Gateway CEO, Troy, IL (2026)

10/12/2026

At the heart of Gateway CEO are relationships. ❤️

One of the most important parts of our year-long experience is building relationships that help our students grow—not just as entrepreneurs, but as individuals and leaders. Two groups play such a vital role in that journey: our parents and our mentors. Both bring unique perspectives, encouragement, and support to our students, and building connections within each group matters just as much as the relationships they build with our students.

As our program continues to grow, we always want to ask ourselves, How can we do this better?

A few years ago, following our second year, parents shared something simple but meaningful: “I wish I had met some of the other parents earlier.” We listened! The following fall, we hosted our first Parent Happy Hour, creating an opportunity for parents to connect with one another as their students navigated the CEO experience. It was such a great addition to our program that we’ve continued the tradition ever since.

Last year, we recognized a similar opportunity with our mentors. With more people than expected willing to invest their time and experience in our students, we wanted to create space for them to learn more about the program, connect with the team leading our mentor experience, and build relationships with one another. Our first Mentor Meetup was a great success!

So this year, we thought… why not bring everyone together in one evening?

Thanks to the generosity of Shannon Hogg, an incredible Gateway CEO supporter who has welcomed students for site visits, served as a mentor, and is also an alumni parent, we gathered at the beautiful Town Square Terrace in Highland. In addition, this night was only possible through the planning by Board Members Teresa Reiniger and Anna Harpstreit, who are leads for our Gateway CEO Mentor Program. Our mentors joined us at 4:00 p.m., followed by our parents at 5:30 p.m.

The result? An incredible evening of connecting, sharing, brainstorming, and simply enjoying one another.

We are so grateful for the people who surround our students and believe in what we’re building through Gateway CEO. When parents, mentors, and community supporters have opportunities to connect with one another, we strengthen the very relationships that make this experience so meaningful.

Because building a business is part of the CEO experience—but building relationships is at the heart of it all.

Thank you, Shannon, for opening your beautiful space to us, and to every parent and mentor who continues to invest in our students and our program. And to our Board Members who consistently show up, build relationships, share their wisdom, and invest their time and energy into making Gateway CEO stronger—we are so grateful for you! It truly takes a community of people who care to create an experience like this for our students. 💙

10/09/2026

From ideas to action… and we're just getting started! Gateway CEO is a year-long experience designed to help students grow as leaders, develop their entrepreneurial mindset and learn what it takes to turn ideas into reality.

We're intentional about the experiences we create and the milestones along the way. And one of the biggest milestones of the first semester? The Class Business!

As we shared last week, our Class of 2027 has been hard at work developing a business venture from the ground up. This week, they reached an exciting milestone: their first group presentation to members of the Gateway CEO Board.

And they showed up READY! Students have several dress code options throughout the year, depending on the event, but every single student chose to come dressed in full business professional attire.

They worked together to build their Canva presentation, with each committee taking ownership of its area, including operations, day-of activities, concessions, sponsorships and raffle opportunities.

Behind those presentation slides are a LOT of moving pieces: approvals, insurance, setup logistics, sponsor relationships, logo management, timelines and so much more.

The students arrived early to prepare for their guests, and while there may have been a few nerves, they did an excellent job presenting their plan. Each committee handed off smoothly to the next before coming together to answer questions and hear feedback from our board members.

The questions were thoughtful. The advice was valuable. And the opportunity to present a real business venture to experienced community leaders? Priceless.

And guess what? THEY RECEIVED APPROVAL! Now the next phase begins: planning, timelines, coordination and EX*****ON.

Next week, students will begin working through the details that turn an approved plan into a real event. And soon, we'll be sharing a SAVE THE DATE, with registration opportunities opening in the next few weeks!

This is what hands-on learning looks like. Students are building confidence, practicing professionalism, learning to work as a team and discovering that entrepreneurship involves so much more than a great idea.

It takes preparation, communication, problem-solving, accountability and the willingness to take ownership.

We're proud of the progress this group is making—and excited for what's ahead!

Class of 2027, it's time to put that plan into action. Let's go!

10/06/2026

October is here—which means it’s time to squeeze in a few more golf swings before Midwest weather decides it’s done cooperating.

We’re excited to bring back one of our favorite Gateway CEO traditions:

Our 4th Annual Gateway CEO Golf Scramble
📅 Friday, October 23, 2026
📍 Oak Brook Golf Club
- Registration starts at 7am with Sh***un Start at 8am.

This isn’t just a morning on the greens. Gateway CEO creates entrepreneurial opportunities for young people across the Metro East and Greater St. Louis region—and this event helps make that possible.

Our annual golf scramble brings together business owners, professionals, community leaders and the people who believe in investing in the next generation. It’s a morning to play, connect, laugh, network and maybe talk a little trash about that one shot that definitely should have gone farther.

And if you’re a business owner or professional, sponsoring is a great way to get your business in front of a field of decision-makers while directly supporting the entrepreneurs coming up behind you.

Want to play? Register a team and enjoy a beautiful Midwest Friday on the course while making connections and meeting some of our Gateway CEO students along the way.

👉 Team Registration:
Team Registrations: https://forms.gle/D9sSdXeciasahecp7

👉 Sponsorship Opportunities. ⛳ Hole & course signage closes October 12. Every sponsorship level is available on a first-come basis. Sponsorship Opportunities: https://forms.gle/8sBzP7AQ3ARKavvs6

Have questions or need more information? Reach out to Marc Voegele at [email protected].

Come tee it up with us—and invest in the next generation while you're at it!

10/06/2026

I wish there were a way to capture what it looks like inside the room right now.

The chaos.
The moments of clarity.
The frustrations.
The “wait…what if we did THIS?” moments.
The verbal debates.
The thoughtful considerations.
The energy building.
The excitement.
The little wins that suddenly feel like BIG wins.

Because something is happening.

I'm watching committees form.
I'm watching small groups huddle around ideas.
I'm watching students make suggestions to the larger group.
I'm watching them challenge ideas, rethink things, work through problems and slowly—really slowly sometimes —watching it all come together.

This is the Class Business experience.

Our Class of 2027 has been charged with creating a real business venture from the ground up.

Not a hypothetical business plan.

A real one.

They are learning the ins and outs of developing a business plan, marketing, sponsorships, registration, budgeting, forecasting, vendor relationships, logistics and, ultimately, ex*****on.

And there is no perfect roadmap.

They have to figure some of this out together.

The goal is to create an event that serves our community well while generating enough profit to:

- Provide seed money for their second-semester individual businesses
- Re-invest back into the Gateway CEO program
- And hopefully have enough left over for our end-of-year work hard/play hard day!

Tomorrow, they take the next big step.

After weeks of wading through ideas, analyzing possibilities, tracking down dates, finding vendors, asking questions, making adjustments and putting a plan together, they will present their business venture to the Gateway CEO Board.

Will everything be perfect? Absolutely not. And that's kind of the point.

Because they are learning that building something requires communication, compromise, creativity, persistence, problem-solving and the willingness to keep going when the first idea doesn't work.

I'm incredibly proud watching them move from “What could we do?” to “Okay…here's what we're going to do.”

It's coming together. And we can't wait for you to hear more very soon!

10/05/2026

Another one of my favorite days in Gateway CEO! ❤️

We talk about DISC early in the year because understanding yourself—and understanding how other people communicate, work, make decisions and respond to challenges—is a huge part of becoming a great teammate and leader. We went super high level this year with anticipation for more discussion. But this year, we waited about six weeks before taking it to the next level with Board Chair Wendy Symer from WLS Consulting.

And I think the timing made all the difference. Wendy brought the DISC profiles to life with a hands-on exercise that helped our Class of 2027 really see how their differences show up in the way they work together.

Students divided into groups based on their highest DISC dimension and worked through a series of questions:
🔹 What are the strengths and weaknesses of our style?
🔹 What makes us who we are?
🔹 What are up to 10 words that describe us and help others understand us?
🔹 How might other personality styles experience us differently?
🔹 How should we approach each other when challenges or conflict arise?
🔹 What are our biggest takeaways?

Then came the fun part—each group presented what they discovered about themselves. There were a LOT of laughs, plenty of “aha!” moments and probably a little more truth-telling than some expected.

But underneath all of that was something really valuable: understanding. At six weeks into the year, and class business plans unfolding quickly, these students aren't just learning about four personality dimensions on a piece of paper. They're beginning to know each other. They're working together. They're making decisions. They're navigating differences. They're figuring out where they fit—and where they can contribute. And watching a student discover, “Ohhh…THIS is why I do that!” is pretty awesome.

We wrapped up the day with the Golden Rule: Treat people the way you want to be treated.

And then we took it one step further with the Platinum Rule: Treat others the way THEY want to be treated.

There is so much value in understanding you—your strengths, your tendencies, your blind spots, your “why.” But there is an entirely different level of leadership that comes when you take the time to understand others, too.

Because the best teams aren't made up of people who are all alike. They're made up of people who understand their differences, respect what each person brings and learn how to work together effectively. And that's bigger than building a business. That's learning how to navigate people, relationships, teams and whatever this life brings your way.

I believe one of the greatest gifts that comes out of the Gateway CEO experience is the confidence to understand who you are—and then have the courage to simply be yourself. And this group? We've got an equal mix of everything:
D-Dominance🔥 Leaders rising up and pushing us forward
I - Influential⚡ Energy and enthusiasm keeping the fun rolling
S - Steadiness 🤝 Steady teammates making sure everyone is included
C - Conscientious 📋 Plenty of detail to keep us from taking too much risk and keep us on task!

That's the beauty of a team. Our differences aren't the problem. They're part of what makes the team work.

Thank you, Wendy, for investing so much time, energy and heart into our Class of 2027. You have a way of making self-awareness practical, fun and something these students can actually use. And I think we walked out the door today with a whole lot more understanding—and a whole lot more team love.

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10/04/2026

What happens when you combine passion, persistence and a little bit of being a marketing nerd?

Gateway CEO students got a great lesson in entrepreneurship from Chad Mueller, a promoter, gym owner, founder and self-described “marketing nerd” who has built his businesses by staying curious, investing in himself and staying true to what he loves.

Chad comes from a family of entrepreneurs and has traveled the world, but today he's back in the St. Louis metro area building his brand through several ventures, including Fairtex Fight, Stand Up Fight Series, Maryville Muay Thai and All Saints Muay Thai Gym.

His entrepreneurial journey started much smaller. Chad began with virtually nothing, borrowing weights from his parents' house and slowly building his gym. Fifteen years later, he is celebrating the anniversary of that business—and it looks very different than it did in the beginning.

At one point, the business was focused on marketing to the “soccer mom” looking for a cardio fitness class. Today, Chad is developing professional fighters who compete internationally and helping bring new opportunities to the American market through Fairtex USA.

There were plenty of critics along the way who didn't think the pivot would work. Chad stayed with it anyway.

His message to our students was simple: when you stay true to what you're passionate about, you give yourself a much better chance at long-term success.

Chad also shared some of the investments he's made in himself, including significant business coaching and mentorship. He credits Alex Hormozi as a major influence in helping him think differently about building his businesses.

And the work ethic was real. His early days included 5:30 a.m. starts and 9 p.m. finishes. Today, after building systems around the business, he has created something very different—a business that can operate without requiring him to be there every waking hour.

Then came the marketing lesson. As our students prepare to launch their own class business, Chad challenged them to think about four things:

1️⃣ Get attention.
How are you going to get people to notice you?

2️⃣ Create an irresistible offer.
Give people a reason to engage. An “Enter to Win” can be more than a giveaway—it can be a way to capture emails or phone numbers and begin building a relationship.

3️⃣ Create interest with follow-up.
Don't disappear after someone doesn't win. Continue the conversation and give them another reason to engage.

4️⃣ Make an offer that makes sense.
The goal isn't simply to get attention. It's to turn that attention into action.

Chad also encouraged our students to learn the marketing tools available to them, explore platforms like GoHighLevel, consider starting a YouTube channel and even think about opportunities to white-label software or provide marketing services to other businesses.

For a group of 21 students currently trying to figure out how to get their own community event noticed, this was a timely conversation. Sometimes the best business advice is simply: learn how to get people's attention, give them a reason to care and then keep showing up.

Thank you, Chad, for investing your morning with Gateway CEO and for being so willing to share your story, your knowledge and your time with our students!

We appreciate leaders who don't just tell young entrepreneurs what to do—but are willing to help them figure it out.

09/25/2026

Accountability always matters! Thank you Tracy Bianco.

09/25/2026

What happens when 21 students, four schools and one big class business idea come together?

A whole lot of learning. And probably a few challenges along the way. The Gateway CEO Class of 2027 is actively working toward launching their class business in early December. This hands-on experience will challenge them to develop a business plan, market an event, work through logistics, manage registrations and sponsorships, explore additional revenue streams and ultimately bring a great community event to life.

And the stakes are real.

The students are working to generate seed money for their second-semester individual businesses, reinvest in the Gateway CEO program and create a well-earned work-hard/play-hard experience at the end of the school year. That's a lot for 21 young entrepreneurs to navigate together.

So we invited Tracy Bianco, leadership coach and speaker, to spend some time with our students and help them think about the leadership skills they'll need along the way.

Tracy focused on two important ideas: Optimism and Ownership.

Through the Oz Principle, students explored what it looks like to operate “below the line” when something goes wrong—covering your tail, finger pointing, ignoring or denying, saying “It's not my job,” or simply waiting for someone else to tell you what to do.

Then they flipped the conversation above the line.

What happened? No excuses. Just the facts.
What's my part in it? Even if I didn't cause the entire problem.
What can I do about it? Focus on what I can control.
What will I do next—and by when? That's where accountability begins.

These aren't just business lessons. They're life skills.

We also spent time talking about optimism and the 3-to-1 ratio—learning how intentionally adding positive thoughts can help redirect our brains when negative thoughts start taking over.

Students wrote down some of the negative thoughts they may find themselves thinking and then challenged themselves to come up with three positive thoughts to counter each one.

And then they shared those positive messages with each other.

It was a simple exercise, but a powerful reminder that we have some influence over the way we respond to challenges and the mindset we bring into a room.

This class business is going to stretch our students. There will be disagreements. There will be things that don't go according to plan. There will be moments when someone needs to step up, take ownership, communicate clearly, stay optimistic and figure out what comes next.

And that's exactly why we do this. We aren't just teaching students how to build a business. We're giving them a place to practice becoming the kind of people who can lead one.

Thank you, Tracy, for sharing your wisdom, energy and encouragement with our Class of 2027! We are grateful for the opportunity to give our students another chance to practice leadership before the stakes get much higher.

hi

09/25/2026

Gateway CEO students were fortunate to spend time with Dr. Arthur Langston of Integrity Spine and Joint Center in Troy, where he welcomed our students into his lobby and shared the story of how he got to where he is today.

And it wasn't a straight line.

Dr. Langston entered Lindenwood as an athlete and explored several career possibilities—from dentistry to becoming a PA to orthopedics—before ultimately earning his bachelor's degree and continuing on to Logan College of Chiropractic. His passion for sports and helping athletes led him to pursue a Master's in Sports Medicine as well.

After earning his doctorate, he intentionally gained experience working alongside several different doctors, including in pain management, podiatry and physical medicine. Each experience gave him another perspective and another skill set that would eventually help him build his own practice.

Today, students can see that growth throughout Integrity Joint & Spine, from one building to expanded services and continued growth.

But perhaps the most valuable part of the visit was hearing what Dr. Langston has learned along the way.

A few lessons he shared with our students:

📚 Understand the path before you start it. Doctorate programs don't always require a bachelor's degree, even though they may require specific courses. Talk to someone in the field and understand exactly what is required.

💼 Learn business, no matter what career you choose. Many professional careers eventually involve owning or operating a business. Understanding the business side can be just as important as understanding your profession.

🧾 Get an accountant. Understanding quarterly payments, taxes and business finances can save you from some very painful surprises later.

📣 You don't need a huge marketing budget. Dr. Langston built awareness through volunteering and small sponsorships within the racing community. Those relationships helped introduce people to his business and eventually build his customer base.

🔄 Don't be afraid to pivot. COVID forced many businesses to rethink how they operated. Dr. Langston leaned into social media and video to keep Integrity Joint & Spine connected with its audience and thriving through a difficult season.

🤖 Don't be afraid of AI. Learn how to use it as a tool to help your business, including brainstorming and creating social media content.

❤️ Find something you're passionate about. Money alone isn't enough to sustain you. When you genuinely care about the work you're doing, it doesn't always feel like work—and finding balance becomes especially important as life and family seasons change.

🗣️ Word of mouth is powerful. And it's okay to ask your customers for referrals.

Dr. Langston left our students with a reminder about being willing to adapt and flow around challenges, much like water.

That may be one of the biggest lessons of entrepreneurship: You can have a plan, but you also have to be willing to change the plan when life changes around you.

Thank you, Dr. Langston, for opening your doors, sharing your story and giving our students such an honest look at both the professional and business sides of your journey.

And thank you for your continued support of Gateway CEO as an investor and event sponsor. We are grateful for the way you continue to invest in the next generation of entrepreneurs and leaders!

Gateway CEO

10/12/2026

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