ADVOCATE
You can make change happen with your voice. United Way needs people who are passionate about education, financial stability and health to make some noise; create buzz. Raise your voice and advocate for your neighbors-in-need. Join thousands of advocates across the state using their voices to create positive change.
You can persuade policymakers to allocate resources to provide effective services and quality programs for low-income individuals and families, increase access to affordable housing and medical care, and help children start school ready to succeed.
You can inspire hope and create opportunities for a better tomorrow.
BE INFORMED
Public Knowledge Report: The Voices of Youth
Heart of Indiana United Way is thrilled to be a collaborator in the Madison County’s More and Diverse Voices group. This is a team that formed in 2022 through the Community Based Action Planning work of the South Madison and Madison County Community Foundations. In 2023, the team engaged over 100 youth in conversations around six questions that pertained to living in their community.
The collective action group, “More and Diverse Voices” (MDV), was formed as a community leadership project undertaken by the South Madison Community Foundation and Madison County Community Foundation in 2022-2023. The MDV group completed community development coursework, analyzed data and community input from Madison County, and determined to focus their efforts on ensuring the youth of Madison County are listened to and their voices are heard. In this work, MDV members convened six community conversations with 102 diverse youth between 12-18 years old, hailing from Anderson, Lapel, Elwood, Alexandria, Frankton, and Pendleton. From those conversations, this report was formed.
Get Involved
Key issues for public policy focus on eliminating poverty in the Heart of Indiana particularly in the areas of early childhood education, housing, and economic mobility.
State of the Child
Interested in attending the upcoming Indiana Youth Institute 2024 State of the Child event This is an excellent opportunity to learn more about the state of childcare in our local communities. You can find event You can find event information and register here. In-person and streaming options available
Women United
Watch the January legislastive postcard party recap.
Women United mobilizes women who strengthen our community by investing in and promoting programs that positively impact our community’s children, families, and future. In each community we serve, we tackle the issues that matter most to the people who call it home.
Women United members engage with one another and participate in events and volunteer projects to
learn, share, and grow.
Tools for Advocacy
Your elected officials want to hear from you. Advocating for the issues most important to you is one way of providing feedback that could help influence legislation. Use these tools to write, call or email your elected officials.
Common Cause is a non-partisan grassroots organization dedicated to democracy. We’ve included this link because not only can you find your elected officials, you can also access information on committees they serve on and bills they have sponsored and top campaign contributers.
Register to vote, check your voting status, find your polling place and who is on the ballot and more information can be found at the Indiana Voter Portal.
Learn how your community ranks in academic attainment, income stability and health with our Community Report Card. Use the United Way Common Good Forecaster, a powerful online tool that lets people see for themselves how improving the education level has a positive impact on several key economic and social measures.
UNITED WAY COMMUNITY REPORT CARDS
