United Progress Inc. (UPI) has a long history of being a community-based organization committed to working with individuals and families in Trenton and Mercer County. In fact, UPI has been serving the needs of the community since 1964 and continues today to help sustain individuals, families, and the community.

UPI is unique because of its over five decades of continuous involvement with Mercer County’s poor and has been a leader in identifying problems that affect the poor, while advocating for solutions to alleviate those problems identifying and addressing the root causes of poverty and specifically working on innovative and holistic approaches to addiction treatment, and recovery services.

Organizational Structure 

United Progress, Inc. (UPI) is governed by an Executive Board of Directors, who establishes policies and procedures to ensure the agency is effectively serving community needs and running in accordance with its articles of incorporation and bylaws. The Executive Board maintains a unique tripartite composition and partnership between representatives of the urban poor, private industry, and local government. The board consists of one-third elected pubic officials, one-third community representatives of the poor, and one-third from the private sector representing business, industry, and local government. The strength of this configuration is its’ balanced representation of skills and focuses that reflect the make-up of Trenton and Mercer County communities. UPI’s board composition ensures that the agency’s target population is included in the program decision- making process. The Executive Director is appointed by the Board of Directors and acts as the Chief Executive Officer.

The Executive Director/CEO is empowered by the Executive Board with the day-to-day responsibility for the overall administrative and programmatic operations of the agency. The agency’s organizational structure includes program/and project directors, managers, counselors, and support staff. These titles and positions vary according to individual grant and funding requirements. This structure ensures that all donations are maximized with a very low administrative cost.

The funding UPI receives from the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) is designated to serve individuals at 125% of the federal poverty guidelines, or below. What does that mean? It means, that at UPI anti-poverty measures are inherent to everything that we do and we are focused on helping those in poverty. In Mercer County, that means over 10.9% of the population is in poverty, a number higher than the New Jersey poverty of 9.5% according to the 2019 US Census information. In Trenton, the number of people in poverty is even more alarming with 28.9% of the population in poverty.

This is even more concerning when we review the Median Household income with Trenton households with a median income 60% lower than the New Jersey median household income.

Source: US Census Bureau 2019 Estimates www.census.gov

The Trenton Kids Count also provides some startling information and emphasizes the need for UPI services. Some of these report findings included:

• The city of Trenton had an increase in the child population of 11%, while the total city population was consistent

• The number of women receiving prenatal care increased by 55% from 2013-2017

The full report can be accessed here at the Advocates for Children in New Jersey. 

UPI’s Food Pantry distributes bulk food supplies free of charge to needy residents.

Food supplies are distributed to families and individuals from across the area.

The food assistance is based on income eligibility and food is distributed based on household size and availability of donated items.  Individuals using the agency’s pantry are permitted a pick up once every 30 days.

PUBLIC NOTICE: Changes to WIC-Approved Foods

In light of COVID-19, New Jersey WIC is allowing additional food items in anticipation of limited food selections related to recent events. Click here for the full announcement.

The Promise of Community Action

Community Action changes people’s lives, embodies the spirit of hope, improves communities and makes America a better place to live. We care about the entire community and we are dedicated to helping people help themselves and each other.

National Community Action Partnership

UPI is part of the national community action network. You can learn more about CSBG funded services across the country by visiting the National Community Action Partnership website.

https://communityactionpartnership.com 

 New Jersey Department of Community Affairs

New Jersey also has a network of CSBG funding agencies. CSBG funding is provided through the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs (DCA). You can learn more about DCA and CSBG funding by visiting the NJ Department of Community Affairs website.

https://www.nj.gov/dca/divisions/dhcr/offices/comact.html

Community Action Partnership NJ

All of the CSBG funded agencies are linked through our work on anti-poverty measures. The Community Action Partnership NJ, Inc. or CAP-NJ has resources on CSBG services throughout New Jersey. You can learn more about the CSBG network by visiting CAP NJ.

https://www.capnj.org

National Community Action Foundation

All of the CSBG work is supported by the National Community Action Foundation and the tireless work of David Bradley and NCAF. You can learn more about their work by visiting their page and sign up for legislative updates by visiting their page.

https://www.ncaf.org