A Cincinnati-based nonprofit focused on preventing youth suicide across Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana has named a new chief executive officer.
Grant Us Hope recruited outgoing Kettering City School District superintendent L. Scott Inskeep — a member of its board of advisers — to become its new CEO on Sept. 1, following his retirement in August.
“This is an exciting time as I close this chapter of my career as superintendent while stepping into the role of CEO of Grant Us Hope,” Inskeep said. “I can think of no better way to continue the momentum of my life’s work than to be positively impacting our next generation in this new leadership capacity. I have been an advocate for the life-changing and life-saving work of Grant Us Hope for many years, and it means so much to now have the opportunity to lead the talented team responsible for furthering this tremendous and important mission to save young lives.”
Inskeep has been at the helm of Kettering City School District’s 12 schools, 1,000 employees and 8,000 students, serving as superintendent since 2014. He was Reading Community City School District’s superintendent for 12 years prior to that. Earlier in his career, he served as principal at various school levels in the Reading, Lockland and Mason City school districts.
Rebecca Reder has been serving as interim executive director and chief operating officer of Grant Us Hope since January, and will continue to serve the organization once Inskeep joins the team.
An experienced leader with multiple leadership training and education certifications, Inskeep is also current president of the Buckeye Association of School Administrators, Ohio’s school superintendent leadership organization. He has also served on the National School Boards Association and the Valley Association of School Administrators, has been an adjunct professor at both Wright State and Xavier universities and is the former president of both the Ohio Distance Learning Association and the Reading Chamber of Commerce.
Inskeep has been a member of the Grant Us Hope board of advisers since 2019.
He holds a master’s degree in educational leadership and administration from Xavier University, and bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Otterbein University.
Suicide is the second leading cause of death among youth ages 10-14.
Grant Us Hope works to prevent youth suicide by educating, engaging, and empowering young people, creating communities of leadership, advocacy and awareness around mental health and suicide prevention, ultimately changing the culture of schools. One of its primary initiatives is the implementation of a proven peer-to-peer suicide prevention program called Hope Squad in schools across the region. Hope Squad students are trained to recognize warning signs in their peers who may be in distress and to refer them to trusted adults who can help.
Under Inskeep’s leadership, Grant Us Hope aims to expand its Hope Squad programming and other mental health services for teens and families who are struggling nationwide.
Diane Egbers, CEO of Leadership Excelleration, founded Grant Us Hope in 2016 after her 15-year-old son, Grant, died by suicide in 2015. Out of her tragedy, Egbers was inspired to create Grant Us Hope in her son’s memory. She now serves as board chair of the organization and remains dedicated to offering hope and support for struggling youth and their parents. She is also committed to changing the cultural dialogue around teen mental health and suicide prevention through sharing both her personal story and Grant Us Hope programming.
“Scott is a brilliant and compassionate leader, and I am elated he has chosen to take on this new leadership role at Grant Us Hope,” Egbers said. “As our society emerges from the pandemic, a record number of youth are struggling with feelings of depression and hopelessness. Our goals at Grant Us Hope are to change school cultures, remove stigmas and save more young lives, together. With Scott’s help, we hope to increase our visibility and ability to create even more communities of mental health awareness, support, leadership and suicide prevention. This is critically important work, and I am so grateful Scott is so enthusiastic about our cause.”
In his role as CEO, Inskeep will guide the Grant Us Hope staff and leadership team while overseeing strategic planning, business development, fundraising, government and legislative relationships, while building community and business partnerships, and working diligently to advance the organization through collaborative leadership, awareness and advocacy.
Thanks to the work of Grant Us Hope, over 200 schools across Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana are now equipped with Hope Squads, serving more than 400,000 students. In addition, Grant Us Hope has trained over 3,000 people in life-saving skills though a multitude of trainings. The Hope Squad program has received national recognition for its effectiveness, and has been well-received by communities, families and school administrators. The demand for Hope Squads and related mental health resources that Grant Us Hope provides are at an all-time high. It costs approximately $5,000 to create and implement a new Hope Squad in a school.
Learn more about Grant Us Hope at grantushope.org.