Project IMPROVE
Improving Local Child Care Programs

Early Care and Education Centers constantly struggle to maintain quality services due to a lack of time, money, and staff turnover, according to the Union County Child Care Plan 2005. The report also states that local centers need to be improved through a better coordination of resources, advocacy, training, and professional development.

The Solution:

United Way and Community Coordinated Child Care are working together to boost the quality of local programs through in Project IMPROVE.

Project IMPROVE is bringing trained volunteers into our local centers to assess their programs and determine areas of weakness.  Child care professionals are then providing intensive training and technical assistance to help improve their services.

So far, the results have been amazing! 23 classrooms significantly improved the quality of their services in areas such as language skills, diversity awareness, and arts and music.
 

Centers, by town, that are
committed to improving the
Quality of Child Care:

Elizabeth
Center for Infant Development
Egenolf Child Care Center
Elizabethport Presbyterian Center
Evangel Day School
Little Schoolhouse
PROCEED, Inc.
Trinitas Childcare Center
YMCA of Eastern Union County -
   Elizabeth Branch

New Providence
Santa Fe Childcare

Plainfield
Faheemah's Child Care, Inc.
King's Daughters Day School
Little Hearts Learning Center
Neighborhood House
Second Street Youth Center

Rahway
Rahway Day Care Center
YMCA of Eastern Union County -
   Rahway Branch

Roselle
Roselle Daycare Center First Presbyterian Church

Summit
Overlook Child Care Center
The Learning Circle

Union
YM/YWHA of Union County
YMCA of Eastern Union County -
   Five Points Branch

Westfield
Westfield Day Care Center

Fighting Hunger in Our Community

FOOD DONATIONS DESPERATELY NEEDED!
More than a dozen food pantries within United Way's Union County Food Providers Network are nearly empty!  We desperately need your help now because food donations have drastically declined in recent months!

PLEASE HELP ORGANIZE A FOOD DRIVE AT YOUR WORKPLACE, SCHOOL, OR SOCIAL/RELIGIOUS CENTER! United Way can arrange drop-offs at local food pantries.  For more information, please call (908) 353-7171.

United Way of Greater Union County ensures that programs within its network of certified agencies produce measurable results that impact our community. By measuring quality outcomes, United Way ensures that funded programs have a sustained impact on clients or target groups.

CLICK HERE for a list of United Way of Greater Union County's certified agencies.

Here are just a few examples of some outcomes from the past year:

		More than 3,000 seniors remain in the own homes as a result of home health care services.
		58 people with disabilities attained employment after completing job training.
		577 residents avoided eviction and remained in their own homes.
		36 people who were addicted to drugs and/or alcohol learned the keys to remaining substance free.
		More than 200 young parents, under 21-years-old, learned appropriate parenting skills to create safer environments for their children.

Working Together
United Way of Greater Union County is a long-time community services partner with the Union County Central Labor Council. For more than 25 years, United Way has helped extend labor's helping hand  to both union member and non-affiliated workers in our community.

Frank Nycz and Garreth Doherty accept a certificate of appreciation on behalf of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 877 for the organization's outstanding commitment to Infineum USA L.P.'s United Way campaign. Organized labor organizations throughout our area have been supporting United Way for more than 75 years.
 

United Way's partnership with Labor's Community Services (AFL-CIO) has helped fight hunger in Union County by providing more than two tons of food for local families of workers on strike.