Atlantic County’s Greatest Areas of Need:
United Way’s Core Priorities
To identify Atlantic County’s greatest areas of need, United Way conducted a comprehensive needs assessment with the assistance of The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey and CONTACT Cape-Atlantic. Conducted in 2001, the assessment surveyed local residents, community leaders, and non-profit agencies to pinpoint the community’s most pressing health and social issues.

United Way, along with the help of dedicated volunteers, then reviewed the results based on areas of need which became United Way’s Core Priorities (see right). United Way will align the financial and volunteer resources of the community to address these issues and ultimately, make Atlantic County a better place to live.

Core Priority Funding--
Moving toward Community Impact
Creating sustained changes in the community takes time. First, a panel of experts convenes to develop outcomes and objectives to address each Core Priority area.

Next, United Way sends out Requests For Proposals for the programs that best meet the needs identified in each Core Priority. Finally, United Way selects the program proposals that best address the goals and objectives outlined for each Core Priority.

To ensure that the proper programs were chosen for each Core Priority, United Way phased in funding for each priority, starting with the most highly ranked need area, Reducing Substance Abuse in 2003. In 2004, we awarded the first two-year grants for Providing Basic Needs & Increasing Self-Sufficiency and Supporting Community Health Issues. To complete our transition into Core Priority funding, in 2005 we awarded grants for our remaining areas of need: Fostering Safer Homes & Neighborhoods and Promoting Mental Wellness.

Also in 2005, we combined two of the five priorities, Reducing Substance Abuse and Promoting Mental Wellness. We realized that many of the needs of the mentally ill overlap those in the substance abuse area. While we continue to have a separate Request for Proposal developed for Reducing Substance Abuse, a combined Community Advisors Council and one Community Impact Team will be used to build the community agenda and distribute the available resources, respectively. This will also simplify our process – focusing on developing a two-year agenda each year for two of the now four priority areas.