Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Early Childhood Education
YWCA Tri-County Area provides quality, affordable care for children 6 months through 6th grade. A Keystone STARS 4 facility, the Early Education Center is a nurturing environment for children to learn and grow. Classrooms include infant, toddler, pre-school, and Pre-K Counts, as well as Out-Of-School Time for children K-6.
Education and Training Center
YWCA Tri-County Area Education and Training Center empowers individuals to find freedom and dignity through education and employment. ETC offers Adult Basic Education classes, high school equivalency preparation and training, English as a Second Language/Civics classes, and support for adults seeking to build employment skills: resume building, interviewing practice, job search strategies. Students can refresh their skills and/or work toward a Pennsylvania Commonwealth Secondary School Diploma.
Women's Empowerment 360 is a free, self-directed online program that provides tools to women at any stage of business development and operation.
The Education and Training Center operates in Pottstown and Norristown.
Women and Girls' Empowerment
YWCA Tri-County Area works to empower women and girls economically, occupationally, socially, and emotionally. Healthy Pathways Project helps girls develop resilience, adopt healthy habits, and build confidence and leadership skills. During Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October, YWCA Tri-County Area hosts a variety of advocacy and educational events, including the Week Without Violence. Tribute To Exceptional Women, and Tribute to Exceptional Girls, honor local women and girls each year for their achievements in their professions, in their communities, and in their schools.
Racial Justice and Civil Rights
YWCA Tri-County Area advocates for racial, gender, and social justice. On a local level, YW leads community discussions on topics such as racism and diversity. On a national level, we participate in YWCA USA’s legislative advocacy agenda, and help move forward legislation which supports our mission.
YW takes a program-informed approach to its advocacy, drawing on the expertise and resources of the national organization and focusing on the practical solutions that meet the needs of women, girls and families in the marginalized communities we serve.
A core component of YWCA Tri-County Area’s work is a dedication to eliminating racism. This mission is infused into each of our programs, at every age level. We recognize racism as an adverse childhood experience. We participate in YWCA USA's annual Stand Against Racism each April.
Foster Grandparents Program
Foster Grandparents Program, a program of the Senior Corps of the federal Corporation for National and Community Service, provides older adults with opportunities to give back to their community while improving educational outcomes for children. Foster Grandparents matches adults 55+ with children who need a little extra attention to progress in school. Foster Grandparents help children improve literacy and math skills and build communication and social skills. Older adults who are income-qualified receive a stipend for their service.
Dignity Kitchen
Dignity Kitchen is a commercial kitchen located in the Montgomery County Human Services Center in Norristown. Dignity Kitchen provides home-delivered meals for seniors and other homebound residents, prepares meals for residents displaced by natural disasters, and provides daily breakfast and lunch for workers in the Human Services Center. Dignity Kitchen also is a culinary arts training program, using the Catalyst Kitchen model for social enterprise in food service.
Youth Empowerment Programs
YW’s Youth Empowerment Programs engage more than 500 youth from infants to beyond high school in educational, enrichment, and leadership opportunities. Each component includes age-appropriate activities facilitated by experienced youth program leaders. Components of the Youth Empowerment Programs include:
• STEAM Enrichment offers hands-on projects for children grades 3-8, including Lego WeDo, Osmo learning system, and FHI 360's Educational Equity.
• Before/After School enrichment for children K-6, includes homework help and tutoring, physical education, creative expression, and STEAM exploration.
• Healthy Pathways Project emphasizes nutrition education, wellness classes, movement, and leadership opportunities, raising awareness of healthy lifestyle changes for youth and their families. The primary program goals are: improving healthy behaviors; healthy choices/decision making; and leadership/advocacy.
• Camp Adventures provides a summer camp experience for youth.
Trauma-informed care and social/emotional learning
YW's organization-wide emphasis on trauma-informed and -responsive practices minimize the effects of Adverse Childhood Experiences and reduce effects ACEs may have on physical and emotional health. Youth exposed to ACEs may be drawn to unhealthy behaviors—such as smoking or unhealthy eating—during adolescence, the age when adult habits often are established. Adults exposed to childhood trauma may be more likely to develop chronic disease later in life.
Early education and youth programs incorporate social/emotional learning in the curricula. Conscious Discipline is a learning tool that recognizes all behaviors, both positive and negative, are opportunities to teach a new skill. Teachers model positive interactions designed to teach positive communication skills, manage emotions and reactions, learn positive conflict resolution, and give dignity to all children. Youth programs trauma-informed curricula include Girls Circle, Council for Boys and Young Men, and The Art of Yoga Project.
Housing insecurity
YW's participation in the Emergency Utilities and Rent Coalition in Montgomery County, Pa., prevents homelessness by providing funds to residents who may be behind on rent or utility payments. When a resident is approved, payments go directly to the landlord or utility.
Where we work
Awards
STARS 4 2017
Keystone Stars Program
STARS 4 2020
Keystone STARS Program
STARS 4 2021
Keystone STARS Program
STARS 4 2022
Keystone STARS Program
External reviews

Photos
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of adult learners enrolled
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults, Immigrants
Related Program
Education and Training Center
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
YW's Education and Training Center served 132 adults in Adult Basic Education, high school equivalency, and English as a Second Language. Students gain skills in digital literacy and job readiness.
Number of program participants who receive a secondary school diploma or GED
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults
Related Program
Education and Training Center
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Number of students who demonstrate improved overall literacy
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults
Related Program
Education and Training Center
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Number of students showing improvement in test scores
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Education and Training Center
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
The Education and Training Center met its goal that 49 percent of enrolled students move up one level in Educational Functioning Levels.
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Education is a Social Determinant of Health that has been shown to have a direct impact on social and economic mobility, and on overall health and well-being. YWCA Tri-County Area has chosen the broad topic of education as its platform in fulfilling its mission and as the focus of its core programs: early childhood education, youth empowerment, adult education, Foster Grandparents Program, workforce development, and issue education. Our core programming strengthens the community’s Social Determinants of Health by increasing educational opportunities for preschool and school-age children and youth, by empowering adults to improve their job prospects and earning potential through both education and skills development, and by emphasizing the “whole person” through family and social supports.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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Who are the people you serve with your mission?
YWCA Tri-County Area serves Montgomery, Chester, and Berks counties and beyond, including: *pre-kindergarten children ages 6 months through 6 years in early childhood education *children in grades K-12 in after-school enrichment, social/emotional learning and leadership development, and career exploration *adults 17 and older wishing to earn a Commonwealth Secondary School Diploma, improve speaking, listening, writing, and speaking in English *adults wishing to improve career prospects by gaining job readiness skills *older adults wishing to volunteer as mentors and tutors to youth *adults needing assistance with rent and utilities payments
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How is your organization collecting feedback from the people you serve?
Electronic surveys (by email, tablet, etc.), Paper surveys, Focus groups or interviews (by phone or in person), Case management notes, Community meetings/Town halls, Constituent (client or resident, etc.) advisory committees, Suggestion box/email,
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals,
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With whom is the organization sharing feedback?
The people we serve, Our staff, Our board, Our funders, Our community partners,
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How has asking for feedback from the people you serve changed your relationship?
In our Youth Empowerment Programs, results from the Hello Insight pre-surveys, given to participating youth twice a year, powers the direction in which each gender-focused and/or age-focused group will take for that semester. YW program places young people at the center of our youth programming, and takes the time to listen to youth, understand their needs and learning preferences, and alter programming to meet those needs and preferences.
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback,
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
We don’t have the right technology to collect and aggregate feedback efficiently, Staff find it hard to prioritize feedback collection and review due to lack of time, Some of our program participants do not have consistent access to technology,
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
YWCA TRI-COUNTY AREA
Board of directorsas of 02/09/2023
Linda Fields
National Union of Hospital and Health Care Employees
Term: 2018 - 2024
LaTanya White
Pottstown School District
Tara Smith
Vanguard
Pauline McGibbon
Women's Center of Montgomery County
Landa Washington
Phoenixville Hospital
Marta Stanley Pecharo
Family Services of Montgomery County
Linda Fields
National Union of Hospital and Health Care Employees
Tumeka Henry
Exelon Generating Station
Alneasa Jordan
Brown's
Gillian Clegg
Republic Bank
Candis Fields-Johnson
AstraZeneca
Melisa Hofer
Automated Financial Systems
Margaret Otto
Navigate Corporation
Renee Reyes
Mongtomery County Community College
Meredith Jacks
Styer Real Estate
Bridget James
Volunteers of America Delaware Valley
Karen McDougal
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 01/03/2022GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.