Who We Are
P illsbury United Communities is a unique nonprofit organization. With multiple locations in Minneapolis’ inner city neighborhoods – including four neighborhood centers and a professional live theatre – Pillsbury United Communities is positioned to address the complicated issues and concerns faced by the 35,000 people who walk through our doors each year. The agency’s 200 full and part-time staff often live in the neighborhoods where they work and are passionate about helping their community and its members grow and solve the challenges they face.
As a descendant of the Settlement House Movement, Pillsbury United Communities recognizes the complex causes and effects of social and economic inequalities in our core cities, and believes that the best way to effect positive change is to help people connect and build meaningful relationships. The programs offered at Pillsbury United Communities are not about hand-outs or charity, but encourage give-and-take relationships between members of the community and Pillsbury United Communities.
The agency emphasizes people over programs – yet recognizes that programs are an important part of addressing inequalities. When the agency was founded in 1879, services offered included a day nursery so mothers could go to work, a health clinic, industrial training, and sewing classes. Today, staff manage a growing number of services that include child care, after-school activities and a crisis nursery; citizenship and English classes for refugees and recent immigrants; job opportunities and recreational activities for the developmentally challenged; health insurance enrollment and pro bono legal assistance; vocational training for people with criminal histories; arts and theatre programs and performances; affordable housing; youth employment training and college-readiness programs for teens; support for emerging organizations and charter schools, and many other services to people in Minneapolis who are looking to make positive changes in their lives.
Pillsbury United Communities is recognized for its innovative approaches, programs and financing mechanisms that build better communities for everyone by helping individuals confront inequities and create lives that are meaningful to them and reflective of their own values.
