...What we have been promoting with United Way in Southeastern Michigan is for schools to establish that breakfast program at the beginning of class," for all students, Levin said.

The work is fraught with issues, Levin said.

"Any time you make a change in a school building, there's going to be a little resistance; you're going to have to change the way people do their jobs, such as janitors and the cafeteria folks.

"It takes a little bit of getting used to, but in the end everyone thinks the effort is worth it because kids benefit so much," Levin said.

United Way's food navigator approach is laudable, she said.

"The schools really need help in these tight times. This is a wonderful public-private partnership."

FRAC is also working with United Way to encourage more schools in low-income areas offering after-school snacks, supper and summer meal programs.

"There are other organizations like health departments and YMCA and YWCA that can do the programs in the summer with (fewer) hurdles."

Sherri Welch: (313) 446-1694, swelch@crain.com

Foreclosure assistance Web portal for homeowners launches today

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 21:12:00 +0000

By Sherri Welch
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20100226/FREE/100229892

The Southeast Michigan Regional Foreclosure Intervention and Neighborhood Stabilization Collaborative this morning launched a new Web portal to provide homeowners with a single source for foreclosure prevention and assistance.

Convened by United Way for Southeastern Michigan in 2008, the collaborative was charged with developing a regional solution to the foreclosure crisis.

The collaborative has 40 members including representatives from: the Detroit Office of Foreclosure, Prevention and Response; Wayne County; Detroit Local Initiatives Service Corp.; Southwest Housing; Greenpath Inc.; Michigan Mortgage Lenders Association; Fannie May; Detroit Real Estate Brokers Association; Charter One and Michigan State University's-Wayne County extension.

In 2009, there were more than 65,000 foreclosures in Wayne, Oakland, Macomb and Washtenaw counties, and only about half of those former homeowners sought foreclosure prevention assistance, the collaborative said.

Based on technology created by Wayne County, the new Web portal at http://www.fightmortgageforeclosure.com/ creates a standardized approach to foreclosure prevention assistance that improves the efficiency of staff and organizations offering assistance, which will enable counselors to assist more homeowners, the collaborative said.

The online Web portal is designed to connect homeowners facing foreclosure with the best services to assist them and to track delivery of those services and outcomes, with a goal of helping at least 30 percent of those calling for help to avoid foreclosure.

It also has the ability to track homeowners through each stage of assistance to ensure that people do not fall through the cracks, the collaborative said.

Initiative Launches a Portal for Detroit Foreclosure Assistance

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 21:11:00 +0000

Written by Lani Shadduck
HULIQ.com

A new website designed to help users in Detroit to deal with foreclosures has launched today. The site, called FightMortgageForeclosure.com, connects underwater homeowners and those facing foreclosure with services to help them get on track and prevent foreclosure.

Michigan has been hit hard by the real estate market meltdown. Detroit is home to some of the world’s largest automakers and their downfall has meant that many Detroit residents are out of a job. This downward spiral has not only affected the local economy but also put many homeowners at risk of foreclosure.

The Southeast Michigan Regional Foreclosure Intervention and Neighborhood Stabilization Collaborative launched the website today. This was a result of a collaborative created by United Way for Southeastern Michigan who wanted to find a way to stem foreclosures in the area and help those in need.

The web portal was put together with technology from Wayne County which has faced a severe foreclosure epidemic. As many as 75,000 homes in Wayne County faced foreclosure in 2009 alone.

FightMortgageForeclosure.com offers education, counseling and intervention services. The site lets homeowners submit a foreclosure case online that includes household and income information. Once submitted, users will receive aid and information about what choices they have to prevent foreclosure.

Michigan as a whole currently has 1.38 million mortgage loans. More than 12 percent of those were 30 days or more past due. 4.56 percent were in actual foreclosure. Michigan ranks fourth in mortgage delinquencies. According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, however, delinquencies across the nation have actually dropped.

Experts to meet in Detroit to discuss ways to cut poverty rate

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 20:49:00 +0000

By Sherri Welch
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20100226/FREE/100229866

National poverty experts will be in Detroit Tuesday, March 2, to discuss ways to cut the poverty rate by one percent in the country’s largest 51 metropolitan areas over the next two to four years.

The daylong series of presentations at United Way for Southeastern Michigan was sparked by CEOs for Cities research that identifies $13 billion in public benefit program savings from just a one percent drop in the poverty rate in those regions.

Chicago-based CEOs for Cities is a nonprofit network of businesses, nonprofits and mayors dedicated to building the next generation of great American cities.

The poverty research is part of a larger CEOs for Cities study, “City Dividends,” which identifies $166 billion in economic benefits from decreasing poverty rates and increasing college degree attainment rates by just one percent. It also proposes decreasing the number of miles driven by each person by one mile per day.

CEOs for Cities plans to present the recommendations from the daylong, Detroit summit at a strategy session in New York later this year and on its Web site.

United Way also plans to make the recommendations available on its Web site.

WDET News: Four Counties Team Up to Fight Foreclosure

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 22:26:00 +0000

From WDET News
http://wdet.org/article/four-counties-team-up-to-fight-foreclosure

The United Way is teaming up with four Southeast Michigan counties to help prevent foreclosure.

Wayne, Oakland, Macomb and Washtenaw Counties are joining the United Way to form the Southeast Michigan Regional Foreclosure Intervention and Neighborhood Stabilization Collaborative. Through the use of a new website and 2-1-1 phone service, homeowners can get help navigating the foreclosure counseling process.

Charles Pugh is Detroit City Council President. He was facing a foreclosure during last fall’s election. Pugh says families need to come forward and get help… no matter how embarrassed they may feel.

“You have to come forward. I think part of the fear and embarrassment is what keeps people from seeking help. And let me tell you, there’s nothing more embarrassing than having your business on the front page of the paper. So, that will not happen to most families.”

In 2009, 1 in 27 homes in Southeast Michigan were in the foreclosure process totaling about 65,000 homes.

United Way bets the farm on its new role

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 22:15:00 +0000

Originally published February 2010
ASE's Everything People
http://www.aseonline.org/images/everythingpeopleFebruary10.pdf

By Joe DeSantis and Mary E. Corrado

An Eagle Eye Interview With Mike Brennan of United Way for Southeast Michigan

All HR professionals know why they need to care about social issues in their communities. There is a widely accepted business case for good corporate citizenship, particularly when the social issues are extreme, as they are today in Southeastern Michigan. Persistent and high levels of unemployment in a region, and the fallout from that unemployment-widespread poverty, failed school systems, failed local governance-eventually bounce back on local businesses, especially in the long term. Clearly, social awareness and good corporate citizenship are sound long-term business strategies.

Yet we all sense, down deep, that the business case isn't really enough; there needs to be more to it than that. Thankfully, there is. In the end, the best business people care about social issues not just because it is good business but also because they are human. When they are surrounded by human suffering and they have the wherewithal to do something about it, the simple human impulse to act, or at least support those who act, kicks in.

We are seeing that impulse deployed on a massive scale today in Haiti. But the earthquake in Haiti was a traumatic event that made the travails of that destitute country unimaginably worse all at once. Here in Southeastern Michigan, the troubles have had more of a creeping character, going from sad to grim to desperate incrementally, over the course of a full generation or longer. No earthquake here; instead a corrosive, metastatic disease that over time has claimed the lives, both literally and figuratively, of people and institutions as well.

That is why we have organizations like United Way for Southeastern Michigan. About 3½ years ago the Eagle Eye interviewed Mike Brennan, United Way's CEO. At that point in time, United Way had just made a strategic decision to become more than simply a collector and dispenser of funds, and head cheerleader, to various human service agencies in the area. The social problems were becoming too acute. United Way decided it needed to identify the most acute problems in the area and put its hands more directly on them by more aggressively "aligning resources with needs," as Mike put it. They decided it was time to lead from the front, rather than merely supply financial wherewithal and encouragement from behind.

Last month the Eagle Eye sat down again with Mike and invited him to update us on how things have gone since then, when, as he told us, United Way "bet the farm" on adopting a new leadership role and making it work.

Brennan: Four years ago we bet the farm on the direction of the organization. We took two 100-year-old organizations, dissolved them, had 150 Board members resign, formed a new one and seated a new 30-member Board in a mission that said we are going to define success not by how much money we raise but by how much progress we make on key social issues.

We had always been in a kind of a call-and-response mode, where you simply aggregate financial resources and distribute them to a set group of non-profits. But what was happening was, first, the value proposition of that was not enough in terms of attracting financial resources, and second, we weren't seeing measurable progress on key social issues in our community. We were finding that simply taking financial resources and forwarding them to non-profit organizations that did good work is not a very efficient way to effect social change. You have to take a more holistic approach.

I have long viewed United Way not as a charity and not as a recipient organization, which is how it has been most defined. I view United Way as a leadership organization. And when we put money into something, it should be something that gives us the ability to get things done.

Now, are we interested in growing the private contributions that are given to the community through the United Way? Absolutely. We work every day on that. It is a piece of the puzzle. But what we are betting the farm on is more actively aligning those resources with what we know to be the community's most urgent social needs, and measuring our success by whether or not we see changes in those conditions.

Where has this new approach taken you?

Brennan: Once we decided on that strategy, we went about the task of finding out what was most important in the community. We did a large survey of residents in the tri-country area, basically asking, of all the things that we could put energy into, what would be most important to you? Where do you think we could make the greatest progress? And out of that, along with looking at best practices across the country and interviewing other stakeholders, we formed our Agenda for Change. That agenda centered around three issues: education, financial stability (i.e., building financial assets in families), and third, basically a safety net.

On the education front, we really landed on two areas. One is early childhood development, meaning having kids ready for school by age five. Do you know that 80% of your mind was developed by age three? There is no more powerful place where you can put your dollars than early childhood development. For every dollar you put there, you see $17.00 on the other end of the line in reduced incarceration rates, better health metrics, etc. But we found that early childhood development is the least organized area of the community and of the state. We felt we could go about that in a better way, and today we have five Early Learning Centers established around the area, designed to give caregivers in the home access to early childhood training materials, early childhood tools, ageappropriate reading materials, and so on. The idea is to better prepare childcare-givers to change the quality of childcare that is taking place in the home.

The other area is high school graduation rates. Do you know that in just the tri-county area, there are 30 high schools that have dropout rates of 40% or more? Now, map that in your mind... Where did you map it? The fact is that one-third of those schools-ten of them-are outside the city of Detroit. There is a 20/10 split going on there. We've got a really important initiative that we've put in place to help address that issue.

Regarding family financial stability, as you have families going from the old economy to the new economy with the huge workforce displacement that we have had, there are fundamental capabilities that are simply missing in households and individuals and in communities. We can bring those to bear for families if we organize and work better together. For us, financial stability is families going from negative net worth to positive net worth. Our work in this area is about finding the best ways to help individuals and families navigate their financial framework in a better, more meaningful way and a more productive way.

Let me just give you an example-in the state of Michigan we have $900,000,000 that gets left on the table every year. This is public benefit money that is available to individuals who qualify for it but fail, for various reasons, to access it.

And then there is the safety net. The last time we talked, we had relatively recently put in the 211 help line. I think the most important development with the 211 of late is that it has documented a very clear shift in the need priorities of our callers. In an earlier study we had identified that there were about 600,000 people in the tri-county area who are "food insecure," meaning they know where one meal is coming from, but they don't know where the second or third meals are going to come from. We projected that number to grow to 900,000 by the time we get to 2011 and 2012. For 3½ years running, the number one reason people were calling into the 211 was for utility assistance. But then, two quarters ago, 211 data confirmed for us that a shift had happened. The number one reason people are now calling in is for food.

If someone asked me eight months ago to describe the local food system, the carrying system of food that comes into a community, I-and I would consider myself fairly knowledgeable on the topic-I would describe probably first and foremost the Gleaners, Forgotten Harvest, pantry systems, Focus Hope, Salvation Army, etc. One of our critical learnings was that of all the food that gets distributed to those who need it in the region, the food distribution system that I just described represents about 7% of the total; 50% of it comes through public benefit, federal benefit mostly, things like Food Stamps, women and their children (WIC), free and reduced lunch, breakfast programs. Another 20% is just the informal network of friends and family and neighbors that just help one another. So 7%, 50%, 20%, and then you had this gap. We estimate about a 120,000,000 pound gap of food on an annual basis.

You can improve the 7% part. We are working with great partners like Gleaners and Forgotten Harvest and others. We learned from the 211 data that instead of bricks and mortar, we needed to run a more mobile strategy. So we partnered with Ford Motor Company, which has given us five transit vehicles that can run 24 hours a day and move an extra 2,000,000 pounds throughout the region. But if you are going to make a really significant impact, you have to improve this uptake of the state and federal benefit, this 50%. And so as I said, you have $900,000,000 of untapped resources every year in that public benefit; the same thing was true on food access. We had pretty good penetration of individuals using things like food stamps but, for example, breakfast programs that are available to children at schools, in some cases only have an 8-10% take up rate. So you can impact a lot of families, a lot of kids, by just improving that.

When the new economy hits its stride, Michigan employers will need to draw their workers from Michigan's own citizenry. You can only import so much talent, and you cannot survive in the long run without a well-supplied pipeline of top-notch local talent. It means that Michigan's educational system has to prepare Michigan's students for employment in the new economy. It is not news that, on the whole, the state's K-12 schools are not meeting that challenge right now. United Way has targeted a particularly devastating aspect of the problem, drop-out rates, and begun a concentrated, cooperative initiative to do something about those rates, starting with three of the most troubled high schools in Southeast Michigan.

Brennan: Over two years ago we invited the 30 high schools that had that low performance to a Turnaround Summit. These were basically 30 drop-out factories. We brought in the very best turnaround agents in the country. These are intermediaries that specialize in working with large high schools to improve their performance from graduation rates of 20%, 30%, 40% to 60%, 70% and 80% and above. The Gates Foundation has put a lot of money into a whole range of intermediaries. We invited in the highest performing group, a group called the Institute for Student Achievement (ISA). ISA is a consulting group that works specifically with large high schools, typically in urban areas where there is high density of poverty, to change the performance rate.

These are people with a proven track record and a proven methodology. We introduced them to these 30 non-performing high schools. We also went out and raised $5,000,000 and created a Detroit Venture Fund, which is private money raised to be invested in the intermediaries to work with the high schools.

We invited the 30 schools to apply for a grant out of the Venture Fund that could be used to purchase the services of the intermediary. In essence, we would take Venture Fund money and give it to the intermediary, not to the school, to work and partner with the school. About a dozen schools applied and out of that, five got selected and three are on the clock right now. So, we have Cody and Osborn in the city of Detroit and Melvindale High in Melvindale. These are schools that spent a year getting ready-you can't just flick a switch at a school like Cody, with 2,000 kids, and all of a sudden be in a ready state.

In each of these schools we moved from one school to four academies, each one targeted to specific interest areas like technology, health, etc., and instead of one principal over 2,000 kids, you now have four principals, each over a class of 100. So, the incoming (current) class is just 9th grade, next year it will be 9th and 10th grade, the third year it would be 9th, 10th and 11th grade, the fourth year it would be 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th. At that point Cody as a single entity of 2,000 students will be gone and there will be four academies standing there, all inside the physical plant that was Cody High School.

Currently there is still a principal over the upper school, but over time that is just going to phase out.

Each academy principal had the right to choose the teachers for his or her school, working with the union.

That is part of the deal. They had to have the buy-in from the union, to allow the principals to select their teachers, in order to sign on with the intermediaries. Yes, there was a lot of turnover among teachers, but that was part of the arrangement. Today, all the teachers at Cody and Osborn are all members of DFT (Detroit Federation of Teachers, the teachers' union in the district).

One really important aspect of this is that Robert Bobb is a close partner in this project. When Mr. Bobb spoke to United Way Board 60 days ago, he said that what he saw going on at Cody and Osborn is what he wants going on in every high school in the city of Detroit. So, he is very supportive of the work. From the get-go we have had the administration, we have had the principals, we have had the union involved with it, and we have had parent networks involved, because that is the only way you get to a changed result.

That is the proof of concept here-that Robert Bobb wants to accelerate this concept into the other Detroit schools.

Now, these are not charter schools, this is not a charter strategy, it is not just a turnaround strategy of the DPS, it is the collective. It is not just having a Robert Bobb, who is probably a once-in-a-generation leader to arrive in that role, but you have to also have community organizations like United Way, and champions like Skillman Foundation (which has been on our Board for 20 years) and the Detroit Parent Network. Changing the education of our children requires a full community response. And that is complicated work. But it does us no good for us to say "Boy, this is really complicated, it is really hard." So what. That is our job.

We wanted to know if the national United Way organization has adopted the same approach that the Southeast Michigan organization has.

Brennan: Yes, we have adopted this strategy at the national level as well. Remember that I spent several years with the national-that is where I came from. We have been very intentional nationally on a transformation effort, aligning resources against set targets. You could go to a lot of United Ways and you would see the same kind of realignment taking place. I think, though, most United Ways would agree that our work here in Southeast Michigan has been bolder, and there is a rigor in how deep we are going. It is not just like a rewrap of the old organization; I mean we dissolved the old organization, so it has been a robust change here.

In all of this, what has happened to the annual campaign that we are all so familiar with?

Brennan: Of course we continue to run our annual campaign. And we are eager to widen it and expand it. We have about 100 non-profits that are funded partners for us. But the difference today is that those partners are aligned against the change result. So, one of the shifts that happened four years ago is that instead of asking what the agencies need, the question that now comes down into the center of the table for our Board is "What does the community need?... Let's get clear about that, and let's get clear about the strategies that we think can accomplish it, and then let's find the very best partners that can help us accomplish it." So the partners, the 100 non-profits that we work with today, help us get to this change condition. In the old days we used to refer to the process as "suck and blow'" where you "suck" in the resources as through a straw and then aim the straw at someone else and "blow" those resources to them. No more of that; today the agencies we work with are aligned in terms of impact on the issues that are most critical to the area.

You know, when someone is entrusting us with a discretionary dollar, my job is to make sure that it is the most impactful gift they can ever give. If we can't say that, then they should give the dollar somewhere else. But I say it now, and you have heard me say it publicly, I really don't think there is a more powerful gift someone can give right now than to the United Way, and if you do know of where there is, then I would say give the money there and the only thing I ask is tell me where that is, because then I want to go learn from that. But if I were to walk you through a 211 center, if I were to walk you through the work that is being done to put more food on the streets for individuals, if I were to walk you through a Center for Working Families, or a turnaround at a high school, or one of our Early Learning Centers, you would be able to see that your investment helped drive that. I don't believe there is another place where you could give your discretionary dollar that could come close to that.

At tax time, the EITC is win-win for workers and employers

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 22:00:00 +0000

Originally published February 2010
ASE's Everything People
http://www.aseonline.org/images/everythingpeopleFebruary10.pdf

By Dona Ponepinto, Guest Contributor

Tax season can be a stressful time for everyone. From understanding all of the forms, to gathering all the necessary information and worrying over what you
might owe, it is a headache few enjoy.

Yet, for many Michigan workers, tax time also means an opportunity to significantly increase their household income, and employers can help them take advantage of it without incurring any additional employment costs. For employers and their employees, it is a clear, straightforward Win-Win.

At United Way for Southeastern Michigan, we believe that all families should have the tools and resources to become financially stable. That means the ability to make a livable income, to save, and to build assets. Every day, we're working with key partners in the government, nonprofit and corporate arenas to make this a reality.

Interestingly, a key first step to financial stability for many families lies in their annual income tax return. Tax credits like the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) can add thousands of dollars to a household's income. The EITC is a refundable tax credit offered at both the state and federal levels for working individuals and families. The credit allows taxpayers to reduce the amount of taxes they owe and, in most cases, provide a refund. Either way, it translates into more disposable income in the taxpayer's pocket.

This year's federal tax credit ranges between $450 and $5,650, depending on family size and household income. In 2007, the average federal tax credit for Michigan residents was $1,975. The Michigan EITC, a separate credit from the federal EITC, provides an additional tax credit of 20% of the taxpayer's federal credit.

The additional money workers receive is often used to pay down debt, meet basic needs, or save for the future. It is a fact that the EITC lifts more families out of poverty than any other federal aid program.

Not only does the EITC help individuals and families, but its benefits extend to employers and the community as a whole. For employers, the EITC presents tremendous opportunities. It offers an incentive to work and provides a chance for individuals to significantly increase their disposable income without having to receive an increase in pay. In a difficult economy where pay raises are no longer the norm, this is critical to helping families continue to meet their needs.

At a community level, the value is seen in the millions of dollars pumped into the local economy. The economic impact on neighborhoods and cities is felt as refund recipients pay bills, invest in their homes and neighborhoods, and purchase goods and services.

Unfortunately, there are still millions of EITC dollars left unclaimed each year. Estimates show that approximately 25% of eligible taxpayers do not claim the EITC because they do not know they are eligible or they do not understand its benefits. That translates to approximately $220 million that is left unclaimed across the state of Michigan.

Our state legislators are making strides to increase awareness and the amount of tax credits workers receive. HB 5296, a bill introduced in the Michigan House of Representatives late last year, would require employers with five or more paid employees to provide information about the EITC to their entire staff. The bill would also provide tools to help organizations effectively communicate to their employees about the EITC and its benefits. It has passed in the House Labor Committee, and is currently making its way through the House. If passed, this bill would go a long way in educating workers about this important income booster.

National poverty experts gather in Detroit for unique dailogue on poverty

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 21:14:00 +0000

Press release

Contact(s):
Julia Klaiber, CEOs for Cities
202.420.9451

Laura L Rodwan, United Way for Southeastern Michigan
313.226.9484 or 313.477.2750

Cara I. Belton, United Way for Southeastern Michigan
313.226.9484 or 313.520.8454

[DETROIT, MI] – National experts on the challenges of poverty will gather in Detroit March 2 at the invitation of CEOs for Cities and the United Way for Southeastern Michigan to engage in a renewed dialogue on one of the nation's most intractable problems.

The Opportunity Dividend Summit is aimed at capitalizing on research published by CEOs for Cities, a national network of urban leaders, that indicates a one percentage point reduction in poverty rates in the nation's 51 largest metropolitan areas would yield a $13 billion savings to public benefits programs. This "Opportunity Dividend" is calculated by direct savings to public programs such as Medicaid, food stamps and Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF).

"The Opportunity Dividend Summit is bringing innovative thought leaders together to address the challenges of poverty and its effect on public benefit programs, and we are pleased to host this important event here in Detroit," said Michael J. Brennan, CEO and president of United Way for Southeastern Michigan. "The goal of the Summit underscores the commitment we share in exploring solutions to this critical issue effecting so many individuals and families in our region, and our nation."

In this one-day summit, national experts will present their best recommendations on how to achieve the Opportunity Dividend within 24-48 months using the unique Pecha Kucha method of 20 slides in six minutes. This format allows for a large number of good ideas to be presented succinctly and creatively, along with the rationale and evidence of their effectiveness.

"We urgently need to re-start the conversation on how to tackle poverty in America, and we need to do it in a way that grabs the attention of urban leaders," CEOs for Cities President and CEO Carol Coletta said. "We have to move from a recitation of the problem, stop treating urban leaders as non-actors in solving this problem and bring new energy to the task."

Outcomes from the Opportunity Dividend Summit will be presented to CEOs for Cities' national network of partners at its upcoming Strategy Session 2010 in New York City. Presentations will also be made available online by both CEOs for Cities and United Way for Southeastern Michigan for use by urban leaders and United Way practitioners nationwide.

The Opportunity Dividend Summit has been made possible by generous support from the Annie E. Casey Foundation and GMAC Financial Services/Ally Bank.

About City Dividends

The research behind the Opportunity Dividend is part of a larger body of work by CEOs for Cities called City Dividends, which calculates the monetary value of: increasing college attainment rates by one percentage point (Talent Dividend); decreasing vehicle miles traveled per person per day by one mile (Green Dividend); and decreasing poverty rates by one percentage point (Opportunity Dividend) in the largest 51 metropolitan areas in the U.S. The cumulative economic benefits of realizing the City Dividends are equal to $166 billion annually.

About CEOs for Cities

CEOs for Cities is a national cross-sector network of urban leaders from the civic, business, academic and philanthropic sectors dedicated to building and sustaining the next generation of great American cities.

Additional information is available at www.ceosforcities.org.

United Way for Southeastern Michigan

United Way for Southeastern Michigan mobilizes the caring power of Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties to improve lives in measurable and lasting ways throughout the region. The organization is led by a diverse group of volunteers from business, labor, government, human services, education and the community. United Way provides opportunities to invest in the metropolitan Detroit community through its annual Campaign and is a leader in convening partners to impact local residents each year by increasing economic self-sufficiency, protecting children and youth at risk, strengthening families, empowering neighborhoods and communities, and promoting health and wellness. Additional information is available at www.UnitedWaySEM.org.

Changing Cody, a reflection on high school turnaround

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 20:24:00 +0000

By Annie Dunsky, Corporate Citizenship & Corporate Affairs Manager, IBM

As the chair of Leadership Next's Educational Preparedness Committee, I am proud of the commitment we have made to United Way's High School Turnaround efforts. As a group, we've decided to focus our energy and time to support Cody High School, one of the five turnaround schools funded by United Way and the Greater Detroit Education Venture Fund. [Click here to continue reading.]

Detroit named a City of Service

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 20:20:00 +0000

Detroit is making headlines again, this time for being a leader in volunteer service. The Rockefeller Foundation has awarded Detroit and nine other cities across the nation with the first Cities of Service Leadership Grant. This grant supports a Chief Service Officer who reports directly to the city's mayor and is responsible for leading local efforts to develop and implement a citywide plan to increase civic engagement and volunteerism. [Click here to continue reading.]

MLK Day is over, but the impact is ever-lasting

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 20:17:00 +0000

It may have been over a month ago, but that doesn't mean it's old news. For the 16th year, United Way for Southeastern Michigan coordinated a community-wide day of service to honor Martin Luther King Jr. Day. In partnership with City Year, University of Michigan-Dearborn, Henry Ford Community College, Lawrence Technological University, Oakland County Community College, Oakland University, Madonna, and Wayne State University, we mobilized 1,400 volunteers. That group also includes employees from All State, American Express, and Chrysler who chose to spend their day off with us. [Click here to continue reading.]

Cheer on the Pistons while supporting United Way

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 20:16:00 +0000

Support United Way's High School Turnaround Program with a night at the Palace of Auburn Hills on March 31. Bring your friends and family and watch the Detroit Pistons take on the Miami Heat. Tickets are $20 and half of the ticket price will help United Way purchase classroom resources for its turnaround schools. Click here to learn more.

United Way expands early education program

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 20:14:00 +0000

United Way's Early Learning Communities (ELC) have already improved the care that 1,000 caregivers provide for approximately 4,000 children through the program's series of workshops and events. Now, with the help of the Early Childhood Investment Corporation (ECIC), that number will skyrocket. [Click here to continue reading.]

Yes He Can: 'One Can A Week' Program Inspires Imitators

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 02:36:00 +0000

First Posted: 02-15-10 06:00 PM | Updated: 02-15-10 06:20 PM
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/15/yes-he-can-one-can-a-week_n_462827.html

Peter Norback took Barack Obama's campaign talk of hope and change to heart. He said it inspired him to launch a campaign to get his neighbors in Tucson, Ariz. to contribute just "one can a week" to feed the hungry.

"When President Obama got elected there was an attitude change," Norback told HuffPost. "When a sensitive guy came along and said we should be responsible human beings, that really hit a note in everybody and all my neighbors said, 'Yeah, we should do something.'"

While hope has turned to cynicism for many, Norback has kept the faith. Every Sunday since early 2009, he's spent four hours collecting cans and other goods from his neighbors. He delivers the payload to the Community Food Bank in Tucson. In 2009, he delivered more than 9,000 pounds of food.

"Some weeks people forgot, but he never forgot," said Community Food Bank development officer Pauline Hechler. "He has shown them he is going to be there week after week, so they do their part. They don't want to let him down."

Hechler said demand for food in Tucson had increased 40 percent over the past year. "It's unbelievable," she said. The food bank distributes enough food for 48,000 meals a day.

Norback documents his work in a weekly email and blog post. Last week brought the first rainy Sunday in the program's 57 weeks, and Norback wondered if everyone would still participate. They did.

"It just really, really surprised me," said Norback, a 67-year-old computer teacher. "It showed me that I'm going to keep on pressing on. It is affecting people, it's getting to them...Nobody called anybody. That means that I have to really be responsible. If you're really responsible, the citizens will follow you."

People are not only following Norback, they're imitating him in other cities.

"Peter's One Can A Week program was our inspiration when my son began a
weekly food collection for the veterans in our community," wrote Carol Reed of Wake Forest, N.C. in an email to HuffPost. "We stumbled across his blog on the Internet, and being former Tucsonans, it caught our eye. I wrote to Peter who sent all his materials which we adapted for what we are doing. Basically, every Sunday my son collects non-perishables from our neighborhood of about 65 homes. He started in late August, and has collected over 800 pounds of food so far. He delivers it to the American Legion Post where the veterans who are in need of assistance can come to receive it."

For anyone interested in starting a One Can A Week program, Norback's got a starter kit on his site. The United Way of Southeastern Michigan adapted the guide and is promoting the concept as well.

"Imagine if every household in your neighborhood donated one can of food, every week, to your local food pantry," says a message on the United Way's site. "Would anything change? Would there be less hunger in metro Detroit? If you look at the One Can-a-Week program created by one neighborhood in Tucson, Arizona, the answer is yes."

HuffPost readers: Is there a One Can A Week program in your neighborhood? Are you starting one? Tell us about it -- email arthur@huffingtonpost.com.

Kids loved kickoff of FREE Family Fun Days

noreply@blogger.com (UWSEM webmaster) — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 15:54:00 +0000

Panera Bread and United Way for Southeastern Michigan Team Up to Host FREE Family Fun Days every second Saturday of the month. I took the kids to the kickoff event at the Rochester location on Adams and they had a great time. (See list below for upcoming dates and locations.) The event was well run and the staff truly enjoyed being with the kids, and they were so incredibly kind and helpful. They read stories to the kids and helped them at each of the craft stations. All with smiles and genuine kindness.

Click here to continue reading.