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Granger School District in rural Yakima County, Washington, sees school attendance as a complex challenge. To encourage its nearly 1500 students to attend class regularly, the district offers programs that reward improved and perfect attendance. Staff also work directly with students and families to track attendance and to understand and address barriers to attending school. The “...

In June 2013, New York City Council passed a law giving paid sick leave days to nearly a million of New York City’s workers after a significant grassroots advocacy effort led by Community Service Society (CSS) of New York. While this was a huge win that will positively affect many workers’ lives, CSS knows that its work is not done. Six months later, in an interview with...

Priority Spokane, Spokane Public Schools (SPS), and their partners joined together to form a Community Attendance Support Team (CAST) for each of the six SPS middle schools. CASTs focus on students in grades 7 and 8 who have four unexcused absences, and use a supportive intervention approach to try to resolve the student’s attendance problem. The CAST meeting includes the student and their...

In rural South Dakota, patients need specialty services but specialists have traditionally been few and far between. When patients needed immediate or intensive services, local providers had few team members to back them up and little access to specialist assistance. Now with Avera Health’s eCARE services, primary and long-term care providers can access urgent care services and consult with...

Year-round residents of Catalina Island off the coast of California had to travel an hour by boat to the mainland, at a cost of $70 per trip, to access specialty care, until a telemedicine network was created to provide access to specialty care services, including telepsychiatry. The Catalina Island Medical Center (CIMC) collaborated with private and public sector partners to create...

Known as Washington State's gateway to the Pacific Islands and the Olympic Peninsula, Grays Harbor County, a mostly rural community, is grappling with effects of a downturn in their local resource based economy. Educational attainment is low, generational poverty is high, and generational hopelessness is ever present in Grays Harbor. According to the County Health Rankings, Grays...

In 2010, United Way of Greater Toledo (UWGT) wanted to know: “What are the health reasons keeping kids from thriving?” They asked parents, hospitals, schools, and other partners. Community members repeatedly told them hunger and food insecurity was hurting the health of Toledo’s children. Teachers...

In a community as large and diverse as Atlanta, the County Health Rankings are a valuable source of data that helps to inform the work of local organizations, including United Way of Greater Atlanta. “The County Health Rankings have been helpful for our efforts because our footprint encompasses 13 counties. The Rankings allow us to tell each community story in a way that makes sense...

According to the 2014 County Health Rankings, Camden County ranked 17th out of 21 counties in New Jersey. United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey (UWGPSNJ) is working to change this by transforming the community into a place where children and families thrive. Led by Executive Director Mike Moynihan, United Way and partners are improving educational outcomes, increasing...

In Toledo, OH, the United Way of Greater Toledo had an “ah-ha” moment in 2010 when the County Health Rankings were released and Lucas County, where Toledo is located, ranked 72nd out of 88 Ohio counties. “This was incredibly alarming and created a sense of urgency in our community to mobilize,” said Kate Sommerfeld, former Area Director with United...