United Way of Middle Tennessee

What it reported doing in 2025

Three out of four nashville third graders are not reading at grade level, a challenge nashville has wrestled with for more than two decades. United way serves as the lead convener for a community collaborative call raising readers nashville (formerly blueprint for early childhood success). We are cultivating an environment where all children can grow the reading skills they need to thrive by improving the systems and structures that support nashville's families and young children. This work empowers united way's early childhood initiative, read to succeed (rts). Rts unites early childhood professionals to align knowledge, skills and best practices for lifelong academic success and well-being for children and families. Rts partners with local childcare centers serving vulnerable populations to reduce risk factors for children and families to prepare for success in kindergarten. Rts serves over 800 students where 93% of three- and four-year-olds are at developmental level. Before the start of this program, only 33% of four-year-olds in these centers tested at average or higher on kindergarten readiness assessments. In the spring of 2022, 90% and 92% of three- and four-year-olds met their literacy and social-emotional benchmarks for kindergarten readiness, respectively. Read to succeed has demonstrated a success rate of 90% or higher since 2007. United way implements a complementary program to rts to support first-through-third-grade students, raise your hand (ryh). Ryh is a state of Tennessee approved tutoring program that provides tutoring services in the middle Tennessee region. Ryh supports early literacy intervention of first through third graders, matching tutors with students who are performing below grade level in reading and math. Volunteers tutor in classrooms after school and during summer. In spring 2022, metro nashville council approved and awarded united way of greater nashville over $5.3 million in american rescue plan act funding to increase low-income families' access to quality childcare-a longstanding crisis across greater nashville. United way continues to leverage metro nashville funding to stabilize twelve (12) childcare center providers that serve low-income families on a sliding scale, representing a population of families served who live at or below 200% of the federal poverty line, and those enrolled in the Tennessee department of human services ("dhs") smart steps childcare assistance program ("smart steps"). This funding supports all ten (10) read to succeed sites and two (2) additional community-based childcare centers, incentivizing providers for the first time to serve more families in this demographic. These funds help to fill the gap between the true cost of high-quality childcare and what parents can afford to pay and the state's increasing yet inadequate reimbursement rate. After nearly 20 months, united way has deployed nearly $3 million to eradicate the financial loss absorbed by centers annually.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
• Program expense ratio: 85.8%; rating input score 86
• Fundraising efficiency: $9.62 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 19th percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
  • Compensation committee: Pass
  • Independent consultant: Pass
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Pass
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: Limited
• Grant itemization coverage: 85.4%; rating input score 85; 25th percentile among comparable filings
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Pass
  • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: -11.6%; rating input score 6; 6th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.82; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.13; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 6.4%; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 8.4% per year; rating input score 100; 60th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 7.1% per year; rating input score 100; 57th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 9.9% per year; rating input score 100; 67th percentile among comparable filings