Minnesota · Nonprofit
UNITED WAY OF NE MINNESOTA
UNITED WAY OF NE MINNESOTA (Minnesota) receives grants from 38 organizations whose IRS filings report $4,380,865 to it, the largest being THE UNITED WAY OF SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA ($1,274,339). 22 of them have funded it in more than one year, and 57% of the money arrives through donor-advised or pass-through sponsors rather than from an institution directly.
- Revenue FY2025
- $2.7M
- Funders on record
- 38
- Grants received
- $4.4M
- Net assets
- $3.9M
What United Way of Ne Minnesota does
Mission
United way of northeastern minnesota invests in nonprofits, programs, and collaborations that equip and empower, creating opportunities for people to thrive in our communities.
As stated on its FY2025 Form 990.
Programs
Youth opportunityunited way of northeastern minnesota (uwnemn) prioritizes a holistic, multi-generational approach to ensuring local children have the best chance at successful futures. We believe education is a powerful tool for breaking the cycle of poverty, and we recognize that building resiliency is key to improving health, development, and educational outcomes.our in-house programs include:imagination library: this program provides free monthly books to children from birth to age 5 within our service area. Since its inception, we've mailed over 400,000 books, helping young children build early literacy skills and a love for reading.bright beginnings: this initiative addresses the critical shortage of child care in our region by working to increase availability, improve quality, and expand educational opportunities in local child care settings.babysitter training: we offer training for local youth to equip them with child care skills, encourage responsibility, and promote youth entrepreneurship.lunch buddies: this mentoring program pairs students with caring adult mentors who meet with them weekly during lunch and recess, offering positive support and consistent adult…
$1,311,733 spentof which $981,582 as grants46% of program spendingHealthy communitiesunited way of northeastern minnesota (uwnemn) is committed to eliminating barriers so that everyone in our region has the opportunity to live a long, healthy life. We know that improving health outcomes, particularly through access to comprehensive care, proper nutrition, and strong social connections leads to a more resilient and vibrant community.we also recognize that food access is foundational to health. Without reliable access to nutritious meals, individuals, especially children and vulnerable populations, are at greater risk for poor physical and mental health outcomes. That's why hunger relief is a key component of our healthy communities strategy.in-house programsbuddy backpacks: this well-known uwnemn program is a vital hunger-relief effort that directly supports the health and success of children by providing weekend meal kits during the school year to students in every school in our service area. Without basic needs like food being met, children struggle to focus, grow, and learn.meet up and chow down: a free summer lunch program that offers nutritious meals to children ages 1-18 at 14 sites throughout the region. This program helps bridge the…
$972,565 spentof which $639,162 as grants34% of program spendingCommunity resiliencyunited way of northeastern minnesota (uwnemn) prioritizes ensuring the safety, stability, and security of our community members. We are committed to meeting essential needs promptly and with compassion during times of crisis while also helping individuals and families work toward long-term self-sufficiency once stabilized.our in-house programs addressing this focus area include:comforts of home: provides household essentials to individuals and families recovering from a fire or transitioning into stable, permanent housing.crisis response: in june 2024, uwnemn responded swiftly to the devastating flooding that impacted communities across our service area, including the destruction in the city of cook. We mobilized volunteers for cleanup efforts, raised funds to support affected homeowners and businesses, and served as a central hub for information, resources, and referrals.beyond our internal programs, uwnemn funds 10 agency partners that provide essential services to stabilize individuals in crisis. These partners work to:address emergency food insecurity, provide shelter and housing stability, support victims of domestic violence and sexual assault, reduce the…
$437,244 spentof which $372,996 as grants15% of program spendingFinancial securityuwnemn seeks to generate a stronger financial future for every generation. We believe financial stability is key to a thriving, resilient region. That's why united way of northeastern minnesota (uwnemn) is focused not only on meeting immediate needs - but also addressing the long-term barriers that prevent individuals and families from achieving lasting economic security.day of action: 170 volunteers united in nashwauk in june for uwnemn's annual day of action, a powerful display of what can be accomplished through community collaboration. Volunteers completed 35 revitalization projects across the community, supporting homeowners, small businesses, and the city itself.residents either applied for assistance or were nominated by neighbors. Projects were prioritized based on financial or physical barriers that made it difficult for homeowners to complete the work themselves. This initiative brings not just immediate relief but real, lasting value to those who need it most.alice: this year, uwnemn joined united ways across minnesota to bring the alice report a groundbreaking tool that reveals the true extent of financial hardship in our state. For decades, we relied…
$136,638 spentof which $91,600 as grants5% of program spending
The 4 programs described on its FY2024 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $2,858,180.
The organization over time
Each line starts at 100 in 2017, so what you read is the shape rather than the size: 150 means half as much again as 2017, 50 means half. The number beside each label in the key is where it ended.
Balance sheet
Total assets and total liabilities at each year end, in dollars. The largest one-year move in total assets was 2020 to 2021, from $3.6M to $4.3M (+20%).
How it's funded, over time
Each bar is one year's revenue split into where it came from, and every bar is the same height — these are shares, not amounts, so a year that raised twice as much looks the same size. Hover a bar for the split.
Government-grant reliance: 2024 27% · 2025 18%. Grants only. Government contracts and fees sit inside program revenue.
Surplus & reserves
Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 2 of the last 9 reported years ran a deficit.
reserve
Leadership and staff
The officers, directors, trustees and key employees listed on each return. Joined and no longer listed compare each filing with the year before, matching people by surname and first initial; a year after a gap, or a roster under three people, has no comparison.
Chief executive
Erin Shay
Executive director
As listed on its FY2025 Form 990.
The chief executive listed changed between the FY2019 and FY2020, and between the FY2020 and FY2021 filings.
Who funds it, year by year
2017 → 2023: the base broadened from 7 funders to 18 funders, grant income rose $288k → $589k.
14 of 38 of your funders are donor-advised or pass-through sponsors (tagged DAF) — 57% of grant dollars received. That money is really individual donors directing a sponsor; the institutions to cultivate are the non-DAF funders.
From the IRS filings of UNITED WAY OF NE MINNESOTA’s funders (the co-funder graph). Top 30 of 38 funders by total. Association, not causation. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
How concentrated its funding is
UNITED WAY OF NE MINNESOTA has a broad base — no single funder exceeds 29% of grant income, and it takes 3 funders to reach half.
the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 3 funders to its left
73% of the income these shares are computed over arrives through pass-through sponsors or from payers whose filings do not say what kind of payment it is. Concentration is still measured over all of it, because the money is real; what it does not support is a claim about how many institutions have chosen to fund UNITED WAY OF NE MINNESOTA.
Largest funder’s share by year: 2017 62% · 2018 57% · 2019 39% · 2020 25% · 2021 26% · 2022 24% · 2023 23% — diversifying over time.
“Effective funders” = inverse Herfindahl index (1 / Σ shareᵢ²) — the number of equal-sized funders that would give the same concentration. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
How long its funders stay
62% of UNITED WAY OF NE MINNESOTA's funders are still giving 3 years after their first grant; 58% give in more than one year at all.
Share of funders still giving k years after their first recorded grant, pooled across every acquisition cohort. A funder counts as retained in a year only if it made a grant that year. Measured to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving — a funder cannot be counted as lapsed in a year most filers have not reached.
Where its funders are
57% of UNITED WAY OF NE MINNESOTA's grant income arrives through donor-advised or pass-through sponsors, whose addresses record where the money is held rather than where the donor is. Of the $1.9M that is directly attributable, 95% of it comes from Minnesota funders.
In-state vs out-of-state, by year
Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. $2.5M arriving through sponsors registered in 8 states is excluded from the map and the split above: a sponsor holds money on a donor’s behalf, so its registered address would place those dollars somewhere no donor need ever have been. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
Organizations like UNITED WAY OF NE MINNESOTA
Organizations whose mission and program text most resemble this one, by semantic similarity over every organization in the US filings — the closest peers, and often the clearest route to shared or prospective funders.
In Minnesota
Nationally
Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.
Where the money goes
90% of spending goes to programs.
Governance
Public support
96%
Share of support from the public (Schedule A) — the basis for its public-charity status.
Footprint & structure
Files a return copy in 1 state
Screen this organization
A dated, signed PDF of the compliance screen for UNITED WAY OF NE MINNESOTA: IRS status (Business Master File, Publication 78, auto-revocation), the OFAC sanctions lists, the Internal Revenue Bulletin, and California registration, with the Rev. Proc. 2018-32 §8.01 reliance elements stated element by element. Generated from the current files at the moment you download it.
Screens are triage, not determinations; a source that cannot be read reports not screened, never clear. Screen this nonprofit · How the screen works · on the API as GET /api/screening/{ein}?format=pdf
Questions and answers
- Who funds UNITED WAY OF NE MINNESOTA?
- UNITED WAY OF NE MINNESOTA (Minnesota) receives grants from 38 organizations whose IRS filings report $4,380,865 to it, the largest being THE UNITED WAY OF SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA ($1,274,339). 22 of them have funded it in more than one year, and 57% of the money arrives through donor-advised or pass-through sponsors rather than from an institution directly.
- How many funders does UNITED WAY OF NE MINNESOTA have?
- IRS filings report 38 organizations giving $4,380,865 in grants to UNITED WAY OF NE MINNESOTA, 22 of which have funded it in more than one year.
- Who is the largest funder of UNITED WAY OF NE MINNESOTA?
- THE UNITED WAY OF SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA is the largest funder on record, with $1,274,339 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
- How can an organization like UNITED WAY OF NE MINNESOTA find more funders?
- Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in Minnesota. The funding by cause and by state pages list the largest funders for a given area and how to approach them.
These figures are read directly from IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file XML: this organization’s own return for FY2025 (financials across 2017–2025), and the filings of 38 funders that report grants to it. “On record” means captured in the filings we have parsed — a funder that does not e-file, or whose grant detail is not itemized, will not appear. Filings run roughly 12–24 months behind. Trends on this page end at FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving; later years are shown and marked, and move no figure. Data on this page was exported October 22, 2026. What this page cannot tell you · view filing