Greater Twin Cities United Way invests in a future where all adults enter the workforce prepared for skilled employment and increased wealth. Economic opportunity is a pathway to change for our communities. When neighbors have the skills they need to find and maintain living-wage jobs, and when entrepreneurs in Black, Indigenous, Asian and Pacific Islander communities and Communities of Color have the resources they need to bring their dreams into reality, our entire region benefits.
To advance economic opportunity, we invest in meeting urgent needs and creating lasting change. Our partners work across the spectrum of economic impact — from support for individuals and families overcoming short-term financial hardship to long-term community development strategies focused on growing generational wealth and overcoming systemic racial inequity.
Our nonprofit partnerships are deeply rooted in communities across the nine-county metro and provide access to job training, entrepreneurship and wealth-building support, and access to safe financial products. Our 211 resource helpline connects jobseekers with educational and job-training resources, many of which are provided by our nonprofit partners.
Because business ownership is one important pathway to wealth, we partner with nonprofits supporting entrepreneurs with a focus on adults earning low incomes and those in Black, Indigenous, Asian and Pacific Islander communities and Communities of Color.
Partnership in Property Commercial Land Trust (PIPCLT), our partner since 2022, ensures Entrepreneurs of Color and with limited revenue have access to real estate. CEO, founder and executive director Domonique Jones says, “We are also community stewards. We want to make sure that BIPOC businesses are anchored in communities that will thrive by them being there.”
PIPCLT has drawn on United Way’s support to grow its staff, including an operations manager to help navigate the complexities of commercial real estate development. In partnership, we’ve helped connect local entrepreneurs with opportunities for affordable property ownership and cultivated new networks of business owners and lenders.
Hear more about our partnership from Jones below:
Our innovation initiatives invest deeply to overcome the most persistent barriers in our workforce systems. We seek to remove systemic barriers that keep families and individuals from achieving economic independence, so that all adults will have the opportunity to participate in the workforce and advance toward family-sustaining wages.
Since 2015, our Career Academies innovation initiative has partnered with school districts, employers, higher education institutions and youth organizations to establish new career pathways programs for young people. This work is helping connect young people to high-wage, in-demand career opportunities, while simultaneously closing local employment gaps and promoting greater diversity in the workforce.
In 2022, we built on our Career Academies initiative with our Purpose Driven Paychecks program. Purpose Driven Paychecks supports educators and youth-serving nonprofits to establish relationships with employers that provide work experiences for students 14-22 in high-demand, high-wage careers. Additionally, Greater Twin Cities United Way prioritizes funding partners that bring a deep focus on Students of Color, Indigenous students, students with a disability, and students from low-income households. Partnerships offer industry-aligned certifications that all track to high-wage, high-demand careers projected to grow in the partner’s local area. One partner said: “If we want to meaningfully challenge the persistent economic disparities that confront communities across Minnesota, it is crucial to build pipelines to economic success that disrupt the status quo.”
One of our major priorities at the Capitol is ensuring that state programs and resources are setting individuals and families on the path to success. When eligibility requirements or benefit cutoffs are too stringent, they can pose additional barriers for those seeking assistance – a circumstance commonly known as the “benefits cliff.” Our advocacy agenda addresses the benefits cliff along with several other policy issues to create a future where all adults participate in the workforce in a way that generates increased and sustainable wages.
In 2023, we made significant progress toward mitigating the benefits cliff. Through policy shifts to the Minnesota Family Investment Program to reduce applications from monthly to twice annually (reducing paperwork and helping families with variable income stabilize), Medical Assistance (to ensure consistent coverage for minors) and Housing Supports programs (to ease income restrictions), we were able to ensure that our public resources continue to serve those to whom they matter most.
In 2024, Greater Twin Cities United Way and United Ways of Minnesota gathered at the State Capitol to launch United for ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed), with the release of our report, “ALICE in Minnesota: A Study of Financial Hardship.” The report provides insights to understand families, neighbors, and colleagues who work hard, earn above the Federal Poverty Level, but don’t make enough to afford a basic household survival budget.
Further, our advocacy agenda address the following issues to promote greater economic opportunity throughout the state of Minnesota:
Greater Twin Cities United Way advances economic opportunity in our region by meeting urgent needs — and by creating lasting change through innovation initiatives and advocacy. We’re supporting our neighbors to ensure they have the skills they need to find and maintain living-wage jobs. We exist to fuel lasting change that will help us achieve our vision of a community where all people thrive regardless of income, race, or place.
