For much of high school, Savannah Gannaway figured she would work after graduation at the gas station five doors down from her house in Fair Play, a town of 600 in southwest Missouri.
There was no money for college, and no expectation of it either. Gannaway lived with her father, who had dropped out of school and worked as a garbage collector before an injury landed him on disability. None of her siblings went to college.
This month, though, the 20-year-old will receive an associate degree in early childhood education, a credential that will bump her from hourly to salaried employee, at higher pay, at the preschool where she works. She’s considering a bachelor’s degree next.
A big reason she’s on a sturdier path is her career adviser, who was installed at Fair Play High School through a program started by billionaire investment banker Byron Trott. Gannaway’s adviser, Unity Seay, helped her find jobs, tap a state program that pays community college tuition and weather rough patches—such as when juggling a full-time job with school almost pushed her to drop out.