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It’s no secret that many people across metroplex D-FW face seemingly insurmountable challenges.
Consider these stats for North Texas:
59% of Latinos, 65% of blacks, 38% of whites and 27% of Asian students do not read at the third grade level. 88% of Latinos, 81% of Blacks, 61% of Whites and 66% of Asian young adults do not earn a living wage. 33% of Latinos, 15% of Blacks, 8% of Whites and 11% of Asian residents are uninsured.
These disparities did not emerge overnight; they are the result of deeply rooted systemic problems that have existed for decades.
By working together as businesses, nonprofits and governments can begin to change. When society is structured in a way that offers equal opportunities for all, the result is a more diverse and more inclusive community in which all North Texans can thrive.
To achieve this, D-FW needs new innovative solutions to solve its most pressing challenges.
Social innovation drives transformational change
For nearly 100 years, United Way of Metropolitan Dallas has worked to lift all northern Texans by focusing on key areas of education, income and health.
But the scale of today’s social issues requires bold new approaches and broad community support.
To that end, United Way of Metropolitan Dallas launched its Aspire United 2030 goals last year:
Increase the number of North Texas students reading elementary by third grade by 50%. The number of North Texas young adults earning a living wage increases by 20%, adding nearly $ 800 million annually to the economy. The number of North Texans with access to affordable health insurance increases to 96%.
These specific and measurable goals are designed to unite the entire community in a common vision for the next decade. Goals are a guiding star for United Way of Metropolitan Dallas, along with its partners and supporters, to drive transformational change and promote racial equity in education, income and health.
United Way Social Innovation Accelerator in partnership with Accenture committee member and The Pitch judge Jorge Corral with daughters Eva and Ali in The Pitch 2021 contest. (Courtesy of United Way of Metropolitan Dallas)
Such ambitious goals require creativity and innovative thinking. That’s why United Way of Metropolitan Dallas partners with social entrepreneurs who work to meet the needs of the community in new ways. For the past eight years, the nonprofit has been promoting social innovation throughout North Texas, designing new initiatives and identifying, supporting and expanding the work of promising social innovators.
As Susan Hoff, chief impact and strategy officer at United Way of Metropolitan Dallas says, social innovation is one of the best ways to effectively drive change.
Today, big and bold solutions require new ways of thinking, fresh voices and unique perspectives, he says. For us, social innovation means identifying creative and never-before-seen ideas that respond to important needs in our community. We always seek to support promising initiatives that have the potential to improve education, income and health in North Texas.
The organization’s original social innovation program, United Way Social Innovation Accelerator, in partnership with Accenture, encourages the creation of bold solutions to the challenges of North Texas. The Accelerator provides entrepreneurs with key resources including funding, mentoring and community connections to help their ventures grow and succeed.
Since its creation in 2013, the Social Innovation Accelerator in partnership with Accenture has become a huge success. The program invested nearly $ 5.3 million in funding, training and mentoring for 54 North Texas social entrepreneurs. With the support of United Ways’ connections and community credibility, these startups have continued to raise an additional $ 28.4 million, build nearly 800 partnerships, and receive national recognition as they expand their impact in North Texas and beyond.
For Accenture, the program represents an opportunity to make an exponential impact in North Texas.
Together with United Way of Metropolitan Dallas, we bring a passion for innovation to life and create a greater good through the Social Innovation Accelerator, says Jorge Corral, chief executive officer of Accenture’s Dallas office. We believe that social innovation offers a unique opportunity to help our community solve critical income, education and health problems in new ways. At Accenture, we recognize that to address some of our community’s challenges, you need to bring new ideas and power, and the awesome companions of the Social Innovation Accelerator bring it to life.
United Way Social Innovation Accelerator in partnership with The Pitch Accenture Fellows, representing local organizations Cornbread Hustle, Dwell With Dignity, To Be Like Me, The Welman Project and Trusted World. (Courtesy of United Way of Metropolitan Dallas) impact
The success of the Social Innovation Accelerator is proof that social innovation can play a significant role in the overall success of North Texas. In the coming months and years, United Way of Metropolitan Dallas will expand its existing Accelerator and launch several initiatives that will enable it to support and collaborate with more organizations, engage donors in new ways, and create even greater impact across the region.
The first part of the expansion will include three new initiatives:
The Incubator: Launched this fall, the Incubator is designed for startups of entrepreneurs who are women and / or people of color. It will be one of several pipelines fueling the Social Innovation Accelerator, creating new opportunities for United Way to partner with promising young organizations. Alumni Program: Exclusively for Incubator and Accelerator graduates, this program will provide ongoing support to these organizations as they continue to grow. The goal of this program, currently under development, is to create an ever greater collective impact over time. Model Replication Workshop: This program, scheduled to launch by 2022, would allow United Way to replicate proven social innovation initiatives to amplify their impact.
United Way of Metropolitan Dallas will also create new opportunities to collaborate and support more established organizations that are driving positive change in North Texas. This includes two initiatives:
Impact Investing Fund: This fund will enable United Way to serve as both a partner and stakeholder in for-profit initiatives, helping them to promote social impact through their business. It is a natural evolution of organizations’ first impact investment, a partnership with Cherry that was announced in 2020. Innovation Challenges: These annual social innovation challenges will enable United Way to identify and activate transformative solutions in the education sectors, income and health. The first competition, the Health Innovation Tech Challenge, set for this fall, will highlight organizations with innovative, technology-based approaches to pediatric and mental health, with a $ 1 million grant.
Through these and other initiatives, United Way of Metropolitan Dallas is working to put opportunities in the hands of all North Texans and you can be part of the change. To learn more about nonprofit social innovation work and how to get involved, visit unitedwaydallas.org/innovation.
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