United Way forcing agencies to compete to get full funding

By Mary Kate Malone, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Of the 84 human service agencies that applied for United Way youth program funds this year, 11 have been selected to receive monies -- leaving the remaining agencies to make do with less funding and position themselves for the next application process in January. United Way of Allegheny County's new competitive application process, announced in December, has raised the bar for human service agencies that apply for funding from the organization. The first grants for youth agencies will be announced today. In addition to demonstrating sound fiscal management, appropriate governance and programming strength, partner agencies must now show they are delivering measurable results to a specific community group in critical need. "We've added an even higher standard which is, 'Show us the... [read full story]