The Mid–Hudson Valley Community Profiles project represents a commitment by four of the region’s leading philanthropic organizations to provide the public with continuously updated comparative information regarding Columbia, Dutchess, Greene, Orange, Putnam, Sullivan, and Ulster counties. The project is designed to provide government and nonprofits with an important new tool for assessing and understanding the populations they serve.

The Dyson Foundation, United Way of the Dutchess–Orange Region, Community Foundations of the Hudson Valley and Community Foundation of Orange and Sullivan  jointly commissioned the Center for Government Research (CGR) to collect and analyze the data and maintain the website. With input from local health and human service providers, the organizations selected 59 indicators within the following fields to be included on the site: Children & Youth, Community Engagement, Demographics, Economy, Education, Financial Stability, Health, Housing and Public Safety.

This website provides an “apples–to–apples” understanding of regional trends and comparative information that had been difficult to obtain in the past because of variations in how each county reports certain types of information. The site enables organizations to track community conditions, develop programs, and affect change that will ultimately contribute to the well–being of citizens in the Mid–Hudson Valley.

Some of the comprehensive features included on this site are:

• Dashboards that provide the ability to view at-a-glance indicators for the region, counties, cities and races and ethnicities, as well as creating a customized Dashboard with selected indicators.
• Key trends analysis for the nine main topics.
• A summary report compiling key trends.
• Regular updating of indicator data, charts, analysis, and maps.
• The ability to customize the charts by region, counties, and local areas.
• The ability for users to export data into a CSV format such as Excel.

Dyson Foundation is a private grantmaking foundation headquartered in Dutchess County and directed by the Dyson family under the leadership of Foundation Chairman Robert R. Dyson. The Dyson Foundation focuses on improving and enhancing the quality of life in the Mid–Hudson Valley region for all of its residents, especially those most vulnerable or economically disadvantaged.

United Way of the Dutchess–Orange Region is one of the area’s premier community–impact organizations, serving as a resource and convener to help increase community capacity to meet community needs. Its mission is to build a stronger, healthier community by raising resources and developing partnerships to make a measurable difference in people’s lives. More than 50,000 county residents each year rely on a United Way funded program, partnership or initiative for assistance.

Community Foundations of the Hudson Valley’s mission is to strengthen our communities by offering donors the means to establish charitable legacies, by making grants, and by providing leadership to address community needs in a manner that is responsible, responsive and lasting. The Foundations currently administer more than 500 charitable funds established by donors who primarily live in Dutchess, Putnam and Ulster counties. Since the Community Foundations’ inception, through its affiliates the Community Foundation of Dutchess County, Community Foundation of Ulster County, and Community Foundation of Putnam County, more than $50 million in grants and scholarships have been awarded in our communities.

Community Foundation of Orange and Sullivan currently manages nearly 300 separate component funds and has distributed over $11 million in charitable grants and educational scholarships since the organization was established in 1999. These numbers continue to grow as more people step forward as generous participants in the vision of a stronger community. There are many different ways of giving to and through the Community Foundation. Funds can be established for a variety of charitable purposes, and can support one or multiple charities. 

CGR (Center for Governmental Research) is a nonprofit research and consulting organization with a mission to support positive community change that has created community indicator projects for more than a dozen communities across the United States. CGR provides rigorous analysis, actionable insights and quality community engagement and collaboration for clients ranging from local governments to public safety organizations to collective impact initiatives and community-based nonprofits. To learn more, visit www.cgr.org.