GrantmakersFlorida

United Way of Central Florida Inc

Highland City, FL · EIN 59-2116280. Reported 196 grants totalling $22.1M to 81 organizations across tax years 2021-2023, on Form 990 Schedule I.

81organizations funded
$69,536median reported grant
$22.1Mgranted, 2021-2023
86%of grantees funded again the next year
7%of dollars to its largest recipient

Does this grantmaker accept applications?

Its tax return does not say, and we will not guess. Private foundations file Form 990-PF, which asks outright whether they fund only organizations they select themselves -- 78% say yes, and that one answer is what lets the rest of this site tell you which foundations are worth approaching. Grantmaking charities like this one file a regular Form 990 instead, and the IRS never puts the question to them. Anyone claiming to know the answer from the filing is inventing it.

Three things in the filing do bear on it:

  1. What kind of organization it is. For United Way of Central Florida Inc, the IRS classifies it as a federated giving programme -- a United Way, Jewish federation, Community Chest or similar (NTEE T700).
  2. How spread out its giving is. 81 distinct organizations, with 7% of the dollars going to the largest single recipient. That is genuinely spread out -- the mark of a funder making many independent decisions rather than underwriting one institution.
  3. How much its list changes. 86% of one year's grantees are funded again the next, across 2 year-to-year transitions. That is well above the 57% median for grantmaking charities, and above the 67% private foundations manage. This list is close to settled, so a newcomer has to displace someone rather than fill a gap.

How big are its grants?

The median reported grant is $69,536. Half of what it reported fell between $32,463 and $147,368; the smallest was $5,277 and the largest $769,240. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong organization.

Schedule I only reports grants over $5,000. Form 990 requires a charity to list recipients it paid more than that and lets it omit the rest, so every grant-size figure on this page describes the grants it reported, not all of them. Its real median is lower and its real recipient count is higher. This is also why these numbers cannot be compared with the private-foundation figures elsewhere on this site -- Form 990-PF has no reporting floor, so the two are different populations rather than two samples of one.
$5,000 - $10,000
13 grants
$10,000 - $25,000
27 grants
$25,000 - $50,000
24 grants
$50,000 - $100,000
52 grants
$100,000 - $250,000
61 grants
$250,000 Or More
19 grants

Every organization it funded

This is the complete list from its filings, largest first. Recipients are grouped by the EIN the filer reported, not by name, so an organization that was typed differently in two years appears once rather than twice.

OrganizationLocationTotal receivedGrantsYears fundedLast
Boys & Girls Club of Polk CountyLakeland, FL$1,464,714332023
Polk County School Readiness Coalition IncLakeland, FL$1,361,151332023
Peace River Center for Personal Development IncBartow, FL$1,264,147332023
Talbot House Ministries of Lakeland IncLakeland, FL$1,117,985332023
Salvation Army of East Polk (winter Haven)Winter Haven$821,431532023
Central Florida Speech and Hearing CenterLakeland, FL$817,684332023
Mulberry Community Service Center IncMulberry, FL$715,244332023
Achievement Academy IncLakeland, FL$663,625332023
Central Florida Health Care IncWinter Haven, FL$637,584332023
Learning Resource Ctr of Polk CoLakeland, FL$630,602332023
Florida Childrens Museum IncLakeland, FL$620,845332023
Lakeland Volunteers in Medicine IncLakeland, FL$592,684332023
Alliance for Independence IncLakeland, FL$580,733332023
Girls Incorporated of Lakelane IncLakeland, FL$580,376332023
Childrens Home Society of FloridaOrlando, FL$478,234532023
Girl Scouts of West Central Florida IncTampa, FL$439,560332023
Tri-County Human Services IncLakeland, FL$429,558332023
Volunteers in Service to the Elderly IncLakeland, FL$409,094332023
Camp FireLakeland, FL$407,389332023
United Way of Lee County IncFort Myers, FL$400,943112022
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay IncTampa, FL$383,691332023
Girls Incorporated of Winter HavenWinter Haven, FL$367,089332023
The Salvation ArmyBrookhaven, GA$359,803112023
Young Mens Christian Association of West Central Florida IncLakeland, FL$338,904332023
Nu-Hope Elder Care Services IncSebring, FL$318,231332023
Heartland for Children IncBartow, FL$300,592332023
Tampa Lighthouse for the Blind IncTampa, FL$289,431332023
Good Shepherd Hospice IncTemple Terr, FL$281,231332023
Early Learning Coalition of Floridas Heartland IncPt Charlotte, FL$273,544632023
Wilson House IncLakeland, FL$222,017112023
Church Service Center IncBartow, FL$218,445332023
Frostproof Care Center IncFrostproof, FL$207,679332023
The Freedom Tour IncEagle Lake, FL$203,606332023
North American Family Institute IncStoneham, MA$198,113222023
Polk for RecoveryWinter Haven, FL$197,162222023
Womens Resource Center of Florida IncWinter Haven, FL$195,754332023
Catholic Charities of Central Florida IncOrlando, FL$192,168332023
Feeding America Tampa Bay IncTampa, FL$180,454332023
Heart of Florida Legal Aid Society IncBartow, FL$177,796332023
Help of Fort Meade IncFort Meade, FL$173,172332023
Boy Scouts-Gulf Ridge CouncilTampa$158,403332023
Heart of Florida United WayOrlando, FL$151,122112022
Epilepsy Services of West Central Florida IncBrandon, FL$150,212332023
United Way of Charlotte County IncPt Charlotte, FL$150,000112022
10090 American National Red Cross - WhWinter Haven$138,141222022
United Way of Collier and the Keys IncNaples, FL$125,000112022
Champion for Children Foundation of Highlands County IncSebring, FL$123,770332023
Hardee County Ministerial Association IncWauchula, FL$113,493332023
Youth and Family Alternatives IncNew Prt Rchy, FL$110,677332023
Womens Care Center of Bartow IncBartow, FL$109,964332023
United Way Suncoast IncTampa, FL$107,726112022
United Way of South Sarasota County IncVenice, FL$100,000112022
The Family Literacy Academy at Lake Wales IncBabson Park, FL$97,518332023
United Way WorldwideAlexandria, VA$89,010112022
Ridge Area Arc IncAvon Park, FL$87,595332023
One More Child IncLakeland, FL$79,861112023
Inspiration Ministries IncLakeland, FL$71,150332023
American National Red CrossWashington, DC$68,486112023
One Hope UnitedChicago, IL$68,278112023
House of Hope of Polk County IncWinter Haven, FL$67,000332023
Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Sun Coast IncSarasota, FL$63,774332023
Highlands County Family Y M C a IncSebring, FL$53,753332023
Hands of Hope AmericaClermont, FL$45,500222023
Boys & Girls Club of Highlands CountySebring, FL$44,530332023
Heartland Horses Equine Activities & Learning IncAvon Park, FL$39,335332023
Heart for Winter HavenWinter Haven, FL$28,934222023
Lake Wales Care Center IncLake Wales, FL$28,130222023
Polk Vision IncLakeland, FL$25,000332023
United Way of Volusia-Flagler Counties IncDaytona Beach, FL$25,000112022
Society for the Prevention of Cruel Ty to Animals Tampa Bay Florida inLargo, FL$22,012222022
Orlando Youth Alliance IncOrlando, FL$11,627222022
Lyft IncChicago, IL$11,365112022
Temple EmanuelLakeland, FL$10,781112021
Polk Education Foundation and Business Partnership IncBartow, FL$8,286112023
Options for Women Pregnancy Help Clinic IncLakeland, FL$8,118112022
Kid Pack IncLakeland, FL$7,876112021
Wonderhere Education FoundationLakeland, FL$7,000112023
Hands for Homeless IncAvon Park, FL$6,900112021
Lighthouse Ministries IncLakeland, FL$6,486112022
Lake Wales Family YMCALake Wales, FL$5,828112021
United Way of Northeast Florida IncJacksonville, FL$5,277112022

58 of 81 (72%) received money in more than one year over the 3 years we hold. Remember the $5,000 floor: an organization funded every year at $3,000 shows up here as never funded at all.

It also reported 4 groups of grants to individuals -- scholarships, emergency assistance and similar. Schedule I reports these by category with a headcount and never by name, so there is nothing here we could publish about the recipients even if we wanted to.

What the money was for

Taken verbatim from the purpose column of its filings, largest first. This is the closest thing to a statement of what it funds, in its own words.

What kind of organizations it funds

By each recipient's own IRS classification, for the 57 of 81 recipients we could match to a registered organization. These are assigned categories, not our guesses -- Schedule I reports the recipient's EIN, so this is a lookup rather than a name match.

Human Services
18 orgs
Philanthropy & Grantmaking
9 orgs
Education
7 orgs
Youth Development
5 orgs
Health Care
4 orgs
Religion
4 orgs
Mental Health
3 orgs
Food & Nutrition
2 orgs

Giving by year

Tax yearGrants reportedTotalMedian grant
202159$5,444,240$58,626
202273$8,642,433$76,660
202364$8,058,710$70,479

Tax years, not calendar years, and the most recent year is usually incomplete -- Form 990 arrives about a year after the year it covers, so a low final year means late paperwork rather than a grantmaker winding down.

Where its money goes

96% of its giving went to organizations in Florida. Community foundations and federated funds are usually the most geographically bounded funders there are -- being outside the footprint is normally disqualifying in a way that a weak programme fit is not.

Florida
$20.2M
Georgia
$360K
Massachusetts
$198K
Virginia
$89K
Illinois
$80K
District of Columbia
$68K

Down to the city

Lakeland, FL
$10.5M
Bartow, FL
$2.1M
Winter Haven, FL
$1.5M
Tampa, FL
$1.4M
Orlando, FL
$833K
Mulberry, FL
$715K

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Funders that support the same organizations

These grantmakers and private foundations gave to organizations this one also funded. Shared grantees are the strongest signal available that two funders have overlapping priorities -- and a funder already backing your peers is a far warmer prospect than one that merely lists your cause.

Publix Super Markets Charities Inc41 shared recipientsGivewell Community Foundation Inc35 shared recipientsFidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund27 shared recipientsDuke Energy Foundation27 shared recipientsAmerican Online Giving Foundation Inc24 shared recipientsDonor Advised Charitable Giving Inc21 shared recipients

How to approach this grantmaker

  1. Look for a published programme first. Unlike most private foundations, organizations of this kind often do run open, deadlined grant cycles with written guidelines. Its own website is the authority on that; this page is the authority on who it has actually paid.
  2. Check you are its size. The median reported grant is $69,536 -- and because grants under $5,000 need not be reported, it very likely writes smaller cheques than this page can see.
  3. Check you are in its geography. Its giving concentrates in Florida.
  4. Read the recipient list for organizations like yours. If nothing on it resembles your work, that is a real answer and a cheap one to get.

Related guides

Foundations funding human services in FloridaEvery funder in this group, rankedFoundations funding education in FloridaEvery funder in this group, ranked

Where these numbers come from

Everything above is taken from United Way of Central Florida Inc's own Form 990 Schedule I filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 3 returns (tax years 2021-2023). Nothing here is scraped, inferred or estimated.

On its most recent return it told the IRS it made grants to 64 section 501(c)(3) organizations and 0 other organizations. That is the filer's own count for one year; the totals above cover every year we hold.

Address of record on the latest return: P O Box 1357, Highland City, FL, 33846.

EIN 59-2116280 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this

This is history, not an open call. Form 990 is published about a year after the tax year it covers. Nothing on this page is a deadline. It is a record of who this organization has actually funded, which is the best available predictor of who it will fund next.

Is something here wrong about your organization? Email hello@funderscope.com and we will correct it.