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UNITED WAY OF
SOUTHEAST LOUISIANA

Building Stronger
Communities, Together.

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WAYS TO HELP

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Let’s build stronger communities together.

OUR IMPACT

Because of you, we raised $12,183,489 in 2021-2022 to support our collective impact model, which generated $93,460,476 generated in community impact in 2022-23 and beyond.

$1 DONATED GENERATED $7.67 IN COMMUNITY IMPACT

When you invest in your community through United Way, you help more children succeed in school, more families lead healthy lives, and more people grow their incomes to become financially stable.

LEARN MORE ABOUT YOUR DOLLARS AT WORK

Driven by the “Blueprint for Prosperity” — our strategic plan to end poverty — United Way of Southeast Louisiana tackles poverty head-on, taking a holistic approach to addressing its root causes and residents’ emerging needs.

WATCH VIDEO

What We Do

United Way fights for the health, education, and financial stability of every person in every community.

THE PROBLEM

1 in 2 households in Southeast Louisiana struggles to make ends meet.

THE PLAN

Our Blueprint for Prosperity provides a roadmap to tackle poverty – the root cause of many of the social problems in our region.

THE SOLUTION

By improving the health, education, and financial stability of every person, we help everyone have the best chance to recover from a setback, build a stronger life, and reimagine what’s possible for the future.

WE HAVE A PLAN

Our United Way has embarked on a journey to renew our approach to creating lasting change. Through research and engagement, it became clear that poverty is the fundamental issue in the region and the root cause of many of our social problems. This has led United Way to a bold vision to eradicate POVERTY. The aim of this plan is to present a compelling path forward toward a stronger, prosperous, and more equitable region. We want businesses and individuals to join us in developing strategies and partnerships. Together we can educate and empower people to help lift them out of poverty to create a stronger, better community.

WHO IS STRUGGLING AND WHAT DOES
THAT MEAN TO THE COMMUNITY?

Our most recent data shows 19% of Louisiana’s population is living in poverty. The federal poverty line varies between individuals [$12,140] and families [$25,100 for a family of four], leaving these households with limited resources. While this figure is daunting, it fails to capture many individuals and families who struggle to afford basic needs including housing, child care, health care, food, and transportation.

ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) identifies the struggle of an additional 32% of Southeast Louisiana households, comprised of hard-working taxpayers who don’t fit the traditional idea of poverty given their employment status. ALICE households are living paycheck to paycheck – unable to save and often one health emergency, one car repair, or one harsh storm away from poverty.

WATCH THE BLUEPRINT FOR PROSPERITY VIDEO
of Louisiana’s population
lives in poverty
0 %
Federal poverty line
for Individuals
$ 0
Federal poverty line
for Families
$ 0
of Southeast Louisiana households
live paycheck to paycheck
0 %

WHEN ALICE FAMILIES AND THOSE LIVING IN POVERTY SUFFER, WE ALL SUFFER.

If 50% of our neighbors in Southeast Louisiana can’t afford the basics, they cannot help to stimulate the economy with purchasing power – putting a greater strain on local services. If our community cannot afford to save for the future, we all bear the costs.

THE VISION

Our bold vision takes a holistic approach to solving these problems through collective impact – which involves businesses, nonprofits, foundations, government, churches, schools, and YOU coming together to break down silos, align programs and resources, and set shared goals. We want others to be inspired by our vision and partner with us in this collective impact approach to quality jobs, growing incomes, and better health and education opportunities in every parish in the region.

UNITED WAY BLUEPRINT

STEP 1: IDENTIFYING ISSUE

In our Southeast Louisiana region:

1 IN 2

households in Southeast Louisiana struggle to make ends meet.

STEP 3: OUR APPROACH

How we work:

We are aligning grants with programs while supporting existing collaborations that will help alleviate poverty in our community.

We are laser-focusing our public policy work on poverty while creating a business coalition and educating donors on the importance of tackling the root causes.

We are leveraging diversity, equity, and inclusion inside our organization and in the community, creating an environment where diverse people feel supported, listened to, and empowered.

We are creating a new collaborative effort in our financial stability and early education initiatives, that takes a holistic approach consistent with our new guiding principles and our vision.

STEP 2: COLLECTIVE IMPACT

To propel bold new vision, United Way of Southeast Louisiana will:

INVEST

in programs and collaborations focused on poverty

INFORM

others with data and innovative practices so they can accelerate their own impact

INSPIRE

others to adopt our vision

INITIATE

new collaborations where they are needed most

STEP 4: OUTCOMES

United Way fights for the health, education, and financial stability of every person in every community. We win by living United, by forging unlikely partnerships, by finding new solutions to old problems, by mobilizing the best resources and inspiring individuals to join the fight against each community’s most daunting social crises.

Stability Today

All families have the skills, resources and opportunities to access basic needs

Personal Wellness

People of all ages enjoy a high quality of life and wellbeing

Propensity Tomorrow

All families have the social, educational and financial assets to create a better future

Vibrant Communities

All communities are safe, thriving and equitable

HOW TO GET INVOLVED?

Together, we can create the maximum impact for the people in our region. Your personal commitment is instrumental to our holistic approach to solving the root cause of so many of our community’s problems – Poverty.

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OUR PROGRAMS

United Way offers a variety of options for people to support their community, whether through donations, advocacy, corporate partnerships, or joining one of our groups.

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Helena Moreno

Campaign Email:  letsgo@helenamorenola.com
Contact Phone Number:  (504) 655-2878


Campaign Website and Social Media Handles
www.helenamorenola.com
@HelenamorenoHQ  |  @helenamorenola

Commitment: If elected, would you dedicate additional funding in the City budget for early care and education?

Yes.

If so, how would you prioritize it in the budget?

Both in the state legislature and city council, I’ve been a strong supporter of bringing early childhood education to New Orleans. In 2018, we allocated the first $1.5M in city funds for additional seats. As Council President, we doubled that to $3M. I was the lead author to put the pre-k millage on the ballot, providing millions more. I will continue this work as mayor. As for additional funding for pre-k, is there anything more important? We have demonstrated to the public that local government can make progress on this issue with increased resources. There are competing priorities, especially when it comes to drainage, but our kids desperately need pre-k, and so do our parents, who are under pressure to be both caregiver and financial provider.

Commitment:  If elected, will you use your power and platform to advocate at the state and federal levels for sustained early childhood funding? If yes, please describe the specific actions you will take to do this.

Yes.

Every leader at the local, state, and federal levels should be working together to provide high-quality early childhood education to our young people. I will always shout from the rooftops about the enormous benefits of Head Start and pre-k, along with Medicaid, SNAP, public housing, and kids’ programming on PBS. As mayor, I will lead a broad intergovernmental relations effort with constant coordination between city leadership, the legislative delegation, and advocates. I don’t think anyone is listening, for now, but that can change. More broadly, this is why the mayoral election is so important. New Orleans needs to stand on its own two feet. No one is coming to rescue us, so we must be strong in the face of unprecedented economic, environmental, and political headwinds.

Commitment: If elected, will you commit to ensuring our early care and education providers can keep their doors open, grow their business, pay a living wage to their teachers, and help ensure families and educators can continue to afford to live in the city? If yes, please describe the specific actions you will take to do this.

Yes.

Child care providers will have a strong supporter in the mayor’s office when I am elected. Our city hall will serve as a hub, connecting needs and resources, with a focus on streamlining red tape for critical service providers, such as those offering child care. It is not enough to have more early childhood seats; we need quality. Even at current levels of local and state funding, pre-K early education programs exist in an environment where low wages are the norm and facilities are often in disrepair. The current climate at the state and federal levels may preclude additional funds. Yet, at the local level, as I mentioned earlier, is there anything more important than pre-k? We have demonstrated to the public that local government can make progress on this issue with increased resources.

Commitment: If elected, would you commit to ensuring essential local workers – including those in city government – can access childcare through local providers, and that private sector employers do their part in ensuring their employees can access the childcare they need to work, be productive, and grow our economy? If yes, please elaborate on how you would fulfill this commitment.

Yes.

I will always advocate amongst employers and at the state level for a real-living wage that can provide for a family. In workplaces across New Orleans and at city hall, I see parents working double time, struggling to keep up due to a lack of child care. Part of the answer is more public school seats for children aged 6 months to 4 years old. For older kids, I want NORD to do more. A lot more. I have been a leader in expanding NORD’s budget to record highs. Now the goal is to maximize services during non-school hours. Summer enrichment is especially crucial to prevent any backslide. In short, I want to usher in a NORD Renaissance, especially after school. This would go a long way, especially for working parents who need a few more critical hours of support before they can leave work.

Commitment: If elected, will you commit to maintaining this office and protecting these investments?

Yes.

How will you ensure these efforts are sustained beyond your term and are prioritized in future budgets?

Yes. I helped lead the effort for early childhood education with Agenda for Children, and I will commit to maintaining and protecting these early childhood investments. They were hard won, and we cannot lose them. If anything, we need an expansion, which will be the key subject of future budgets, which must balance ALL the city’s needs. The bottom line: we must support families, or else they will simply leave, and New Orleans will not have a future.