United Way Annual Report | Page 6

OUR VISION SCHOOL READINESS United Way makes our community a place where children grow up healthy and arrive at school prepared to succeed. OUR PRIORITIES SCHOOL READINESS TEAM Mike Chinn, Chair; Suzanne Brooks; Carolyn Cullen; Adrian Felts; Phil Garland; Michael Geismar; Amanda Hallstead; Eric Johnson; Eric Keathley; Chris Laing; Chris Lee; Scott Roth. • Provide home visiting services for families with children ages 0-3 years. • Increase access to quality early education through the Virginia Star Quality Initiative. • Raise awareness about the importance of early childhood experiences to increase school readiness, health and life-long success. SCHOOL READINESS ISSUES A recent UVA study found that 30% of children starting kindergarten in Virginia are unprepared. Williford, Downer, Hamre and Pianta, 2014 ADRIAN FELTS “All kids should have access to a quality early education to ensure they’re prepared to join and thrive in a competitive workforce. The United Way is working towards that goal.” 6 Adrian Felts At least 250 local, at-risk four year olds need high quality early education, but aren’t getting it. Pre-K Summit 2015, United Way and Charlottesville Tomorrow