Upper Des Moines Opportunity, Inc. (UDMO) is one of 18 community action agencies (CAAs) in Iowa and one of approximately 1,000 community action agencies across the United States. CAAs are nonprofit private and public organizations that were established under the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 to fight America's War on Poverty. CAAs provide services to more than 13 million low-income people annually in 96 percent of the nation's counties. During the 2009 fiscal year, UDMO served 23,492 individuals in 9,511 households in Northwest and North Central Iowa. Sixty-four percent of those households (6,056 households) had incomes below 100 percent of the federal poverty level ($22,050 per year for a family of four in FY09).

Community action agencies across the nation share the common goal of self-sufficiency for the families they serve. UDMO promotes self-sufficiency by providing a variety of programs to fight poverty, improve health and increase educational attainment for family members of all ages. UDMO provides these services to families in 12 Northwest and North Central Iowa counties.

UDMO is governed by an 36-member board of directors, composed of one third public officials, and at least one third who represent the interests of our program participants. The remaining members represent faith, business and other private community interests. This structure provides for input from all sectors, allowing UDMO to create programming that best meets the needs of citizens in the counties we serve.

“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.”