Education

We’re increasing the academic success of our youth by making quality child care accessible, fostering early reading skills and helping students through graduation.

How? We’re supporting early childhood education initiatives, out-of-school time programs and college and career readiness programs.

Early Childhood Education Efforts

    1. Manchester Early Learning Center provides affordable, quality childcare and developmentally appropriate learning experiences for children, infants through twelve years of age.
    2. Wabash County Early Childhood Education Committee created an actionable plan to increase the availability and affordability of high quality early childhood education programs for children and families in Wabash County. This strategic plan aligns with their mission to transform the community by connecting school readiness to economic success. View Strategic Plan here.

School-Age Children Initiatives

    1. Blessings in a Backpack serves youth who qualify for free and reduced lunch and provides food for the weekends during the school. Separate Blessings in a Backpack programs serve Manchester Community Schools and Wabash City/Metropolitan School Corporation students.
    2. The Access Youth Center provides food, tutoring, mentoring, homework help and other activities during the crucial peak juvenile crime period immediately after school and on weekends.
    3. Wabash FAME Festival provides opportunities for youth to create, exhibit, and/or perform works of art in a festival setting. Children may experience a wide range of artistic expression and increase their awareness of the value of the arts. FAME Festivals strive to change cultural perceptions through the diversity demonstrated in the arts via interaction and hands-on experiences with people and arts of diverse cultures.
    4. Northeast Indiana Interactive Career Expo: United Fund works with other community leaders to host an interactive career expo for 9th grade students in Wabash, Huntington, Miami and Grant Counties. Career Expo is designed to expose students to a variety of potential careers. The event provides an opportunity for students to engage in conversations with adults in various careers to learn what education or training would be necessary in order to enter that field. Career Expo also emphasizes developing general soft skills needed to enter any workplace.