Lifting Lives
ABout Us
The Gap Minders is brought to you by United Way San Diego County and the San Diego Council on Literacy. Weekly episodes are hosted by Nancy L. Sasaki, CEO and president of United Way of San Diego County, and Jose Cruz, CEO of the San Diego Council on Literacy.
United Way of San Diego County
For more than 100 years, United Way of San Diego County has aligned with partners to address inequities in the region and help underserved communities. United Way’s specialty lies in identifying sustainable, long-term goals and achieving them through leveraging data and partners’ expertise to better understand root causes and putting impactful solutions into action. United Way’s work, in partnership with others, uses shared goals, innovation, and proven practices to transform the lives of children, young adults, and families in the San Diego region. United Way focuses on educational milestones, such as kindergarten readiness, third-grade literacy, high school preparation, and college and career pathways.
San Diego Council on Literacy
Established thirty-five years ago by visionary leaders, the San Diego Council on Literacy has the singular mission of uniting the community to support literacy. This mission responds to the percentage of San Diego residents who possess low-level literacy skills or who are at-risk to fail in school due to resource deficits. These skill levels have an adverse effect, every day, on every family, community, and business in our region.
Central to the literacy effort in San Diego County is the work of 30 programs that are affiliated with the San Diego Council on Literacy. Annually, these programs serve over 150,000+ residents of all ages, at no cost. The SDCOL is honored to work in partnership with dedicated organizations that provide tutoring and other resources to the community towards greater literacy. Through leadership, advocacy, collaboration, and resources, the SDCOL is succeeding in its pursuit of these objectives. Here are SDCOL priorities
- Providing ongoing documentation of the state of literacy in the San Diego region.
- Instilling the importance of literacy in the region through promotional efforts, data, stories.
- Increasing the impact of services through coordinated community-scaled efforts.
- Filling services gaps via initiatives and support to the 30 SDCOL affiliated literacy programs.
- Generating resources that support local literacy priorities.
