The United Way of Butler County announced Thursday nearly $1 million in grant awards to local and national organizations.

The awards include $445,000 in Impact Fund grants to 20 partner agencies and 26 programs providing education, income and health services.

Executive director Kierston Hobaugh said the United Way considered a total of 34 program applications this year, as it continues to roll out a new way of selecting programs for grant awards.

The “impact model,” Hobaugh said, focuses on results.

“We're looking at initiatives that are truly going to move the needle for Butler County residents,” she said, “rather than just putting a Band-Aid on a problem.”

Starting in 2006, the agency started moving toward that model — checking in with agencies during the two-year cycle to see if the money was making any difference.

That information then was used to make funding selections starting in 2008.

Hobaugh said that's part of the reason grant allocations remained steady from 2014 to this year, and were down significantly from 2013, when the agency awarded roughly $742,000 in grants to 34 programs.

Those grants were cut back shortly before the 2014-15 fiscal year to $442,000 overall, Hobaugh said.

The agency now focuses on three program areas: Education, financial stability and health. Hobaugh said those were chosen because they represent the area's greatest needs.

The process of raising money to fund those initiatives has changed as well, Hobaugh said. It's more difficult to raise money, and the agency is being asked to offer more options for how people can donate.

Hobaugh said the United Way expects to meet its campaign goal of $1.4 million, which is down from $1.89 million in 2013.

The agency's annual campaign closes Tuesday.

“People are giving for different reasons and in different ways now,” she said.

The United Way still expects about half of its donations to come from private citizens and half from workplace giving, Hobaugh said, but the agency is moving to change its systems to allow things like automated monthly donations after seeing a demand for the services from donors.

Hobaugh said the United Way is also seeing deeper engagement from donors. People want to know what programs their money is going to support, and why it's needed.

That hasn't necessarily changed the kind of donations people are offering, Hobaugh said. The agency will distribute about $550,000 in donor-designated funds to specific agencies this year. That's up slightly from $480,000 in the United Way's 2013-15 grant cycle.

The organization will also manage and distribute an additional $90,000 in special initiatives funding through the Butler Emergency Relief Initiative.

That program provides utility and other emergency assistance.

The United Way awards the grants on a two-year basis, so agencies awarded the funding in 2015 will receive the same amount the following year, unless there is a dramatic change in campaign receipts.

Hobaugh said a mid-cycle report on program outcomes, which the agency uses in its grant allocation deliberations, will be prepared and released on Aug. 5.

The United Way of Butler County has awarded funds to these programs and agencies for the 2015-17 cycle, as part of its Impact Fund Grants program.EducationBig Brothers Big Sisters of Butler County (YMCA) — $19,000Child Check (Lifesteps) — $25,000Children’s program (VOICe) — $49,000Financial assistance scholarship program (YMCA) — $6,000Future What?! (Connecting2Tomorrow) — $5,000Inclusive child care (Butler County Children’s Center) — $39,000Scout reach initiative (Moraine Trails Council-Boy Scouts of America) — $9,500Total: $175,000IncomeChild care scholarships (Butler County Children’s Center) — $54,000Disaster services (American Red Cross) — $15,000Guardianship/advocacy (Mental Health Association in Butler County) — 5,000Housing and homeless case management (Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Pittsburgh and Butler) — $19,000SHOP (Butler County Housing Authority) — $5,000Transitional services (Arc of Butler County) — $2,500Utility Integrated Point of Contact (Center for Community Resources) — $35,000Volunteer income tax assistance (Center for Community Resources) — $30,000.Total: $165,500HealthAdult day health services (Lifesteps) — $9,000Camping and outdoor programming (Girl Scouts of W.Pa.) — $3,000Children’s services/Camp Apple Summer Day Care (Community Care Connections) — $20,500Drop-in Center (Grapevine Center) — $5,000Forensic medical examination (Butler County Alliance for Children) — $15,000.Glade Run Adventures (Glade Run Lutheran Services) — $10,000Primary health care for the uninsured (Community Health Clinic of Butler County) — $14,500Transitional housing (Lighthouse Foundation) — $20,000YWCA personal care residence (YWCA of Butler County) $7,500Total: $104,500Total to all programs: $445,000