The Steward Family Foundation has given $1 million to Wyman to support its merger with inspireSTL. The gift will be paid out over five years, including this year, according to Charli Cooksey, executive director of inspireSTL.
“We look forward to what we’ll be able to do with these dollars to help more scholars and to have a greater impact in our community,” Cooksey told The American.
Founded in 2011 by Teach for America corps members, inspireSTL provides high-potential scholars who are currently underserved with placement into some of the region’s best high schools and is designed to support them through college. Since June, it has been operating as one entity with Wyman, whose mission is to enable teens from economically disadvantaged circumstances to lead successful lives and build strong communities. The merger becomes official on January 1.
“We’re already integrating administrative responsibilities, but our programming stays the same,” Cooksey said of the merger. “We’re able to provide the same service to our scholars, but with increasing efficiency.”
Now serving 140 teens locally, inspireSTL places high-potential scholars who are at-risk into local college prep schools and provides them with rigorous academic support. Support, which begins the summer after 7th grade and lasts through college, includes securing financial aid, tutoring, coaching, ACT prep and, when necessary, providing financial resources for books, uniforms and fees. This past May, the first cohort of inspireSTL scholars graduated from high school. The program aims to serve more than 400 scholars annually.
Wyman – whose two core programs are its Teen Outreach Program and Teen Leadership Program – has been in operation for 117 years. In the last five years, Wyman has impacted the lives of more than 125,000 teens.
David and Thelma Steward awarded the $1 million gift in honor of Bob Fox, owner and CEO of NewSpace, Inc., and Maxine Clark, founder of Build-A-Bear Workshop, who have supported inspireSTL since its inception. Fox served as the founding board chair of inspireSTL, and continued in that role until the merger with Wyman, when he was elected to that board and now serves on the Executive Committee.
“Thelma and I have long believed that educational opportunity, character building, leadership development and civic engagement are critically important for young people to succeed in life and as leaders in their community,” David Steward, founder and chairman of World Wide Technology, said in a statement.
“We are pleased to be able to support both Wyman and inspireSTL on this journey toward greater impact for youth in our region. We are even more pleased to do so in honor of Bob and Maxine – two individuals we greatly admire for their commitment to opportunity equity in St. Louis.”
Dave Hilliard, Wyman president and CEO, said the gift will help local youth “open the doors to a more open-minded, connected and even financially successful region.”
“This gift funds important programs for our region – ensuring that those who are underserved and from diverse backgrounds receive both equal opportunity along with a robust support network that will shepherd them on their path toward a brighter future for themselves – and our community,” Hilliard said in a statement.
Cooksey said that students and parents have not been asking questions about the merger, since there has been no impact on programs. She has, however, been fielding questions from donors and partners.
“There is curiosity about the future of inspireSTL and whether they will still be able to donate and support inspireSTL, and I have been able to provide promising responses, due to the Stewards’ gift,” she said. “I have been able to tell people they still can make a donation that can be restricted for inspireSTL.”
For more information, visit http://wymancenter.org/inspirestl/.
