On a beat like economic mobility, few data points are more eye-catching than a local nonprofit—one seeking to uplift women in St. Louis, specifically—saying that graduates of its programming are making tens of thousands more dollars each year, on average, than before their participation.
Rung for Women boasts just that. The nonprofit aimed at closing the gender wealth gap and “inspiring all women to climb the economic opportunity ladder” has served 700 women in St. Louis, graduating its eighth cohort in March, a spokesperson says. It’s aimed at women who make $50,000 annually or less. Of that eighth cohort, Rung says 71 percent have gotten a raise, promotion, or new job. That all adds up to an average salary increase just a few dollars shy of $22,600.
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Rung trains women in five distinct career pathways, while also providing career coaching and a support network. Leslie Gill, Rung for Women’s president and CEO, lists a number of ways Rung helps graduates attain career gains: coaching as they pivot to jobs that pay better, with room for growth; support through a community of like-minded peers; and simple confidence boosting.
Other amenities for cohort members help, too.
“We provide mental health support—so, two full-time counselors—exercise, and just a community of both members and staff who are trying to help meet people where they are and support them on their journey, and not doing the work for them,” Gill says. “I think that’s the most important distinction in our work, is that we are not case managers. We know that women have everything that they need to be successful. We’re just helping them channel that inner person that maybe has gotten lost along the way.”
Kyra Jefferson entered Rung’s first cohort at a time of great personal upheaval: Her mother died even as she was going through a divorce. She tells SLM that the application deadline was the day of her mother’s funeral.
“For me, I had always been the person that took care of my family, mother, sister, all of those fun things,” Jefferson says. “We’re always so much to people around us, and sometimes we just need the help and support for ourselves.”
Since graduating from Rung, Jefferson got two promotions, left her job in the nonprofit sector for a community banking role, and then returned to her job as a senior director at her previous employer, which focuses on financial advice and homeownership. Jefferson says her salary has more than doubled.
Although she says her cohort had more than 100 people, everyone got personalized coaching, which she says helped her understand her worth.
“I of course, increased my income, but it’s definitely not just about the income increase for me,” she says. “The salary is measurable, but the confidence is really what made everything possible.”
When women advance in their careers, she observes, it does more than just help them make more money. “When one woman really grows professionally and financially, her family benefits, her workplace benefits, her community benefits, and eventually she’s in a position to … help other women,” she says.
Ebony Hartfield, a member of the ninth Rung for Women cohort, is still going through her journey of upward mobility. After working in the financial sector, she pivoted to education, where she says she works with heroic, dedicated educators. She calls them “Avengers” dedicated to mentoring and growing young people and calls Rung’s support a “bodacious blessing.”
She came to Rung out of necessity, recognizing the need to change career paths and learn new skills. She now has a certification in data analytics, which she says is one of the most difficult tracks Rung offers. Given her background in finance, she says the skills she learned in her data analytics coursework aren’t all new to her.
“When I take a look at my employment history and in the jobs that I’ve done and the tasks that I performed, I already have experience in data analytics, I’ve already done the work,” she says. “It wasn’t necessarily titled in that particular capacity, but I do have data analytics experience. Now, I just have even more.”
These days, she’s working on “soft skills” to add on to her technical knowledge. After earning her data analytics certification, she’s now in the “career development” phase, which also includes meetings with potential employers. Both of those aspects take around seven months, she says.
“I want other women to know that you are worth the challenge,” she says. “You are worth the leap of faith. Don’t let fear hold you back from investing in yourself. When you show up, Rung shows up.”
Why It Matters: Rung for Women boasts a major boost to the economic mobility of women who go through its ranks. According to internal data the nonprofit provided to SLM, its last six cohorts have seen 70 salary increases (totalling more than $1.4 million) averaging $20,381 each. That amounts to an average salary gain of 53 percent. And more recent graduates show bigger jumps in salary, with 24 increases for the eighth cohort alone. Those women have seen a collective $540,000 in annual salary gains, an average of 71 percent, or $22,592, each.
Many Rung members are Black women, including 70 percent of cohort members in 2024, according to its 2025 annual report. Research suggests that wealth gaps in the U.S. are particularly acute along racial lines. “For every $1 of wealth owned by a white household, Black own 23 cents and Latinx households own 19 cents,” says the National Women’s Law Center.
Rung has refined the five tracks it offers participants (IT support, digital marketing, advanced manufacturing, biomanufacturing, and project management) to provide in-demand, transferable skills. As Gill puts it, the organization can play a crucial role in matching talent to demand on the employer side.
“St. Louis, as a region, we’re at a really interesting inflection point,” she says. “We have job seekers who are willing and ready to work, and then we have employers who are saying they can’t find talent. I just think there’s a missing link in terms of the space around matchmaking.
“We have a really strong ecosystem of training partners and providers who can help low-wage earners and people who maybe have a difficult path past move into new career opportunities.”
What’s next: Rung’s 10th cohort started in March and is in the midst of training and coursework. Gill says Rung is also in the process of piloting a program called “Upward with AI,” a shorter, virtual course for women who want to stay at their current job and incorporate AI into what they do, learning to add the “human essence” to AI in the workplace instead of fearing how it might replace them.
