We invest in 3 building blocks For Better lives.
BUILDING BLOCK 1: EDUCATION
TAUW’s focus on lifelong learning in our community benefits our youngest to our oldest citizens through the provision of educational information, training, and counseling. In 2021:
- Street School transformed the lives of 39 seniors who would not have graduated without the services they received.
- Parent Child Center helped 71% of children in its therapy program demonstrate significant decreases in trauma symptoms, including depression, anger, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder.
BUILDING BLOCK 2: FINANCIAL STABILITY
Due to your generosity, thousands of Tulsa area residents have obtained employment, pulled themselves out of debt, and have been able to provide for their families. In 2021:
- Goodwill Industries of Tulsa paid over $10.5 million in wages and benefits to employees who face barriers to employment, transforming lives and communities through the power of a good job.
- A New Leaf provided meaningful employment for 136 adults with developmental disabilities.
BUILDING BLOCK 3: HEALTH AND SAFETY
Many of our partner agencies offer information, training and/or counseling to help Tulsa area residents live longer, healthier, and more productive lives. In 2021, TAUW’s focus included supporting the following programs:
- Mental Health Association Oklahoma’s housing services helped 88% of its tenants who once experienced homelessness remain in their housing for at least one year or were successfully placed in other permanent housing.
- Palmer’s intensive residential program at the Tulsa Women and Children’s Center helped 93% of the women it served abstain from using alcohol and drugs.
Tulsa Area United Way funds 59 partner nonprofits through sustainability funding, and we offer so much more. To find out how your donations keep our community strong, continue reading.
Community Collaborations
In our community, entrenched social problems cannot be solved by one organization alone. Rather, TAUW’s focus on collaborations and investments in nonprofit collaborations allows us to have a community-wide impact and meet the following criteria:
- A Community Challenge must be a catalyst for change and must address a community-wide problem, which requires a multifaceted approach.
- Collaborations must be formal, documented alliances among multiple agencies, at least one of which must be a TAUW partner agency.
- The shared goal should have a strategic plan with agreed-upon outcomes.
- An efficient system for sending and receiving information/data with frequent planning meetings must be in place for communication.
- Diverse funding must include contributions from other community funders.
Social Innovations
TAUW’s focus includes striving to make a positive contribution to improving the quality of life in the Tulsa area in all areas. As a result, social 501c3 organizations receive innovation grants for developing innovative programs to address community challenges.
For a maximum of 10 minutes, 501c3 nonprofit organizations presented ideas to a panel of community leaders. Community leaders were interested in innovation, collaboration, and avoiding duplication of efforts among non-profit, educational, or government organizations.
Five organizations received $300,000 to implement new programs that aim to enhance the quality of life for Tulsans.
Free Tax Preparation
Individuals and families with an annual household income of $57,000 or less are eligible for free tax preparation through the IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program (VITA) through Goodwill Industries of Tulsa.
Ntech Collaborative
NTech Collaborative assists Tulsa Area United Way and its partner agencies in adopting best practices for utilizing technology. Services include technology consulting, project management, and access to low-cost resources and no-cost direct services. In 2021:
- TAUW’s NTech program provides direct service support and management of over 300 workstations, laptops, servers, hosts, and more than 200 network appliances to TAUW and partner organizations.
NextUlsa
The neXtulsa program is designed to facilitate leadership development for professionals working in the nonprofit sector and is offered in conjunction with the University of Oklahoma’s hope-based leadership program.
NeXtulsa is a ten-month commitment with one session per month. To complete the course, each participant must attend at least eight classes, including a mandatory retreat.
Overall topics include:
- The application of hope theory in the workplace
- Using your personal strengths
- Identifying the differences between authority and leadership
- Distinguishing between technical and adaptive challenges
- Planning for difficult conversations
- Developing relative outcomes and measures
New Voices
Application Deadline for New Voices Board Internship Program is June 1.
Tulsa Area United Way and Leadership Tulsa have partnered to offer the New Voices Board Internship Program designed to increase diversity on TAUW agency boards.
Leadership Tulsa is seeking candidates with diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds who are committed to serving the nonprofit sector in a leadership capacity, but who have never served on more than one nonprofit board. The participants will receive training and support from a full-day educational session and six breakfast sessions with board mentors.
Participants will be selected based on their application and letters of recommendation. The program is free of charge. The number of participants will be limited to 15-25.
This year, applications are available online. To save your unfinished work, you will need to create a username. We cannot view your responses until you submit your application. If you experience any difficulties using the system, please contact us.