Webster Athletes Help to Shape a Child's Future

ST. LOUIS - Webster University Athletics has partnered with UrbanFUTURE, a St. Louis-based organization, to team up Gorlok athletes as tutors with students at Froebel Elementary School in the St. Louis Public School District.

The partnership with UrbanFUTURE first began when Diane Cooper, assistant professor in the School of Education, referred the program to athletic director Tom Hart. After contact with UrbanFUTURE was made, it was determined that the Webster student/athletes would work with Froebel fourth and fifth graders to improve their reading and math skills. Training sessions were scheduled for the baseball, softball, and men's and women's tennis teams, and mentoring began in January.

The individual athletes will work with one to three Froebel students for one hour, for five consecutive weeks. Webster athletes will mentor a total of 15 weeks, with a five-week sessions for three sets of Webster teams. Golf, men's and women's soccer and volleyball are currently working with students. Men's and women's basketball, and men's and women's cross-country and track will mentor the final five weeks.

While the program is strictly voluntary for Webster athletes, it is believed that close to all of the athletes available during the 15-week program will wind up involved before the period ends.

Dominic DeVasto (JR, St. John Vianney HS), a men's soccer player currently mentoring a Froebel fifth-grader said, "This is an opportunity to give back a little, just as many of us were given time by coaches and parents to further our athletic skills. Hopefully, we can help increase these students' math skills in a similar way, which could be much more important in the long run."

UrbanFUTURE started as an after-school mentoring program in 1998 in the Fox Park Neighborhood of St. Louis city. Its mission was to help students succeed through 'character formation, academic growth, and career preparation.' In 2001, they partnered with Fanning Middle School in the Tower Grove area of St. Louis, and since have expanded into additional elementary schools as they have developed various new programs aimed at accomplishing their mission. Numerous corporate partnerships have blossomed as well.

To learn more about UrbanFUTURE, or volunteer as a mentor, visit: http://www.urbanfuturestl.org/

Courtesy Webster University sports information