How a United Way initiative is helping grassroots groups collect, analyze data

Through the Grassroots and Faith-Based Data Initiative, United Way of Central Indiana’s reporting and analytics team works with grassroots organizations to improve their ability to collect and analyze data about their work and the people they serve.

Denise Luster saw a need. 

A couple years ago, she was talking with several grassroots organizations when they explained reporting and data collection standards were a barrier to competing for funding – not just with United Way, but other funders, too. They were smaller groups and didn't have the staffing or resources to track and report on data outcomes required by many funders in the Central Indiana community.  

“That put them at a disadvantage,” said Luster, United Way’s vice president of impact research and data analytics.  

So she began talking with other leaders in the organization and thinking: How could United Way partner with these groups, learn from them and lend the expertise of United Way’s reporting and analytics team?  

The result: the Grassroots and Faith-Based Data Initiative.  

Since May 2021, United Way’s reporting and analytics staff – called the Strategic Information team – has been working with five grassroots organizations to improve their ability to collect and analyze data about their work and the people they serve. The data is important: Organizations use it to make decisions. The program is for small to midsize organizations led by or serving people of color.  

“That’s part of our equity work here at United Way, because we realize those groups that have been … left behind have been those grassroots organizations who really are at the forefront in those communities,” Luster said. 

Participating organizations had the opportunity to receive United Way grant funding for access to Efforts to Outcomes, a nonprofit data system that typically costs thousands of dollars. Where organizations really benefited, though, was having United Way’s research team behind them, helping them develop strategies to collect client and program data, customize their data systems, understand outcomes, build reports and train staff, Luster said.  

“For most grassroots organizations, when they have money and resources, they want to pour it into those clients – they want to pour it into the families,” she said. “Having a data person is probably the least of the things they’re able to do. But with the help of United Way, we’ve been able to provide that assistance.” 

Mount Carmel Church, one of the grant recipients, has used the partnership to track more client and service data on its food pantry program. 

Located in a food desert on Indianapolis’ Far Eastside, the church noticed an increased need for its pantry in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Earlier this year, Mount Carmel was donating about 38 pounds of groceries weekly to more than 30 families, said the Rev. Lola Bartlett. The church also gives away fresh produce grown in its garden, Father’s Farm.  

Using tablets, church members log data into the Efforts to Outcomes system as people pick up food. Beyond collecting demographics, they’re able to track information on which foods and how much of it is heading out the door, said Tanya Johnson, the church’s chief of staff. They can also see how clients are served over time and where they live in the church’s service area.  

That helps the church understand its impact in the community and tell its story better, she said.  

When people ask Luster why it’s important to track data, she explains that every number is a person, a family: “The next step is finding out, what do I know about that human being? What do I know in terms of their demographics? What do I know in terms of their needs?”  

When organizations track who their clients are and the services they receive, the data paints a picture of the need and how organizations can have an impact in their community. 

“That’s the importance of disaggregating the data,” said Luster. “Disaggregation of the data tells the story behind the story.” 

This story appeared in United Way of Central Indiana’s 2021-2022 annual report. For more stories of impact, view the full report online.