United Way of Greater Los Angeles is Now Accepting New Grant Applications for 2011-2013

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 17, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- As part of a 10-year plan to create pathways out of poverty, the United Way of Greater Los Angeles is now accepting new applications for grants based on a two-year cycle that fall under the plan's three key areas of reducing homelessness, improving educational achievement and increasing financial stability. Applications must come from organizations operating within Los Angeles County.

In 2007, in the face of widening income gaps and rising levels of poverty, United Way focused its efforts on a bold new plan, Creating Pathways Out of Poverty. To make real impact in the community, the plan provides long-term solutions to families and individuals in the three interconnected root causes of poverty: housing, education and jobs. Goals of the plan include reducing homelessness by 80 percent, increasing the high school graduation rate to 75 percent and ensuring that families have jobs and the financial education they need to be economically stable.

"The challenges facing Los Angeles County can be daunting," said Elise Buik, President and CEO of United Way of Greater Los Angeles. "We are the homeless capital of the nation with 48,000 people without homes, only 60% of our students are graduating on time and the percentage of 'working poor' is higher than in the U.S. as a whole. United Way is committed to producing measurable results to these problems through our 10-year plan and aligning with the best partners to achieve the greatest impact."

Organizations may request no less than $25,000 and no more than $100,000 per action area in annual funding for up to two years.  Submissions can only be made online and the deadline is 5:00 p.m. (PDT) Monday, March 28, 2011. Grant announcements will be made to qualifying agencies by July 31, 2011.

Nonprofit organizations can learn more at www.unitedwayla.org and qualifying organizations can conveniently apply online at www.partnerunitedla.org. United Way will be holding weekly Q&A conference calls from February 14th to March 11th to help applicants with questions about the proposal. To learn more about the conference calls and for all other grant-related inquiries applicants can email [email protected] or call 213-808-6380.

About United Way of Greater Los Angeles

United Way of Greater Los Angeles is a nonprofit organization that creates pathways out of poverty by focusing on increasing housing stability, improving educational achievement and providing job training and financial education for the most vulnerable in our community. Through its research work, United Way identifies the issues and works in partnership with community leaders and supporters to solve them by funding targeted programs and advocating for change. For more information, visit www.unitedwayla.org.

SOURCE United Way of Greater Los Angeles