The Community Needs Assessment is published by United Way of Metropolitan Dallas (UWMD) as a means to guide the allocation of donor funds, influence public policy, and provide a service to the community. More than 50 volunteers from United Way partner agencies, donors, and community experts from universities, state and local governments and non-United Way agencies contributed to this report. The Community Needs Assessment is intended not only for internal use and decision-making, but for use by other organizations and by the community at-large. The information provides the community with baseline data about the state of the UWMD four-county Service Region (Dallas, Collin, Rockwall, and Southern Denton Counties), the quality of life, and the challenges facing the area.

Below are highlights from the 2008 Community Needs Assessment. The full report can be accessed in the "Our Work" section of this site.

Education: Helping children and youth achieve their potential

• A single parent of two children spent approximately 30% of their income on child care costs in the Dallas-Plano-Irving Metro Area in 2005.
  
  Source: Center for Public Policy Priorities, Family Budget Estimator Project, http://www.cppp.org/fbe/
  
  
• 135,000 children in Dallas were in need of after school care in 2006. 70,000 of these are currently in an after school care program; another 65,000 are home unsupervised.
  
  Source: Clickin’ Research. Today's Children: Tomorrow's Communities. 2006. Accessed: Jan. 9, 2008 from www.dallasafterschoolnetwork.org
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• The attrition rate (or percentage of 9th graders who do not graduate with their class) in Dallas County is 39% (compared to Texas which is 34%). For African Americans, it is at 42%, Hispanics at 54% and Whites at 10%. The attrition rate in Collin County is 26%, with African Americans at 40%, Hispanics at 41% and Whites at 21%.
  
  Source: Intercultural Development Research Association, www.idra.org
  
  
• 18% of children living in Dallas County, ages 5-17 years, lived in poverty in 2006. The statewide average was 19%.
  
  Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2006*

Income: Promoting Financial Stability and Independence

• The percentage of renters spending more than 30% of their monthly income on rent has increased each year from 2002-2006 in all counties. In Dallas, that is a full 48% of renters; in Collin County, that is 40%. These individuals are a crisis away from becoming homeless.
  
  Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2002-2006*
  
  
• An average two bedroom apartment rent in the region costs $871 per month. At this rate, a person working at minimum wage ($5.85/hr) would need 3 full-time jobs to afford their monthly rent.
  
  Source: HUD Fair Market Rent Documentation System; National Low Income Housing Coalition
  
  
• In the region, Dallas County has the highest percentage of homeowners spending 30% or more of their monthly household income on housing costs at 41% (~130,000 people). Collin County has 30% (~44,000 people) and Denton County has 31% (~35,000 people). Data is not available for Rockwall County.
  
  Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2006*
  
  
• While Dallas County has seen three consecutive years (2004-2006) of decline in the percent of families with children living in poverty (21.4%, 19.9%, and 19.7%); the county is still over two times higher than the rest of the region (Collin: 5% Denton: 7.8% Rockwall: 2.2%).
  
  Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey,
  2002-2006*
  
  
• There wasa 178% increase in gas prices between 2001 to 2007 in the DFW area.
  
  Source: US Department of Labor-Bureau of Labor Statistics
  
  
*The most recent data available from the American Community Survey is from 2006.

Health: Improving people's health

• Throughout the region and across the board there are huge instances of racial disparity specific to African Americans in health. For example: African Americans have the highest rates of ‘no prenatal care’; the highest rates of low birth weight babies; the highest rates of infant mortality, and the highest rates of heart disease, cancer, and breast cancer.
  
  Source: Texas Department of State Health Services, 2004**
  
  
• The Texas State Data Center estimates that more than 633,000 people in Texas, about 28% of the total population, had no health insurance in 2005. Dallas County has the highest percentage of people without health insurance among all counties in this region.
  
  Source: Texas State Data Center, 2005
  
  
• In this region the infant mortality rate increased from 5.7 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2000 to 6.3 in 2004. The rate was highest for African Americans (12.5 in 2004). Dallas County has the highest rate in the region at 6.7.
  
  Source: Texas Department of State Health Services, 2000-2004**
  
  
• “Infant death is a critical indicator of the health of a population. It reflects the overall state of maternal health as well as the quality and accessibility of primary health care available to pregnant women and infants”.
  
  U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Healthy People 2010: Understanding and Improving Health. 2nd ed. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, November 2000.
  
  
• “A society’s infant mortality rate is considered an important indicator of its health status, because infant mortality is associated with socioeconomic status, access to health care, and the health status of women of childbearing age.”
  
  Source: Congressional Budget Office
  
  
**2004 Data is the most recent data available on health issues from the State Department of Health.

Collin County Snapshot

Housing Costs and the Household Budget:

Owners

• The average mortgage for a home purchased in 2006 was $1,831 in Collin County.
• 30% of homeowners spent 30% or more of their household income on housing.

Renters

• The median gross rent in Collin County was $906.
• 40% of renter spent 30% or more of their household income on housing.
Source: United States Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2006)