LEAD STL

What LEAD STL does

LEAD STL is a St. Louis-based nonprofit organization founded in 2004 (originally as Cultural Leadership and rebranded to LEAD STL in 2024) that partners with middle and high school students in the St. Louis region to build empathy, bridge social divides, and develop the courage to lead social change. The organization operates three interconnected programs — Cultural Leadership, Emerging Changemakers, and School & Community Partnerships — delivered through immersive learning experiences, community engagement, and 'Courageous Conversations' that are centered in the Black and Jewish experiences and their intersections with other identities, addressing racism, antisemitism, and other forms of injustice.

The curriculum is delivered in person through direct school partnerships in the St. Louis region and supplemented by corporate volunteer participants (including Purina, KPMG, and Ameren) who engage with students via the Courageous Conversations format. There is no proprietary technology, software platform, or AI component; the underlying delivery model is human-facilitated experiential education supported by structured reflective practices and social-emotional learning frameworks.

LEAD STL is funded through donations (via a Kindful donation page) and volunteer support rather than commercial revenue, with a headcount of 1–10 staff and no parent company, subsidiaries, or disclosed funding rounds. It is governed by a Board of Directors and reports no commercial pricing tiers, contracts, or recurring revenue streams. The geographic operating footprint is regional, limited to Missouri, with no global expansion claims and no disclosed partners outside the St. Louis metro area.

Name

LEAD STL

Legal name

LEAD STL

Website

https://culturalleadership.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Development & Social Justice Education

NAICS

Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Human Rights Organizations (813311)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Mentoring & Positive Youth Development Nonprofits (BPAGADAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Peer Support, Mentoring & Student Leadership (SEL) (EDAKAMAO), Student Mentoring & Peer Support Programs (EDAJALAL)

Keywords

• Youth leadership development
• Social justice education
• Community-based learning
• Empathy training programs
• Nonprofit youth services

Headquarters

HQ city

St Louis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

LEAD STL is a nonprofit organization that designs and delivers youth leadership and social-justice education programs for middle and high school students in the St. Louis region. Its core offerings include the Cultural Leadership immersive learning program, the Emerging Changemakers community-engagement program, and School & Community Partnerships, which together use curricula, community-leader engagement, and facilitated Courageous Conversations to build empathy, leadership, and social-emotional skills.

Product overview

LEAD STL is a nonprofit youth organization offering three interconnected programs: Cultural Leadership, Emerging Changemakers, and School & Community Partnerships. These programs work together as a holistic model that equips young people to lead meaningful, lasting social change through immersive learning experiences, community engagement, and courageous conversations about racism, antisemitism, and other forms of injustice.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Cultural Leadership: Immersive learning experiences centered in Black and Jewish experiences, building empathy, leadership, and social-emotional skills
• Emerging Changemakers

Products and services

• Cultural Leadership Program
• Emerging Changemakers Program
• School & Community Partnerships

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• PurinaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPurina volunteers participate in LEAD STL's Courageous Conversations program, engaging with students on topics of social justice and leadership. The partnership provides corporate volunteer support for youth programming.
• KPMGminorGTM or Marketing PartnerKPMG volunteers contribute to LEAD STL's Courageous Conversations program, bringing professional perspectives to youth discussions on social justice and equity topics.
• AmerenminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAmeren employees volunteer with LEAD STL's Courageous Conversations, supporting youth engagement in social justice education through corporate volunteerism.
• Schools and Educational InstitutionscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLEAD STL partners with middle and high schools in the St. Louis region to deliver youth leadership and social justice programming. These school partnerships are central to the organization's mission of empowering students.
• Community Organizations and Local LeaderscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLEAD STL creates authentic partnerships with community organizations and local leaders to develop immersive learning experiences that promote dialogue, build understanding, and inspire action toward social change.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• MENTOR (National Mentoring Partnership): National organization advancing youth mentoring. Comparable to LEAD STL in its youth-leadership/mentoring focus, though operates as an umbrella network rather than direct service provider.
• Anti-Defamation League (ADL): Organization combating antisemitism and all forms of hate, with extensive K–12 education programming. Directly comparable to LEAD STL's anti-antisemitism and social-justice education work for youth.
• Learning for Justice (Southern Poverty Law Center): Provides free K–12 classroom resources on anti-bias, SEL, and social justice. Comparable to LEAD STL in mission focus (anti-racism, justice education) and target audience (schools and youth).
• Facing History & Ourselves: National nonprofit providing youth-facing curriculum on identity, racism, antisemitism, and civic responsibility. Highly comparable to LEAD STL's intersectional, dialogue-driven SEL approach, but operates at a national scale.

Broad incumbents

• YWCA USA: National nonprofit focused on racial justice, empowerment, and anti-violence, including youth programming. Comparable in mission emphasis on racism and equity, but at significantly larger scale.
• National 4-H Council: National youth-development organization focused on leadership, citizenship, and life skills. Comparable as a broad incumbent in positive youth development and leadership training.
• Big Brothers Big Sisters of America: Large, established youth mentoring nonprofit. Comparable as a broad incumbent in the youth-mentoring space where LEAD STL operates, but with a national affiliate model rather than a single-region focus.
• Boys & Girls Clubs of America: Large national youth-development organization. Comparable as a broad incumbent delivering youth leadership and SEL programming, though with much broader programmatic scope than LEAD STL.

Emerging players

• Close Up Foundation: Youth civic engagement nonprofit delivering immersive programs on democracy, identity, and current issues. Comparable in its experiential, dialogue-based youth leadership model, though focused more on civic than racial-justice themes.
• Born This Way Foundation: Foundation co-founded by Lady Gaga focused on youth mental health and kindness. Adjacent peer given its emphasis on youth well-being and leadership, but with a different thematic lens than LEAD STL.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/leadstlouis
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/leadstl
• Instagraminstagram.com/lead.stl

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about LEAD STL