In honor of Education Week, Great Jobs KC worked alongside Good Morning America to create a once-in-a-lifetime surprise for 150 newly awarded Scholars of our $50,000 KC Scholars Scholarship. Two of Great Jobs KC’s Postsecondary Network Partners made this event possible, the University of Missouri-Kansas City and Kansas City Art Institute, which provided scholarships for these 105 students, totaling $2.5 million.
Our soon-to-be awarded Scholars were asked to meet at Union Station’s Science City for this surprise. Eager Scholars, joined by their closest family or friends, were featured on Good Morning America, where they were given words of encouragement from Great Jobs KC’s CEO Earl Martin Phalen and Good Morning America host Steve Osunsami. Scholars were shocked to see surprise guests including born and raised Kansas Citians Eric Stonestreet and Tech Nine during the filming. Both celebrities shared some words of wisdom that led into the main event, where Tech Nine surprised and rapped the news that each Scholar would be going home with a $50,000 scholarship.
Watch the Full Good Morning America Feature
Want to see the full surprise and hear from the Scholars themselves? Watch the heartwarming feature on Good Morning America to witness the joy and inspiration that filled Union Station that day. Watch now!
Great Jobs KC is a Kansas City-based nonprofit that provides access to college scholarships and tuition-free job training, along with job placement assistance for young people from low- and modest-income families in the metropolitan area, providing a pipeline of talent for a strong regional workforce. Please join us on our mission for economic independence for all. For more information, visit www.greatjobskc.org.
The Kauffman Foundation’s generous grant helps Great Jobs KC get closer to its $100M goal, supporting 50,000 Kansas City residents with job training and education.
The Kauffman Foundation’s generous grant helps Great Jobs KC get closer to its $100M goal, supporting 50,000 Kansas City residents with job training and education.
Great Jobs KC Northwest Missouri State University and the University of Saint Mary partner with
Stephanie Underwood serves as Chief Financial Officer at Great Jobs KC, where she leads the organization’s financial strategy in support of its mission to create economic mobility through education and workforce opportunities. With more than 17 years of experience in nonprofit finance, Stephanie brings deep expertise in financial planning, budgeting, forecasting, and compliance. She is passionate about using her career as a platform to serve and support mission-driven organizations, helping them maximize impact through strong financial stewardship.
Prior to joining Great Jobs KC, Stephanie served as Chief Financial Officer for Griffith Centers, a behavioral and mental health organization, where she oversaw financial operations for a multi-million-dollar organization spanning residential, educational, and community-based programs. She also spent nearly a decade as Vice President of Accounting Services at NFP Partners, providing CFO-level leadership to nonprofit organizations across the country, with a focus on strategic growth, audit readiness, and governance.
Outside of her professional role, Stephanie volunteers her time at her church and serves on the board of a local nonprofit. She is known for her collaborative leadership style and her commitment to aligning financial strategy with mission impact. She holds a Master of Science in Accounting and is proud to be a first-generation college graduate.
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As the Chief Operating Officer, Jimmy Swift is responsible for overseeing our core programs, our adult workforce development program, Great Jobs KC tuition-free job training, and our KC Scholars Scholarship Program, which includes 11th Grade Traditional Scholarships and Adult Learner Scholarships.
Jimmy has a career in education that spans more than 25 years and is built around supporting and improving the performance of career training programs and leading the operations of degree-granting institutions. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in management and has served as Campus President, Vice President of Career Services, and Executive Director of various career schools.
Most recently, Jimmy served as the Vice President of PLA University at Phalen Leadership Academies, bringing access to job skill training to the parents and families of the Scholars served by Phalen Leadership schools across the country. Beyond his higher education experience, Jimmy serves as the Executive Board Chairman for Project Safety Net NY, a nonprofit community-based agency delivering a broad range of health, education, and prevention services to the New York Community. As the Chief Operating Officer for Great Jobs KC, he and his team are poised to make a substantial impact on the economic stability and future of Kansas City.
