Event Agenda
Wednesday, April 15
3:00 PM
Arrival & Check-in
Guest arrivals at Residence Inn – Clayton
4:00 PM - 5:30 PM
Affinity Group Connections
Location: Program: Discovery Ball Room
Development: 1st Floor Library
Boards, Development & Marketing, and Program teams meet for conversation and brainstorming
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Welcome Reception
Transportation by bus will be provided from the Residence Inn – Clayton
Hosted at Hope Ignites St. Louis with food, cocktails, and networking
Thursday, April 16
📸 Headshot Station Available All Day!
Look out for our professional headshot station throughout Thursday. Location:
Pre-Event Space
6:00 AM - 8:30 AM
Breakfast
Complimentary hot breakfast served at the Residence Inn – Clayton
8:30 AM - 10:00 AM
Leading the Next Chapter Together
Location: Clayton Ballroom
State of the organization + panel led by Hope Ignites President & CEO Kristin Ostby
10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Program Innovation and Impact
Location: Clayton Ballroom
Led by Lauren Schwartze from Bellwether Education Partners, this is an interactive and engaging session that will explore impactful approaches to Hope Ignites programming through a showcase of innovative and high-quality affiliate work. All attendees are invited to join this session.
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Lunch
Location: Discovery Ballroom
Group lunch
1:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Leading Excellent Teams in a Shifting Landscape
Location: Clayton Ballroom
Leadership session led by Colette Kopon (Network Board Member, Attorney)
2:30 PM - 4:00 PM
Learning from Our Peers: Affiliate Best Practices
Three concurrent breakout sessions.
Programming: Discovery Ballroom
Preparing Scholars for Post-secondary Success led by James Williams and the Mission Effectiveness Team
Marketing & Advancement: Clayton Ballroom
Keep, Grow & Reconnect: Donor Engagement Strategies led by Bill Fronczak, VP of Advancement; Dana Nichols, Senior Director of Donor Engagement; and Jenny Starkey, Senior Director of Marketing and Communications, Hope Ignites
Network & Board Leadership: 1st Floor Library
Strengthening Our Connections: Network and Affiliate Board Members led by Kristin Ostby, President & CEO, Hope Ignites
5:30 PM - 8:30 PM
Excellence Awards
Reception, dinner, and awards celebration honoring outstanding leadership and impact across the Hope Ignites Network.
Transportation will be provided to and from the Residence Inn – Clayton
View Awards Details & Recipients →
9:00 PM - 10:30 PM
Excellence Awards: After Party
Location: Residence Inn – Clayton: The Clayton Ballroom
DJ spinning tunes while folks celebrate the evening's achievements
Friday, April 17
6:00 AM - 8:00 AM
Breakfast
Complimentary hot breakfast served at the Residence Inn – Clayton
8:00 AM - 9:00 AM
Prompt, Play, Reflect: AI in Our Daily Work
Location: Clayton Ballroom
Led by Pete Schweiss, Hope Ignites Director of Technology Services
Hands-on sessions led by Ashley Scoville, Gigi Burgos, Erin Beezley, and Xiá Simmons
AI is already part of the tools we use every day — and this session is about learning to make it actually work for us. Through hands-on scenarios using Microsoft Copilot, we'll work together in small groups to practice prompting, reflect on what we learned, and leave with the confidence to keep experimenting on our own.
Hands On Materials →
9:00 AM - 10:30 AM
The Future of Work and Our Mission
Location: Clayton Ballroom
A panel discussion on the trends, skills, and implications for scholars and the network
Moderator: Laura Stevens, Senior Director of Organizational Impact, Hope Ignites
Panelists:
Misty Jones, President & CEO, Stanford Health Care Tri-Valley
Bob Olwig, VP, Global Partner Alliances at World Wide Technology, Inc.
Jonathan Solomon, Partnership Director, Mainstay
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Lunch & Departures
Location: Clayton Ballroom
Grab-and-go lunch; conference concludes
