There’s this pervasive idea in American culture that everyone has the same opportunities to achieve success. Well, that’s simply not true. Sure, all the options might be on the table for everyone, but an option doesn’t become an opportunity until it’s accessible. And countless Eastern Missouri young people and their families can’t even see all their options—let alone get access to them.

The “why” is complex, and after working with young people for more than a century, we can point to many interconnected hardships: poverty, toxic stress, segregation based on race and class, substandard housing, insufficient heath care and education, and crime and violence. All of these threaten to limit a young person’s future.