Summer Update from the CEO

With the 2023-24 school year behind us, I am proud to share with you the progress we’ve made, the challenges we’ve navigated, and the opportunities that lie ahead for Student Leadership Network.

On the Girls’ Education front, our TYWLS schools are finishing the year with 100% of the graduates enrolling in college! This year’s second annual WholeGirl Education National Conference was a tremendous success with the theme, “Closing the Gap with Girls’ Education.” Distinguished advocates for gender equity and inclusion Valerie Jarrett, Tina Tchen, and Ruha Benjamin served as keynote speakers, offering insights that resonated enormously with attendees.

Our College Bound Initiative program continues to empower students to gain access to higher education. Our Directors of College Counseling (DCCs) are currently impacting the lives of over 16,000 students, the majority of whom will be the first in their families to attend college. The Class of 2024 has unfortunately endured a delayed and complicated financial aid process riddled with challenges. Despite those challenges, with the diligent support of our DCCs, 84% of our students completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), compared to 46% nationally. Successfully completing the FAFSA helps ensure that students will have the vital funding they need to matriculate. Our work in girls’ education and college access and success remains critically important, particularly for the demographic we serve.

Our mission to unlock economic mobility through increased educational attainment has never been more vital. Excitedly, our students have secured impressive college acceptance outcomes, and we are supporting them as they finalize their plans to secure financial aid and embark on their college journeys in the fall. We have so much to celebrate, and we thank you for your unwavering support. We can’t do any of this without you.

Always my best, 

Yolonda Marshall
Chief Executive Officer