Category: St. Louis Fellowship Program

MAAY Foundation, Gephardt Fellows uplifting Asian American communities

In 2019, Caroline Fan, a passionate St. Louis visionary and organizer, founded the Missouri Asian American Youth (MAAY) Foundation.   Fan was driven by a powerful desire to uplift marginalized communities through education and opportunity. As president of the MAAY Foundation, she leads the creation of an organized voice for the AANHPI (Asian American, Native Hawaiian, […]

Immersion trips for Fellows offer in-depth experiences in STL neighborhoods

As a part of their commitment to serve St. Louis effectively and responsibly, Gephardt Institute’s 2023 St. Louis Fellows listen and learn from local St. Louisans through Engage STL Days, where they visit local neighborhoods and hear from community members. The institute’s 33 fellows had the opportunity to interact with two cultural hubs in St. […]

Fellows impact STL by day, build strong friendships by night

What are Gephardt Institute’s Civic Scholars and Fellows doing in the evening when they’re not actively pursuing community and social impact? The answers are every bit as interesting and diverse as the students who offer them.   For Demarion Delaney, a St. Louis Fellow, time away from work means time working on the “two man whole.” […]

Alumni Spotlight: Burton transforming education and philanthropy

For Ryan Burton, working at the intersections of education, philanthropy, and community development helped land him a spot at Harvard.   Burton is a candidate in the Doctor of Education Leadership program, which utilizes a cohort model taught by faculty from three different Harvard schools and is designed for those pursuing vocations in systems-level leadership in […]

Alumni Spotlight: Underwood charts journey from WashU to the White House

From her undergraduate origins at WashU to her role with the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy team in San Francisco, Karin Underwood’s civic journey is a powerful example of a life dedicated to civic engagement. Each experience has served as an impactful cornerstone that paved her way to the White House and […]

Fellows supporting St. Louis, building civic skills through local organizations

“It takes time to heal from the trauma of gun violence,” Dr. LJ Punch, the founder of the Bullet Related Injury Clinic, told St. Louis Public Radio at the end of 2022.   “Unfortunately, in St. Louis, bullet-related injury is endemic,” Punch said. “It brings up all the other traumas that you didn’t get the chance […]

Gephardt staff share institute’s best practices with colleagues around nation

This month, a group of Gephardt Institute staff and WashU Votes leadership traveled to Boston, Mass. for the annual Civic Learning and Democratic Engagement Meeting (CLDE).   The annual conference is hosted by NASPA Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education and is designed to convene diverse stakeholders committed to advancing democracy through student preparedness for engaged […]

St. Louis Fellows’ first days on the job

The 2023 St. Louis Fellows—the largest group ever, with 33 students representing the WashU Classes of 2024, 2025 and 2026—began their summer internships with 29 organizations in the St. Louis region at the beginning of June. Their internships involve analyzing data about marginalized populations, meeting with local officials about legislation, working with patients with Alzheimer’s and […]