28 juniors and seniors from 7 different schools in the area came together each month during the 2023/2024 school year for Student United Way. With self-determined goals to improve the mental health of Logan County youth and address issues of substance misuse, hunger, and personal hygiene, the Student United Way committee awarded just over $28,000 in Youth Allocations grants to 12 local applicants recently. The money will directly impact students in their schools over the summer or next school year.
After learning about the human service needs of the community, the 28-member panel developed its own criteria for funding. They then reviewed grant requests like their adult counterparts on United Way’s Allocations Committee and heard live presentations from many of the applicants.
Students then needed to decide how to distribute $28,000+ with over $70,000 in requests. Each student then submitted their recommendation before the group made the final decision on the 12 grant recipients. You can see the breakdown below.
Student United Way consists of four students (2 juniors and 2 seniors) from Bellefontaine, Benjamin Logan, Calvary Christian, Indian Lake, Ohio Hi-Point Career Center, Riverside, and West Liberty-Salem. Each month they met at a different location in Logan County to see how United Way dollars work in our community. They visited Discovery Riders, the Logan County Sheriff’s Office, the Logan County Courthouse, learned about financial responsibility at Richwood Bank, and participated in a poverty simulation at the Hilliker YMCA.
Student United Way will resume in the fall.
The United Way of Logan County would like to thank Melody Couchman, Michael Wilson, Chad Wilkinson, Ben Stahler, and Lexi Roby for their help as advisors with Student United Way this year.
Grant recipients include:
- Bellefontaine High School – Opp Pro Program – $1,500 – food for an after-school program for at-risk students
- Benjamin Logan FFA – $1,800 – for a mentoring program that pairs high school students and elementary students with disabilities while they learn about agriculture
- Cub Scout Pack 81 – $2,000 – for Cub Scout programming
- Greater Riverside Area Community Encouragers – $1,306 for a weekly summer food program in DeGraff
- Indian Lake High School SADD – $2,300 – for a speaker at an all-school assembly to kick off their annual Red Ribbon (anti-drugs) week
- Logan County Health District – $1,106 – for health/hygiene kits to be delivered to all local schools
- Lutheran Community Services – $4,000 – for Our Daily Bread
- Journey Living Ministries – $2,106 – for the GOAT mental health program
- Midwest Regional ESC – $4,500 to conduct the Summer Autism Academy
- Ohio Hi-Point SOS – $3,000 for an in-school pantry with food and hygiene items
- Vineyard Church – $3,000 – for weekend backpack meals for Bellefontaine Schools
- West Liberty Elementary – $1,500 for their all-school Literacy Night
