EPISODE #23 | Valerie Groth – ​How and Why I Started a School

In this conversation with Val you’ll be inspired to take action on your BIG idea. This is a heart warming and motivating episode.
In this episode with Val we dive into:

– What Val’s motivation was to start a school that focused on social and emotional learning and trauma-informed care
– The process of actually starting a school
– How students came to be at Ryan Banks Academy
– How she came to be on the Ellen Show
– PLUS MUCH MORE

More About Valerie Groth
A social entrepreneur and experienced nonprofit executive, Val is passionate about working with organisations whose missions lie at the intersection of innovation, impact, and purpose.  After formerly working as a school social worker, she then served as founder and CEO of Ryan Banks Academy, a nonprofit named after a former student of hers who was lost to gun violence and which focuses on mental health, trauma-informed care, and providing holistic support to students and their families.

With Master’s degrees in Social Work and Educational Leadership, Val is also a certified life coach where she works with social workers, founders, educators, and other visionaries who wish to use their skills to make the world a better place.  She is also an international speaker and the author of the book The Power of the Possible: The Dire State of Inner City Education and One Woman’s Revolution to Fix It, and recently completed the manuscript for her second book, a fictional thriller novel centred around social justice. 

Val has been honoured to receive accolades such as being chosen as 2023 Alumna of the Year at her MSW alma mater, being a featured guest on The Ellen DeGeneres Show for her work at Ryan Banks, being featured in the I Am Chicago campaign, as well as in various media features ranging from the Chicago Tribune to CBS and NBC.

You can reach Val here:
[email protected]
https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeriegroth/
valeriegroth.com
Val on The Ellen Show