WashU Makes Undergrad Education More Accesssible, SIUE Planning New $105M Health Sciences Facility, And 2023 Class of 'INNO Under 25' Entrepreneurial Opportunity In St. Louis
Not rendering correctly? View this email as a web page here
NEW "NO-LOAN" PROGRAM AT WASHU MAKES UNDERGRAD EDUCATION MORE ACCESSIBLE
At Washington University in St. Louis, all undergraduate students who receive a financial aid package will no longer need student loans. The university is instituting a no-loan program, replacing federal student loans with university grant funds and scholarships.
“We want Washington University to be an option for any talented student regardless of their background, and we do not want finances to be a barrier,” said Ronné Turner, Vice Provost for Admissions and Financial Aid at the university, an executive-level member of the GSL Chair’s Council.
A planned 115,000-square-foot health sciences building at Southern Illinois University - Edwardsville will combine the university’s School of Nursing and School of Pharmacy, providing new classrooms, labs, study areas, and more. The facility will help skill the metro’s health workers as changes loom over the sector, called out in the STL 2030 Jobs Plan as critical for economic growth.
“I want to be clear: the investment goes well beyond our university,” said James Minor, Chancellor of SIUE, a GSL Investor Council member. “We see this as an investment in the region.”
2023 CLASS OF ‘INNO UNDER 25’ EXEMPLIFIES ENTREPRENEURIAL OPPORTUNITY IN ST. LOUIS
St. Louis INNO has recognized five of the metro’s most ambitious young thinkers and doers as part of its 2023 class of Inno Under 25. Focused on areas from financial literacy to geospatial intelligence, these young innovators have the potential to make St. Louis — and the world — a better place. “The motivation, connection, and support I feel in St. Louis have yet to be matched by another city,” said winner Helen Telahun.
A Portland, Maine-based company has chosen St. Louis to house its research and development hub, thanks to the metro’s known expertise in plant science and agtech. Running Tide, a carbon-removal startup, is housed locally in BRDG Park at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center — a GSL Investor Council member — and was named to the latest agtech cohort of the Wells Fargo Innovation Incubator.
PIVOT BIO EXPANDS WITH NEW ST. LOUIS PRODUCTION FACILITY
Pivot Bio Inc. has opened a new 48,000-square-foot production facility in Hazelwood, Mo., expanding its presence in St. Louis, already a key hub for the company. A developer and manufacturer of climate friendly alternatives for synthetic crop fertilizers, California-based Pivot Bio sites St. Louis’ strength in agtech — a STL 2030 Jobs Plan growth sector — as imperative to its business.
$82M PLANNED INVESTMENT WILL TRANSFORM DOWNTOWN’S CHEMICAL BUILDING
Another historic building in Downtown St. Louis will get a makeover, led by Campo Architecture & Interior Design, in partnership with Beechwood Pinnacle Hotels and InterMountain Management. Developers will transform the 127-year-old Chemical Building at Eighth and Olive streets into a 240-room, dual-branded Marriott hotel. Data suggests that Downtown St. Louis’ hotel market is one of the top in the country, and billions of dollars in new, nearby development added to its potential.
“Downtown is having a resurgence and we are encouraged by the interest and investment from experienced national developers,” Neal Richardson, CEO of St. Louis Development Corp., said in a statement. “Reactivating vacant buildings in the heart of our city will help attract more visitors and provide additional amenities for residents.”
“EXPERIENCE ST. LOUIS” HELPS EXECS GET TO KNOW THE METRO
A program from FOCUS St. Louis, a GSL member, helps executives and senior leaders new to the metro assimilate, network, and understand the region. The next two-day “Experience St. Louis: The Gateway to the Region's Pulse,” takes place Oct. 12 and 13.
$10M IN GRANTS WILL TRANSFORM ST. LOUIS NEIGHBORHOODS
The City of St. Louis' Community Development Administration recently announced the final round of awards for its Neighborhood Transformation Grant, investing $10 million in the future of nearly 30 projects. "Through these grants, the City of St. Louis is investing in the future, fostering development that is rooted in equity, sustainability, and community collaboration," said Mayor Tishaura O. Jones.
The Boeing Company, an executive-level member of the GSL Chair’s Council, has won a four-year, $70.5 million contract with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. Nearly 20% of the work it will do to develop and test a hypersonic missile interceptor will take place in the St. Louis metro.
MESSENGER: ST. LOUIS HAS “PUT OUT THE WELCOME MAT” FOR IMMIGRANTS
For former Afghan interpreters and Marines who served in Afghanistan, St. Louis offers an affordable, accessible, and welcoming region in which to assimilate. “International migration to St. Louis is the bright spot in our growth,” said GSL CEO Jason Hall. “There is a lot of passion around the issue among our members.”
St. Louis artists and leaders will welcome an international symbol of hope and humanity to the metro Sunday, Oct. 1. Little Amal, a 12-foot-tall puppet of a 10-year-old Syrian refugee girl that will have traveled around 11,000 miles before the end of her journey, visits the Gateway Arch National Park to continue a conversation about immigration.
Calling all designers and artists! Created in 2006 by Young Dip and Tatum Polk, 314 Day brings St. Louis together and garners widespread participation. This year, the 314 Day Foundation and STLMade will commission a local artist to develop a 314 Day design to commemorate the day in 2024. Share the details at the link below.
