What does the Charity Navigator rating mean?
The decline of our local campaign over the past several years due to the loss of major employers and other hits to the region’s economy have caused United Way of the Greater Dayton Area to have a one-star rating for Organizational Capacity because the criteria are directly related to growth in revenue. We are working vigorously to turn this around. During this same time our local United Way also received a three-star rating for Organizational Efficiency which evaluates efficiency of administration, fundraising and programs. This rating means United Way exceeds or meets industry standards and performs as well or better than most charities in its cause. We were not the only local charity affected by the revenue-driven rating system, so we are pleased that Charity Navigator announced in the January 21, 2010 issue of BusinessWeek that they will be overhauling the rating system to look beyond financial measures as financial statements alone do not tell a complete story.
