What We Do
Valley of the Sun United Way envisions a community where every child, family and individual is healthy, has a safe place to live, and has every opportunity to succeed in school, in life and in work.
Valley of the Sun United Way envisions a community where every child, family and individual is healthy, has a safe place to live, and has every opportunity to succeed in school, in life and in work.
Our Aspirations
We can’t beat today’s issues with yesterday’s thinking. Change demands bold new solutions. So, we’re redeploying our energies and realigning our resources and partners to drive Mighty Change in our community. Together, we tackle the systemic, interrelated issues that are holding us back to create more opportunity and access throughout the Valley. Progress will be tracked and reported annually, and we will change courses as needed to stay focused on the right programs and solutions to reach our goals.
Our Focus
Health
Remove barriers to ensure everyone in our community is healthy, with a focus on access to food and healthcare.
Housing and Homelessness
Ensure all can have a safe home to call their own.
Education
Close opportunity gaps to ensure children read at grade level by 3rd grade and youth are prepared for educational success and employment.
Workforce Development
Open pathways to better paying jobs.
View MC2026, our five-year impact plan.
Our Efforts
- Strengthening and supporting the emergency food system to reduce hunger among families and senior citizens.
- Reducing barriers to accessing healthcare through outreach and services that increase participation in healthcare programs.
- Increasing investments in services and programs that prioritize social determinants and wraparound services that prevent and assist those experiencing homelessness.
- Investing in individual and family shelters that move households out of crisis.
- Building and strengthening literacy capacity of practitioners in early learning environments.
- Increasing online learning and socio-emotional supportive services for parents, caregivers, and teachers.
- Increasing resources to help individuals obtain job opportunities that will raise their income and create sustainable careers.
Research that helped to direct our five-year plan MC2026 confirmed that issues that existed before the pandemic are even more intense now and systemic racial, social, economic and educational inequities exist in every issue so equity must be part of every solution. Woven into each of the plan’s strategies is a focus on diversity, equity, access and inclusion. We've started this important work by looking inward first, and have developed a committee of staff and board to help assess and direct our work. That committee, with input from our community, will develop a plan for the most effective role Valley of the Sun United can play in building racial, economic, education and social equity in our community.
How We Create Mighty Change
for Kids
We ensure every student in the Valley has equal access to a quality education whether that’s at home or in a physical classroom.
for Families
United, we help hard-working families achieve stability and success.
for Communities
By partnering with leaders and residents in local communities, we can build long-term solutions to the emerging issues our community tells us are most vital.
What We're Up To
A Will not only provides for comfort as you think about your family’s future, but is also a powerful way to create a permanent legacy for the causes that are important to you. Creating a valid legal Will with FreeWill takes less than 20 minutes.
As Vice President of Community Development for Valley of the Sun United Way, Dr. Melissa Boydston works to remove barriers leading to systems change on the education birth to career continuum pipeline.
Tempe has the second highest rate of homelessness in Arizona and the programs provided by Tempe Community Action Agency (TCAA) are vital to the community’s safety net.
A Will not only provides for comfort as you think about your family’s future, but is also a powerful way to create a permanent legacy for the causes that are important to you. Creating a valid legal Will with FreeWill takes less than 20 minutes.
As Vice President of Community Development for Valley of the Sun United Way, Dr. Melissa Boydston works to remove barriers leading to systems change on the education birth to career continuum pipeline.
Tempe has the second highest rate of homelessness in Arizona and the programs provided by Tempe Community Action Agency (TCAA) are vital to the community’s safety net.