Needs Assessment: Purpose, Mission and Objectives

Mission

The Greenwich United Way identifies unmet local health, educational and self-sufficiency needs, raises awareness and support, and works collaboratively with community partners to initiate solutions and implement programs that have a lasting and positive impact.

Purpose

The 2020 Needs Assessment supports the Greenwich United Way mission through a community-wide assessment of human service needs and community assets to support non-profits, philanthropy, leaders and the community at large in making data-informed actions for the public good.

Objectives

The Greenwich United Way engaged the Center for Social Impact at Fairfield University to complete the NA2020. The NA2020 dashboard is a new platform for sharing the findings of our assessment and enables any user to easily locate, interact with, and download data that is of particular interest. Unlike previous needs assessments, NA2020 data is available at down to the neighborhood level, facilitating a more specific and nuanced understanding of community needs and assets.

*To see how to navigate and view the findings of the 2020 Needs Assessment click the “How to use this report” tab at the top of the page.

About the Center for Social Impact

Fairfield University’s Center for Social Impact (CSI) connects community and campus to create high impact academic opportunities that address local, national, and global challenges and develop individuals committed to creating a more just and equitable world. The CSI’s Community-Engaged Research program connects the knowledge and resources of the university with knowledge and resources of the community to develop research-based solutions to social challenges.

Acknowledgements

Steering Committee – Greenwich United Way
David Rabin, CEO
Jeremy Nappi, Vice President of Fund Development & Operations
Robert Moore, Senior Director of Community Impact
Eileen Kim, Board Chair
Nicole Kwasniewski, Vice Chair Community Impact
Joui Hessel, Community Planning Council Chair
Karen Keegan, Community Volunteer

Research Committee – Fairfield University
Mehmet Cansoy, PhD, Asst. Professor, Sociology & Anthropology
Jonathan Delgado, Research Coordinator, Center for Social Impact
Scott Lacy, PhD, Faculty Chair, Community-Engaged Research; Assoc. Professor, Sociology & Anthropology; and Assoc. Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences
Melissa Quan, MA, Director, Center for Social Impact
Kurt Schlichting, PhD, Professor Emeritus, Sociology & Anthropology

Research Assistants
Vincent Eze, MPA ’20
Reinaldo Gonzalez, Sociology & Anthropology ’20, MSADS ’21
Michael Gurge, Sociology & Anthropology ’20, MSADS ’21
Luckario Alcide, Communications ’21
Bibek Timalsina, Computer Science ’22

Community-Engaged Learning Courses
Health Studies Capstone (Spring ’20), Catherine Anderson, PhD, Assoc. Professor of Biology
Economics of Race, Class, and Gender (Fall ’20), Kathy Nantz, PhD, Professor of Economics

Special thanks to all those who contributed to this report through participation in the survey and interviews.