• Early Learning – Our programs are designed to give PreK students the educational start they need to be prepared for kindergarten and ensure K-3 students are reading on grade-level by the end of 3rd grade. This a critical indicator of future success as studies show that children who read on grade level by the time they start 4th grade are four times more likely to graduate high school.
• • Reading Rooms – located at La Mirada Garden Apartments and Bradenton Village Apartments; bring educational resources and programs to community housing neighborhoods. During Summer 2022, our La Mirada Reading Room hosted a six-week Summer Reading Camp for rising pre-K to 3rd graders. The site also served as a Summer Breakspot, providing daily free lunches. 
  • Quality Childcare Initiative (QCI) – In collaboration with local Early Learning Coalitions, United Way Suncoast supports the key quality components of childcare – enhancing the learning environment, establishing an experienced/stable workforce,  creating consistent family engagement and advocating – at selected early childcare centers in our 5-county footprint. 
  • The Big Plan – a community partnership focused on improving reading scores at 10 Title 1 elementary schools in Manatee County
  • Summer Care – provides books, scholarships and tutoring to students to avoid the “summer slide,” where students fail to retain academic gains over the summer. This past summer, we funded 525 scholarships at 10 summer camp locations and provided nearly 2,400 summer bridge books.
• Youth Success – Housed at our North Greenwood Resource Center, Operation Graduate, a partnership between United Way Suncoast, Pinellas County Schools, the Clearwater Police Department, and St. Petersburg College promotes on-time high school graduation and prepares students for college or career through tutoring, mentorships and summer programs that introduce students to the college experience.
• Financial Stability – Our work centers around the 43% of Suncoast households who can’t cover basic needs and are one emergency away from crisis – the ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) population. Help is provided through a variety of programs including:
  • • Resource Centers – help adults reach a more financially stable future for themselves and their families by providing GED classes, job training, computer access and more including:
      • Campbell Park – Campbell Park Network for Early Learning, food pantry and a new partnership with Evara Health
      • North Greenwood – Operation Graduate program for middle and high school students, Phlebotomy training
      • Sulphur Springs – CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant) training
    • VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) – provides one-on-one and online tax prep assistance to thousands of lower-income households, ensuring they receive their maximum refunds. The refunds, along with fees saved from paying for tax prep, go back into the community to pay for housing, childcare and debt, among other things. So far in 2022, VITA volunteers helped 8,583 families access more than $13M in the form of refunds and saved fees.
    • Bank On Suncoast – helps the unbanked and underbanked access safe, affordable checking accounts
• Help in a Crisis – through partnerships and our own emergency funding, we are here to help when our community is in crisis.
  • • 2-1-1 – A strategic community partner of United Way Suncoast, 211 provides assistance to individuals in crisis including help with housing, food access, utilities, and mental health issues.

For more info on the work that you help fund, view our 2022-25 Community Investment Strategic Partnerships by Impact Area.

But, Publix associates go far beyond donations in giving back to the communities in which you live and work. Volunteers are vital to our work in the community. Each year, you participate in countless projects across our five-county region through Publix Serves and our annual Week of Caring service blitz. 

In addition, Publix associates are also active members of our Leadership Societies and participated in our Loaned Executive program each fall prior to the pandemic shutdown.