Uniting people, ideas, and resources to eliminate barriers and create a Story County where every individual has the opportunity to thrive through education, food security, and stable support systems.
At United Way of Story County, we believe that lasting change happens when we work together. By serving as the backbone for critical countywide collaborations, we address the root causes of our community’s most pressing challenges. From ensuring our youngest neighbors are prepared for school to fighting food insecurity and expanding access to quality childcare, our work is centered on three core pillars: health, education, and financial stability.
This page summarizes our primary initiatives—Story County Reads, the Hunger Collaboration, SCIRC, and our ARPA Childcare efforts—each a vital piece of our mission to build a more resilient and equitable community for every resident.
Looking to collaborate with United Way Story County or one of the causes listed below? Get in touch with our team to see how you can help!
United Way Story County leads the way in bringing organizations and community leaders together to improve collaborative efforts for our citizens. Click one of the boxes below to learn more!
Highlights the strategic use of American Rescue Plan Act funding to support childcare center staffing through recruitment and retention bonuses.
We envision a Story County in which immigrants and refugees are valued and fully included as a vibrant force in our communities.
We developed a Hunger Collaboration to work with others in our community to create a plan to significantly reduce the incidence of hunger in our community.
UWSC created the Story County Reads collaboration to improve efforts in helping younger children with reading.
Childcare centers in Story County are looking for dependable, upbeat individuals who want to make a positive impact on children and families in our community.
When you join the compassionate, dedicated teams in our local centers, you gain the opportunity to build a rewarding career, make a positive impact on kids every day, and help support the families and workforce in your community.
With American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding through the county, sign-on and retention bonus are available at qualifying childcare centers (for staff working in Story County) while funds last. Start a career in childcare now, and reap the benefits!
You don’t need a college degree in early childhood education to become a childcare worker! Childcare centers offer training. Additional resources can be found at the following link: Iowa AEYC – check out T.E.A.C.H. and WAGE$ in particular.
The Story County Immigrant & Refugee Collaboration brings together diverse organizations and individuals. Collectively, we work to ensure immigrant and refugee households have access to the services and opportunities necessary to full participation in our communities. This involves:
We envision a Story County in which immigrants and refugees are valued and fully included as a vibrant force in our communities.
Email unitedway@uwstory.org for more information or to get added to our email distribution list.
Today’s Story County Immigrant and Refugee Collaboration began in March 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in Iowa. At that time, United Way of Story County pulled together multiple organizations and individuals to discuss how best to address a new, pressing need: financial assistance for immigrants and refugees, many of whom were not eligible or struggled to access government pandemic benefits. Within a few busy weeks, the Covid-19 Emergency Fund for Story County Immigrants was born.
Housed at St. Cecilia Catholic Church in Ames, the “Immigrant Fund” (as it was colloquially known) operated from March 2020 thru December 2021. In that time, $374,235 was raised and disbursed to local immigrant households in 1,028 rent and utility payments. Key to this success were volunteer multilingual caseworkers working directly with immigrant households, community volunteers who functioned as “landlord liaisons,” and support from individuals and philanthropic and faith-based organizations. For this work, the Immigrant Fund was honored with both the Ames Human Relations’ Commission’s “Ames Humanitarian Award 2022” and United Way of Story County’s “Collaboration and Innovation Award 2020.” In addition, it was featured on TV, radio, and in multiple news stories (for example: “Story County pandemic fund helps immigrants shut out from US aid: ‘These people have been miracles’ “; “Fund raises over a quarter-million” ).
On December 14, 2021, the Immigrant Fund changed its name to the “Story County Immigrant and Refugee Collaboration” and adopted a shared vision and mission. Having developed strong working relationships through the Fund, we have a great foundation on which to build.
View our monthly newsletter in English or in Spanish! (click the links below to view)
Despite our efforts to address the problem, we know that the number of people in our county who go to bed hungry at night is much higher than most of our general population recognizes. Because of that, we developed a Hunger Collaboration to work with others in our community to create a plan that educates our communities that there is a need and to work together to significantly reduce the incidence of hunger in our community.
We need to understand the “why” of hunger so that we can create a community-wide action plan that not only addresses the immediate needs, but works on developing solutions that can be identified and acted upon.
To learn more or join the Hunger Collaboration, email Allegra Selzer, Associate Director of Community Impact.
The Story County Food Pantry Collaboration is convened by UWSC and meets on a quarterly basis. To learn more or join, email Allegra Selzer, Associate Director of Community Impact.
Story County Reads works to promote education and opportunities for learners of all ages, from a child’s first teacher to beyond school age.
Story County Reads is an educational collaboration convened by United Way of Story County. Our collaboration includes many different stakeholders and organizations, from nonprofits, educational institutions, public libraries, and beyond. Story County Reads meets on a monthly basis and takes action between meetings.
All Aboard for Kids
Ames Chamber of Commerce
Ames Community Preschool Center
BooST Together for Children
Boys & Girls Clubs of Story County
Camp Fire Heart of Iowa
Center for Creative Justice
ChildServe – Ames
Drake University Head Start
Girl Scouts of Greater Iowa
Iowa Reading Corps
ISU Extension & Outreach
Lutheran Services in Iowa (LSI)
Mid-Iowa Community Action (MICA)
Raising Readers in Story County
The Community Academy
University Community Childcare
YSS
Ames Community School District
Ballard Community School District
Collins-Maxwell Community School District
Colo-NESCO Community School District
Gilbert Community School District
Nevada Community School District
Roland-Story Community School District
Des Moines Area Community College –
Ames Hunziker Center
Iowa State University
Danfoss
Fortress Insurance
IowaWORKS
Story County (Ext Ops & Board of Supervisors)
Story County Reads partners with local agencies prioritizing seven different areas:
Research has shown the enormous impact that positive parenting practices can have on a child’s social, emotional, and intellectual development, particularly during the early years. Story County Reads partners help parents develop the toolbox of skills they need to set their children up for success!
Among the available Story County parenting education programs are:
Story County has plenty of resources, like museums, libraries, parks, and playgrounds, all of which help make children’s lives better.
Children become successful learners when they are both academically and emotionally prepared for kindergarten. The first few years are critical to help young children navigate and transition to a variety of settings and situations, while developing their emotional skills.
There are many programs and resources in Story County to support children to prepare for kindergarten. These include the following:
High-quality, accredited early childhood education centers – The following providers also offer scholarship and/or sliding fee scale support to ensure childcare is affordable and accessible:
Preschool-only programs for income-eligible families:
Collectively, we work to support learning both in and out of the classroom. Our partners fund and host Iowa Reading Corps members (evidence-based reading support in local elementary schools), provide school-based mentoring, and offer a range of enrichment opportunities before and after school and on non-school days.
To learn more about locally available in-school support, please visit:
To learn more about locally-available out-of-school programs and support, please visit:
To learn more about the importance of grade-level reading, find additional resources, and beyond, visit the Campaign for Grade Level Reading at https://gradelevelreading.net/
Our partners offer programming throughout the summer, recognizing that this helps stem the loss of school-year learning. These programs includes nature-based and STEM-focused camps, camps for children with autism, literacy-focused camps, and beyond, plus a host of enrichment activities.
Check out the 2025 summer camp opportunities in Story County and learn more about available financial assistance.
If you know of camps that should be added to our list, please email smansell@uwstory.org.
We recognize that good health and the ability to learn go hand-in-hand. Our partners work to address food insecurity through community-supported initiatives such as food pantries and free summer meals for children. We also work to ensure that learners with disabilities and other special healthcare or learning needs are included in educational opportunities.
To learn more about ways to include children with disabilities, we recommend the following resources:
To see a complete list of food support programs for children, please visit United Way’s Story County Hunger Collaboration page.
If attendance is irregular, it is hard to benefit from educational opportunities. We work with a host of community partners to identify and reduce barriers to attendance like transportation, limited English proficiency, special needs, and more.
Find handouts, videos, data and more on positive engagement, actionable data, and building capacity online at Attendance Works.
Story County College Access Network (SCCAN), funded by the Bureau of Iowa College Aid, Department of Education, has been working since 2019 to ensure that underserved learners have access to information about post-secondary options and resources. We see education as a pathway to financial security, well-being, civic engagement, and beyond.
We support, you guessed it, READING! We encourage you to visit one of our local libraries and get a free library card!
Can’t make it to a library but need a new book to read? Go on a walk and find a Little Free Library; these little libraries are located ALL OVER our county communities! OR, for a family-friendly activity, consider taking a “StoryWalk” at one of our local parks, such as Moore Memorial Park or Brookside Park in Ames.
Have a volunteer need? Let us help! United Way of Story County connects local volunteers with meaningful opportunities. Register your agency or program’s project with us, and we’ll help match you with community members ready to make a difference.
