College Bound

🎉We had our kickoff event welcoming our Juniors back to CB! The event provided Junior families and students the opportunity to learn what to expect for the year, meet with coaches, and learn about CB's different resources that are available! We can't wait for another exciting year with the CB Junior Class.🌟

We're excited to introduce the newest member of our 10th Grade team, Olivia! As the 10th Grade Academic Specialist, Olivia will be dedicated to helping students succeed academically in their sophomore year and beyond, guiding them in identifying their academic needs and supporting them in achieving their goals.

St. Louis County native, Olivia earned her Bachelor’s in Biological Sciences from Missouri S&T and later obtained her Master’s of Science in Education from Drexel University while living in Philadelphia. She’s passionate about providing the support and guidance she wished she had in high school and is eager to help the next generation find their path.

Outside of work, Olivia loves exploring all that St. Louis has to offer, from the Missouri Botanical Garden to the Zoo and Art Museum. Please join us in welcoming Olivia to the CB Team!

Join us for a new Smash Hit event! We’re excited to host 🥒Pickle & Rally🌟, and we’d love for you to be part of the action. Whether you’re a pickleball pro or just looking to have a “dill-ightful” time, this event is for you!

📅 Saturday, October 19
🕒 6pm-10pm
📍Creve Coeur Racquet Club

Want to be a big “dill” at our event? Sponsorships available!
Learn more and register here: https://ow.ly/Q3vo50Ta2Oe

Meet our newest Academic Specialist, Ray! Originally from New Jersey, Ray received an associates degree from County College of Morris and a bachelor’s degree from Montclair State University. Prior to joining the College Bound team, Ray was a part of Teach for America and taught Middle School Language at Rosebud Reservation for three years! Ray will be providing direct coaching and academic support to 12th grade and college students in his Academic Specialist role.

New to the St. Louis area, Ray enjoys being outdoors, reading, and music/art! His favorite thing to do in St. Louis is walking around Tower Grove Park and seeing the great green space in the area.

We are excited to have Ray join us and serve students during a transition period for students! Join us in welcoming Ray to the College Bound team and drop some cool places to explore for the new STL resident!

Class of 2028 - our application is a now available online at https://www.collegeboundstl.org/application/

We can’t wait to meet you 🤩

Thank you to the Optimist Club of St. Louis for your generous support and for hosting us at the 2024 Spring Grant Event! It was great to connect with other nonprofits and Optimist members. Looking forward to this partnership!

Learn more about the spring grant awards here: https://ow.ly/OBYN50T387G

This week's ✨ ✨spotlight shines on CB alum, Makaila, Class of 2019. Makaila, a proud Jackson State University alum, begins her second year of teaching at Lift For Life Academy today. Inspired by the support she received as a child, Makaila is passionate about investing in her students!

In her Cap & Gown speech, Makaila shared how CB was a safe space for her and the important role her coaches played in staying on the path to college graduation.

Check out the full speech: https://ow.ly/hktP50SYMRx

📸: Tyler Small

Before bidding goodbye to AmeriCorps, we want to extend a sincere thank you to all of our dedicated members for their service to our organization. The 15 years of commitment and hard work have had an impact on our CB mission and students. We are deeply grateful for the service and time each member has committed to CB!

Congratulations to the newest class of Edward Jones Scholars who received their awards from The Scholarship Foundation of St. Louis on Saturday, August 3rd. The Edward Jones Scholarship is a $12,000 renewable, annual grant for low-income students who are active participants with any of the following youth development agencies:

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Missouri
Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater St. Louis
Boys Hope Girls Hope of St. Louis
Cardinal Ritter College Prep
College Bound
Girls Inc. - St. Louis
LifeWise StL

Scholars are pictured here with representatives from Edward Jones as well as some partner agencies who were able to attend!

Today's Monday ✨ features Sheanique, CB Class of 2020 and recent graduate of Southeast Missouri State University Sheanique recently wrapped up her summer internship at Stifel and is getting ready to start graduate school at Webster University this fall.

Sheanique's story reminds us to be relentless and intentional in the pursuit of our goals. Listen to her full Cap & Gown remarks here: https://ow.ly/NGGz50SU2IY

📸: Tyler Small

We're in Back to School mode here at CB! 🎒🏫 To ensure our students are prepared for the upcoming semester, we hosted these hard-working volunteers earlier this week. They put together school supply kits which will be given out at CB@STLCC's semester kickoff event. We're so grateful for their partnership on supporting our students and mission! Special thanks to Susan Weissman, CB founding board chair, for bringing this group together!

SEMO’s new partnership with College Bound will enhance support for students from disadvantaged backgrounds. Learn more about this exciting development in our latest news story.

🔗: https://pulse.ly/t8tmufjw27

We can still feel the energy✨ from our very first Alumni Happy Hour Hang🍹 last week! For some, it was their first time back at CB since college graduation. We had alumni from our very first cohorts through 2024 graduates. It was great to catch up and hear about all the amazing things our alumni are doing in the community!🤩

CB ALUMNI: Couldn't make this one? Don't worry, we plan to do more alumni events... stay tuned!

We're kicking off a ✨series today by sharing our Cap & Gown speaker videos.🎥

Today's featured student is David, CB Class of 2024 and high school salutatorian. 🎓If you've attended our gala, then you know the speeches end with the our high school graduates proudly stating their name and where they'll be attending college in the fall. At the time of his speech, David was still undecided - he knew he'd be attending college but didn't know where. Thanks to his willingness to be vulnerable on that stage, he made a connection that night which resulted in a college decision. We're happy to share David has decided to attend Missouri State University!

➡️Check out his full C&G speech:

Cap & Gown 2024: David

🌟NEW STAFF SPOTLIGHT🌟 Welcome our new CB@STLCC Academic Specialist Andrew!🎉 We are so excited to have him join our team!

Andrew attended the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff on a full band scholarship. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology. As an Academic Specialist, Andrew will meet with students to assess their academic needs, make a plan to alleviate barriers, and provide strategies and tools to help students become successful college students.

"I believe College Bound can bridge the gap for many students. The individual coaching and vast number of resources, tools, and strategies available is something that I wish I had access to when I was in school."

Andrew enjoys visiting various parks and museums around the city, looking at the landscape and architecture in some of the historical parks around the city. Fun Facts: Andrew self-produced, wrote, and promoted two entire albums. He also marched in the first inaugural parade for President Barack Obama.

This month our incoming Sophomores went on their annual camping trip! Students spent the day team building, getting to know each other, and participating in fun activities. We are so excited to get to work with this fantastic incoming class!

In May our STLCC office celebrated the end of the semester with a field day in Tower Grove Park. Students and staff enjoyed Steve's Hotdogs, playing volleyball, and potting plants. What a great way to celebrate the end of another successful school year!🎉

Last Thursday our Completion Team took 8 students to Springfield, MO for a Missouri State University – Summer Visit Day. Students participated in a “build your own adventure” style programming which included an overnight stay in the residence hall, MSU student panels, campus tours, and hands-on academic experiences tailored to their major interests. Thank you to our partners at Missouri State University, especially Ryan Reed and Ira Assmann for being such wonderful hosts!

This we are featuring CB@STLCC's very own Jayson! Jayson was recently featured at St. Louis Community College for not only being a part of the CB@STLCC program but also the Black Male Achievers program!

The Black Male Achievers program's goal is to increase the enrollment, retention and graduation rate of underrepresented student populations by alleviating barriers that hinder students from reaching their personal, academic and career goals.

During Jayson's time at STLCC, he was inducted into Phi Theta Kappa, an international college honor society, and hosted a TRIO student leadership board panel.

Jayson will be continuing his education at Washington University in St. Louis, where he will study business and digital marketing! Congrats again, Jayson!

Read the full article here: https://ow.ly/kXJa50SquKw

Learn more about BMA: https://ow.ly/a8EM50SquKy

Taking a final moment to share some of our graduating high school seniors before they head into their first year of college this fall! We are so proud of the and are excited to support them in their transition as college students. Congrats, graduates!

✨NEW STAFF SPOTLIGHT✨ We are excited to introduce our new Possibility Specialist, CB Alum, Joshua! 🎉

STL Born, Joshua graduated this year from Fontbonne University with a B.S. in Psychology. In the Possibility Specialist role, Josh will be empowering students to explore their interests, values, and strengths, guiding them toward college and career success.

In Josh's free time, he enjoys visiting the Saint Louis Art Museum, Missouri History Museum, Saint Louis Zoo, and walking around Forest Park. Some fun facts about Josh is that he has traveled to Italy, enjoys playing chess, and enjoys playing Mortal Kombat in his spare time! 🎮♟️✈️

"As a College Bound alum, I received so much support and coaching that helped me create working plans that were important in my recent graduation. To be able to give back by sharing my experiences with upcoming students who are aiming to complete college as well is such a blessing." We are excited to have Josh a part of the College Bound team!

Some CB high school students are now officially college students! 🎉🥳 Over the next eight weeks, some of our students will be participating in the College Bound Summer Institute (CBSI) program at University of Missouri-St. Louis. They will be able to earn college credits, and work on research, discussion, and writing skills in a supported environment.

During this program, students will have the chance to take Gender Studies course. This course will focus on various disciplinary perspectives in humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. The course will challenge the students to reconsider societal norms, and think critically about the world around them. 📚🎒

Thank you to Bayer Fund, the philanthropic arm of Bayer U.S. for their support of the CBSI program once again, and UMSL for their continued partnership.

⚠️Calling all CB Alumni⚠️ We want to connect with YOU!

We are excited to announce our very first CB Alumni Happy Hour Hang! Join us on July 31st from 5:30-7 pm, as we reconnect with fellow CB Alumni and share stories and CB updates!

Drinks and light refreshments provided! RSVP at the link below by July 19.

RSVP Link: https://ow.ly/ng6z50SqkOM

We hope to see you there!🎉

While June is a special time to celebrate and honor the LGBTQ+ community, our celebration does not end there. 🌈 College Bound is a proud ally for our LGBTQ+ students and we are proud to provide a safe space for them. Let's continue to celebrate the progress made on inclusivity and acceptance!

“History isn’t something you look back at and say it was inevitable. It happens because people make decisions that are sometimes very impulsive and of the moment, but those moments are cumulative realities.” - Marsha P. Johnson 💜🏳️‍🌈

A not too long ago of our graduates!! 🎓✨ We are incredibly proud of our CB students and their accomplishments through this past school year. Here's to new beginnings, exciting adventures, and a bright future ahead.

Congratulations once again to the graduates, we're so proud of all of your accomplishments!🥳🎉

Our began their summer with our annual CB College Road Trip! The cohort visited 6 different universities in Georgia and Tennessee including an HBCU. Students were able to make connections with one another while enjoying the opportunity to visit several campuses.

A HUGE shoutout to our CB Staff for scheduling another successful trip for our CB students and thank you to the universities for having us on their campuses!🎉

📚University of Georgia
📚Emory University
📚University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
📚Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU)
📚Fisk University
📚Belmont University

Last week, several CB students came together for our first CB Leadership Enrichment Summit. Not only did these students develop & display their leadership and collaboration, but they also spent each morning working towards teen Mental Health First Aid certification with PreventEd. Big thanks to PreventEd and Washington University in St. Louis for helping us make this possible!

Today we celebrate Juneteenth. At College Bound, this provides an opportunity to reflect on the importance of today and every day for our Black youth.

"Juneteenth is not just about a Black holiday — It's about knowing that we all have a stake in making this the best country in the world. It all hinges on each of us having the freedom to do whatever is necessary to get there." — Opal Lee

🎉 We're incredibly grateful for everyone who attended and "raised their cap"🎓 at Cap & Gown this past weekend! It was a joyful evening of celebration and connection. Special Thanks to our student and alumni speakers and ambassadors, EMCEE Brian Henry, co-chairs, committees, staff, sponsors, and partners. ✨ Thank you for being ALL IN for College Bound!

Check out our alumni video here: bit.ly/cbgala2024

Missed the event but are still ALL IN for CB? ➡️ https://ow.ly/vEtY50ShpB6