Nearly 5,000 Homeless Moved Into Permanent Housing; 3,500 LA Residents Placed Into Jobs, Among Other Developments

Nearly 5,000 Homeless Moved Into Permanent Housing; 3,500 LA Residents Placed
Into Jobs, Among Other Developments
United Way of Greater Los Angeles Releases Year 2 Results From Its Plan To
Create Pathways Out Of Poverty

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- As part of its ten-year Creating Pathways
Out of Poverty plan, launched in 2007, United Way of Greater Los Angeles today
announced the year two results of the Plan's impact on homelessness and
poverty in Los Angeles County. Focused on three interconnected areas which are
the root causes of poverty--housing and healthcare, education, and financial
stability--the plan aims to provide affordable housing and healthcare options
to residents; help high school students graduate prepared for college and the
workforce; and teach adult job skills and financial education. Through an
investment in programs and partnerships that provide long term solutions
across these three areas, the strategy has rendered significant results in
tackling the new faces of poverty in Greater Los Angeles. United Way also
announced today the 2009 HomeWalk to end homelessness, which will be held on
Saturday, November 7, 2009 at the Exposition Park in Los Angeles.

Year two results include the following:

-- Nearly 5,000 homeless individuals and families have been moved into
permanent housing as a result of the United Way HomeWalk and other
efforts focused on homelessness
-- 35,000 students have been helped by new college and career planning
programs
-- 3,500 people were placed in jobs as a result of new workforce
development and job training programs
-- 3,000 parents participated in educational leadership programs as a
result of a greater focus on key impact areas affecting academic
achievement
-- Over $13 million in earned income tax credits and 40,000 residents
received free tax preparation as a result of tax preparation and
education programs
-- First-ever Business Leaders Task Force on Homeless formed as a result
of
greater business, non-profit and government collaboration
-- As a result of new educational alliances--including the Principals to
Watch program--graduating principals have impacted 900 teachers and
over
16,000 students

-- $1.6 million workforce development investment made by LA Workforce
Funder Collaborative as a result of new business, government and
non-profit partnerships

"As we realize the economic impact on homelessness in Los Angeles and beyond,
we need to continue driving the programs that will eradicate homelessness and
poverty in LA County," said Elise Buik, president and CEO of United Way of
Greater Los Angeles. "It's an uphill battle--foreclosures are up 222 percent
and, in LA County, over half of households in the county spend more than 30
percent of their income on housing. Cities like New York, Seattle and Portland
have focused on long-term solutions such as rapid rehousing and permanent
supportive housing programs, and have had great success in reducing the
homeless population. We are beginning to see these programs work here in LA
County, and need to continue our single-minded focus to help people find their
way out of poverty."

In its approach to end homelessness, the United Way targets the two most
important segments of the population: families, the fastest growing segment;
and the chronically homeless, the most costly segment. To quickly move
families into housing, the United Way works with partner organizations, such
as Door of Hope in Pasadena, to provide rapid rehousing programs helping
homeless families with the support they need to regain a stable foundation.
For the chronically homeless, the organization teams with partner
organizations such as the Skid Row Housing Trust to provide permanent
supportive housing with supportive services--an approach that has been proven
to be significantly less costly than life on the street or in shelters. United
Way has also gathered 1,000 signatures to support the McKinney-Vento homeless
bill, signed into law by President Obama, which provides millions of dollars
in funding for programs that support that fight to end homelessness.

To improve educational achievement, United Way launched its seminal Middle
School Report, spotlighting research around this critical transition period
and its connection to high school graduation rates. Leveraging the insights
from the Report, United Way is focusing on key areas that impact middle school
academic achievement. These include leadership programs for principals to set
the standard for teachers, engage parents and impact student performance;
creating after-school programs to provide an untapped opportunity to improve
academic achievement; and driving parents and schools to work together to
directly impact students' ability to succeed.

To increase financial stability among Los Angeles residents, United Way
leveraged workforce development and job training programs to promote career
development and strong incomes. Tax education and preparation provide
financial and asset-building tools, as well as returning money back to Los
Angeles residents (through the earned income tax credit partnership).
Business, government and non-profit partnerships ensure that businesses, the
county, the city and the state align their resources to make the greatest
impact in the community.

Also announced today is the third annual United Way HomeWalk, part of United
Way's pledge to end and prevent homelessness. On Saturday, November 7th United
Way aims to attract 5,000 HomeWalk participants and enough funds to move even
more people into permanent housing. For more information please go to
www.homewalkla.org.

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 meeting basic needs, improving
educational achievement and increasing financial stability 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

Darcy Cobb, +1-310-472-8600, darcy@dottedlinecomm.com, for United Way of
Greater Los Angeles