An interview with Elise ‘Leesy’ Schweich, who founded the
Springboard to Learning more than 40 years ago.

By Deb Peterson of the St. Louis Post Dispatch

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Do you still serve only the St. Louis Public Schools?

No. We serve public, parochial, independent and special-needs schools. We are in the city, St. Louis County and Illinois.

What do the teachers do?

We have specialists in the cultures of other lands and in the arts, sciences and humanities. When we were a young organization, I was contacted by the spouses of many people from other cultures whose husbands or wives were teaching at Washington University. They wanted to teach children here about their native cultures. That expanded what we did enormously.

Did your husband ever get involved with Springboard?

Oh, yes, he would come into the schools and show off some of the treasures we acquired on our travels. The kids really enjoyed having Joe Henry - which is what I called him - come in, and they would often know who he was from the photographs I would bring in from our trips.

Are you proud of Springboard?

Yes, I am very proud of the organization that it has become. And I am so fortunate that some of the young people who were served by Springboard still remember me. I got some very nice notes on my birthday (which was Jan. 30).