Page 27 - 2025 February report

Site visit report – Boys Hope Girls Hope
On January 15, 2025, we (Bobby Krause, Lisa Loomis and David Blaikie) visited the head office of Boys Hope Girls Hope (BHGH) in St. Louis, Missouri. This organization (which is changing its name to Hope Ignites) is described “as an international charitable organization founded
in 1977 with a mission to nurture and guide motivated young people in need to become well- educated, career ready men and women for others.” The organization has affiliates in 14 cities across the United States and in Guatemala and Mexico,
comprising 250 employees and 300 volunteers.
They work with students from middle school to college and provide early career support. JSF has supported BHGH with a $255,000 grant to improve college access and graduation rates. They have a second application on the table for $500,000 —$300,000 for scholarships and $200,000 for wrap-around supports, such as mentoring.
BHGH has a three-pronged program approach:
A residential program where students live in
homes with other young people, with round the
clock professional caregivers. These are students
who, for various reasons, are unable to live or
thrive with their parents. They attend high school
by day and live in a BHGH home where they
receive academic tutoring, emotional, social and
other supports. An academy program for students
who live at home, it offers similar supports such
as mentorship, tutoring and college preparation. In some cities where there is both a residential z work and learn together. Beyond high school, BHGH offers college and career support to its students with scholarships, career advice, internships, and networking opportunities.
Looking at the numbers: In 2024 there were 202 students in their residential programs, 549 in the academy programs and 497 in post-secondary education. Four hundred have completed bachelor’s degrees since 2000. Ninety-seven percent are from underrepresented minority groups, 90% from very low-income households, and 85% of the students in college are first-generation. BHGH awarded over $784,000 in scholarships in 2024. Ninety-six percent of high school graduates immediately enrolled in college and the graduation rate in college is about 80%.
Cultural and education values: BHGH was founded by a Jesuit priest and draws on Jesuit values, in particular the importance of service to the community, reflected in the motto of students being “men and women for others.”
We started off our day visiting the head office. We were hosted by Bill Fronczak, VP of Advancement, and Xia Simmons, Director of Grants and Stewardship. It is a pleasant office, with a large open space divided by cubicles, a few meeting rooms and a large conference room. We were introduced to the folks working from the cubicles, specializing in such areas as accounting, learning/ youth development and information technology. These employees provide help and set standards for the various BHGH affiliates. For example, they will do the accounting work for an affiliate, and they provide education to all the affiliates on best practices in youth counselling and education.
After lunch with Bill and Xia, we met in the conference room and by Zoom with BHGH’s VP of Mission Effectiveness, Brian Hipp, and three of his team members. Their work is to ensure that BHGH follows best practices by carrying out research, developing curriculum, educating employees, and measuring impact and student success. They presented as a thoughtful, careful, data-driven team.
David Blaikie and Bobby Krause in BHGH office.
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