United Way of Pinal County, Inc.
United Way fights for the health, education, and financial stability of every person in every community.
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
The issue in Pinal County is that 1:4 children live in a food insecure home, rental prices have increased 18% in the past 5 years and evictions are rising in Casa Grande and Apache Junction, leaving families destitute and increasing homeless numbers and housing costs and there’s not enough funding arriving from state and federal sources to address this issue adequately. Pinal County is the third largest county in the state in terms of population and yet there are no shelters and not enough landlords that are willing to rent to individuals that need a second chance. Making it incredibly difficult to create family financial stability. Many of the social issues that Pinal County faces are deeply imbedded in the fact that there is little affordable housing and no regional transportation. Another systemic problem in Pinal County is Reading by third grade. 75% of our kids are not at a proficient reading level by the third grade.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
MyFreeTaxes
Provides cost-free tax preparation in Pinal County including federal, state(s) and schedule C. This service is available in English and Spanish. Online preparation is free for all residents, and in-person preparation is available for those who fall within the income requirements.
Friends Families and Neighbor - FFN
The focus will be on recruiting unregulated lawful home providers (providing childcare services to 4 or less children) who are already serving families with children birth to five but are not required to be regulated or licensed by the State of Arizona. Participants will be recruited throughout communities in Pinal County and the Ak-Chin Indian Community.
Currently, many children in Pinal County are in Family, Friend and Neighbor care for all or part of their day. The goal of the project is to provide access to resources, training, networking and professional development opportunities for home child care providers.
Participants will receive information on safety, health, child development and a myriad of other topics. Home Providers will also receive materials such as books, puzzles, art supplies, etc. for participating in their community training.
Path to Success - GED Scholarship
The Path to Success Scholarship Program focuses on cover the costs of GED testing for adult students wishing to finish their high-school equivalent. The jobs of the future will require more than a high school diploma and United Way helps you start the process.
The Path to Success Scholarship Program is operated throughout Pinal County complementing Central Arizona Community College GED preparation courses.
Car Repair and Transportation Assistance
The Transportation Assistance Program provides assistance to low-income families to pay for car repairs, in conjunction with our Financial Education Program. This program also works with other community agencies to provide new bikes, helmets, and locks to individuals who have re-entered the workforce and are without reliable transportation.
Pinal County Heat Network
Develop a drop-off and distribution system of bottled water for low-income and homeless people in Pinal County. This includes cooling stations for people to get out of the heat to prevent severe, heat-related illnesses.
Reading by 3rd Grade Initiative
Our Reading by 3rd Grade Initiative, in partnership with Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, mails a new book monthly to the homes of children ages 0-5 to promote literacy and an overall love of books. The program also provides books to children at community and family events.
Rent & Utility Assistance
The Rent & Utility Assistance Program provides assistance to low-income families who are facing a financial hardship to prevent homelessness and/or loss of utilities. This assistance includes a financial education course to help better prepare for future challenges.
Financial Education
Financial Education courses and resources provided to Pinal County residents in partnership with the University of Arizona - Pinal County Cooperative Extension.
Where we work
Awards
Desert Peak Award 2018
Maricopa Association of Governments
Affiliations & memberships
Desert Peak Award 2018
External reviews

Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Dollars saved in tax preparation fees
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults, Seniors, Economically disadvantaged people
Related Program
MyFreeTaxes
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Based off of state average of $210.00 per tax return prep fee.
Number of tax returns completed by volunteers
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults, Seniors, Economically disadvantaged people
Related Program
MyFreeTaxes
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
COVID-19 played a big role in not reaching a larger audience this fiscal year.
Number of financial literacy courses conducted
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults, Economically disadvantaged people, Unemployed people
Related Program
Path to Success - GED Scholarship
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
This is physical classes. Class size may vary.
Number of books distributed to children ages 0 - 8
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Infants and toddlers, Children and youth, At-risk youth
Related Program
Reading by 3rd Grade Initiative
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
This includes Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, Literacy Kits and books handed out at community events.
Number of clients mentored at resource centers
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults, Economically disadvantaged people, Homeless people
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Aid to individuals each week at local soup kitchens.
Number of exterior homes painted for senior citizens
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Seniors, Economically disadvantaged people
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Painted homes for senior citizens through referrals from Pinal Gila Council for Senior Citizens and Community Action Human Resources Agency
Number of water pallets/ electrolytes distributed
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults, Economically disadvantaged people, Homeless people
Related Program
Pinal County Heat Network
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Number of hygiene kits distributed
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults, Homeless people
Related Program
Pinal County Heat Network
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
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?
The United Way of Pinal County brings stakeholders together to have the difficult conversations about how to address homeless and financial stability issues in the county. Pinal County is larger than the state of Connecticut with the population the size of Wyoming. Our landmass and rural population centers mean that each community faces their own unique challenges. By Listening to the communities as they describe their issues the UWPC can help develop simple, sustainable solutions that can usually be implemented with little funding. Living united toward common problems and fighting for a solution allows us to carry out the mission of uniting generosity with community needs to promote a lasting change in peoples’ lives
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
The strategies the United Way of Pinal County employs to accomplish work:
• Support already existing efforts
• Bring together stakeholders to address the gaps around certain topics that are not being addressed
• Develop advocacy around the topics of housing and needs for additional social service support since the county is so large
• Develop local solutions that are affordable, sustainable by the community and effective
• Develop literacy kits for kids aged 0-8 year old
• Increase early literacy by supporting reading in the home with the Dolly Parton Imagination Library
• Partake and build local homeless coalitions made of local community members and key stakeholders to drive a local impact and embed solutions into the community
• Facilitate and manage the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program
• Facilitate the Heat Relief Network to address heat-related illness during the summer months
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
The United Way of Pinal County is uniquely qualified to act as a neutral party in talking about large system issues since we look at a community holistically and not with a silo perspective. The United Way provides direct services to our community and is also able to broaden the scope of work by supporting agencies that are also providing direct services. We are able to bring various agencies and stakeholders together and form task forces or coalitions to collectively work toward solving a problem with viable community-based solutions.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
• Developed and sustained two homeless coalitions for over 3 years
• Spearheaded the Resource Center in Apache Junction
• Received the Desert Peak Award from MAG for the Resource Center
• Brought the Project Connect system to Pinal County in Apache Junction and Casa Grande for two years in a row
• Created the countywide Heat Relief Network to hydrate homeless and provide electrolytes and heat-related illness education
• Engaged over 70 community stakeholders in donating, distributing and collecting water and electrolyte tablets for summer 2018 distribution
• Created and distributed over 600 hygiene kits, sponsored and made by community volunteers
• Prepared 1300 free taxes through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program
• Provided $1.5 million dollars in tax refunds and $430k in EITC refunds to low to moderate income households.
• Support 350-500 children in the Dolly Parton Imagination Library
• Created over 1,200 literacy kits, which includes homemade puppets
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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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 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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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 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?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, We don’t have the right technology to collect and aggregate feedback efficiently, It is difficult to find the ongoing funding to support feedback collection, Staff find it hard to prioritize feedback collection and review due to lack of time
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
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.
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.
United Way of Pinal County, Inc.
Board of directorsas of 06/07/2023
Mr. Michael Cruz
Pinal County Supervisors
Term: 2022 - 2025
Rachael Reed
Harrah's Ak- Chin Casino
Marlene Pearce
City of Maricopa
Jeanne-Marie Alygad
APS
Hugo Steincamp
Central Arizona College
Susan Aguilar
Central Arizona College
Latisha Joseph
Pinal County Attorney's Office
Michael Cruz
Pinal County Supervisors
Sophie Dessart
Florence Copper
Juan Gaviria
Frito Lay
Ryan Kantautas
Lucid Motors
JoAnne Galindo
Pinal County Public Health Services District
Maria Roberts
Salt River Project
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: 02/27/2023GuideStar 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 ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- 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 use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.