Empowering Teens.
Equipping Adults.
Strengthening Systems.

Our first president, Frank Wyman, and campers

Wyman was founded in 1898 by a group of local businessmen to provide St. Louis youth time away from the city and the opportunity to experience life in a rural setting. Our camp soon attracted a great deal of attention and served as the birthplace for some of Wyman’s most successful youth development approaches that are now offered to young people in St. Louis and across the country.

Wyman has gone through many evolutions and changes in its over a century of programming. The original “Frank Wyman Outing Farm” has evolved from a place to give children a week of fresh air, nourishing food, and fun, into “Camp Wyman” with a focus on outdoor and environmental education. Now, Wyman is an organization that provides year-round support and programming for St. Louis teens and teens around the country.

Wyman’s continued growth and evolution has benefited from the leadership of many over the years, including Frank Wyman, Prudence and Price Tillery, Melvin and Edmonia Dillon, David Hilliard, and current President and CEO Claire Wyneken.

Through our programs, young people create consistent, positive relationships with adults who help them build life skills, develop a positive sense of self, and make healthy connections with others and the community. They become leaders, focus on the future, and give back to their communities. To learn more about our programs, please click here.

To learn more about the land Wyman is on, please view our Land Acknowledgment.

Mission, Vision, and Beliefs

Our mission is to empower teens from economically disadvantaged circumstances to lead successful lives and build strong communities.

We envision a day when all young people in America will thrive in learning, work, and life.

At Wyman, we believe that every young person

Has the talent and potential to succeed and lead, regardless of life circumstances.
Needs healthy connections with caring adults who empower them to share their voice and engage within their communities.
Deserves equitable opportunities and access to quality education, work, and life experiences – ensuring a better future and a better world.

Values

Youth-Centered | Relationships | Equity | Learning | Results

Youth-Centered. Teens own their success and create their futures – we are here to empower, support, guide, advocate, and celebrate. The world is ever-changing, and we adapt to remain reliable and relevant allies for teens. We stand with teens to break down barriers and inequities so they can build successful lives and know themselves as change agents in their lives and in the world.

Relationships. All our work gets done through relationships. Youth learn to develop and maintain healthy relationships. Through relationships, staff collaborate to actualize the mission. Healthy and constructive relationships with our partners and stakeholders contribute to the success of the youth and communities we serve. Our relationships are authentic, respectful, transparent, benefit from healthy conflict and diversity of thought, and foster trust and inclusion.

Equity. We commit to creating an environment that recognizes the different needs, experiences, and talents of each individual and ensuring that every teen and staff member has the opportunities and supports to feel confident bringing their whole self to Wyman and to achieve their very best. We commit to working with youth and community partners to dismantle the inequities that prevent our vision for youth from becoming a reality – a day when society will value and promote diversity, equity, and inclusion for all young people, allowing them to thrive in learning, work, and life.

Learning. As a learning organization, we measure what we do and use data to inform decisions, innovations, and improvement. We employ a continuous improvement process where we look to plan, do, learn, and adjust and lead by sharing knowledge with our peers and in the field. We demonstrate this value as an organization and as individuals.

Results. We exist to produce meaningful and lasting results. We measure and quantify our work in a way that we can track and report progress within and across teams and with stakeholders. As an organization, and as individuals, we calibrate and align our work to produce the desired results.

Strategy

Through research and 124 years of experience, we know that educational success, life and leadership skills, and healthy behaviors and relationships help teens thrive and contribute positively to their communities. To ensure that teens have equitable opportunities to achieve these outcomes, Wyman:

Empowers teens through strong, high-quality programs that help teens gain the tools and skills needed to succeed;
Equips adults through training designed to help adults build relationships with teens by creating engaging and empowering learning environments; and
Strengthens systems through deep, collaborative partnerships meant to create more equitable and transformational opportunities for youth.

In addition, we work to increase the effectiveness of the field by capturing and analyzing data, then sharing practices that can ignite innovation across the nation.

Board of Trustees

Wyman is governed by a Board of Trustees who have a passion for Wyman’s mission. Our Board monitors organizational performance, guides strategic initiatives, ensures long-range planning meets the needs of future generations, and oversees policies.

Board Leadership

Amy Berg
Chair

Jacqueline Davis-Wellington
Vice Chair

Kristin Poole
Treasurer

Laura Giokas
Secretary

View our full Board of Trustees list here.

Senior Management Team

To view the full Wyman Team, click here.

Recognition

Wyman is a proud partner of the United Way of Greater St. Louis and has been accredited by the Council on Accreditation since 2011.

Additional Recognition:

Better Business Bureau Accredited Charity
2022 Platinum Seal of Transparency from GuideStar
2021 What’s Right with the Region Honoree for the Teen Connection Project
St. Louis Post Dispatch’s Top Workplaces Honoree, 2022
Women in the Workplace: Employment Scorecard, Top Place for Women to Work Honoree, 2018 – 2021
St. Louis Business Journal’s Best Places to Work Honoree, 2015
NAACP Commitment to Education Award, 2015
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Distinguished Youth Organization Award, 2015
Superintendent’s Choice Award, University City School District, 2014
Council on Accreditation’s Innovative Practices Award, 2013
Social Impact Exchange S&I 100 Index of Top Non-Profits Creating Social Impact, 2012
City of St. Louis Community Service Award, 2011
Missouri House of Representatives Resolution: In recognition of Wyman’s century of service to the region’s at-risk teens, 2011
St. Louis County’s BRAVO Award
World of Children Award from the former Progressive Youth Center (now Epworth)
Lions’ and Kiwanis’ International’s Leadership and Service Award