About The Wily Network
About The Wily Network
The Wily Network partners with college students in the greater Boston area who are working towards their degrees without emotional or financial support from family. Wily provides a critical safety net for Scholars as they navigate college independently.
Wily Scholars bring unique experiences, challenges, strengths and goals to the college journey. Some have experienced homelessness or foster care, some have been denied family support due to their sexual orientation or gender identity, some have lost their parents, and some have family members dealing with addiction, mental illness or incarceration. All are talented and motivated, and all are braving college on their own.
Our program offers weekly clinical coaching, financial assistance, community-building support, and networking opportunities to help Scholars move from surviving to thriving.
Mission:
Wily works to ensure Scholars have the tools and networks necessary to thrive in four-year residential colleges and transition successfully into post-college life.
Core Values
Wily’s core values are the foundational principles that guide our organization. Ultimately, the Core Values help us to ensure that all members of the Wily community feel a sense of belonging and know that their voices are valued.
These core values underpin our entire organization. They shape how we approach our work and conduct our personal relationships; they are the lens through which we make strategic decisions; they influence how we hire, train, and acknowledge our staff. To reflect this centrality, our core values shape the indicators we use to measure our success.
On an ongoing basis, Wily evaluates how well we are living up to our core values, and we continually look for new and effective ways to embed them in our organization.
Wily Scholars are the heart of our mission
We shape every decision we make around how best to partner with Scholars during their college journeys. Scholars’ voices are a critical component of our decision-making process. We reflect on how each of our individual perspectives and identities influence our work with Scholars.
We believe in the power of deep, trusting relationships
Wily is a reliable presence in Scholars’ lives. We join Scholars in building reciprocal and transformational relationships. We are intentional about creating a space where all members of the Wily community can share their authentic selves and feel a true sense of belonging.
We believe in the strength of our pack
Together, Wily Scholars form a pack that supports and celebrates one another. We work collaboratively with colleges, local nonprofits, and a dedicated base of volunteers to build a broad community of support for Scholars.
We are committed to the long term
As an organization and in our individual relationships with Scholars, we only make commitments we can keep. We are there for Scholars through college and beyond. Wily alums remain an integral part of our pack.
We are a listening/learning organization committed to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging
We make decisions with intention. We continually evaluate our program and are adaptable to meet our staff and Scholar needs. The Wily Pack is made up of unique identities, backgrounds and perspectives, and we strive to honor each individual’s lived experiences.
Wily Scholars are the heart of our mission
We shape every decision we make around how best to partner with Scholars during their college journeys. Scholars’ voices are a critical component of our decision-making process. We reflect on how each of our individual perspectives and identities influence our work with Scholars.
We believe in the power of deep, trusting relationships
Wily is a reliable presence in Scholars’ lives. We join Scholars in building reciprocal and transformational relationships. We are intentional about creating a space where all members of the Wily community can share their authentic selves and feel a true sense of belonging.
We believe in the strength of our pack
Together, Wily Scholars form a pack that supports and celebrates one another. We work collaboratively with colleges, local nonprofits, and a dedicated base of volunteers to build a broad community of support for Scholars.
We are committed to the long term
As an organization and in our individual relationships with Scholars, we only make commitments we can keep. We are there for Scholars through college and beyond. Wily alums remain an integral part of our pack.
We are a listening/learning organization committed to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging
We make decisions with intention. We continually evaluate our program and are adaptable to meet our staff and Scholar needs. The Wily Pack is made up of unique identities, backgrounds and perspectives, and we strive to honor each individual’s lived experiences.
History of Wily
When Wily was founded in 2015, comprehensive support programs for college students had been around for over two decades. But we knew there was a gap to be filled. All of these programs were tied to specific universities, most only accepted former foster youth, and none were filling the need in the greater Boston area.
The Wily Network was the first program of its kind in the United States to accept any qualifying student at a four-year college, regardless of which school they attend. We started working with the first two Wily Scholars in 2016, and expanded quickly. By the time we celebrated our first graduations in 2018, we served more than 25 students.
We started out with the goal of supporting 50 students by 2020 – we hit that goal a year early. Today, the Wily Network works with more than 70 Scholars and has celebrated over 50 graduations. And we’re eager to continue growing and working with more Wily Scholars.
Work With Us
Come join our Pack! Working at the Wily Network, you will be part of a close-knit team of professionals who value a healthy work-life balance while embracing the rigors of our mission. You will be a critical force in the lives of college students striving to reach their goal of graduation. As part of a young, growing organization, you will have the opportunity to help shape our agency while working to improve life outcomes for resilient young people.
Make a Gift to Help Wily Serve More Scholars
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI)
At the Wily Network our core values mobilize us to achieve our mission. We are a listening and learning organization, which is one of the reasons we consistently strive to deepen our understanding of how systemic bias and disparities impact the BIPOC community and other underrepresented groups. We address inequities by staying aware of how they manifest in and impact our organization and our community, and by taking action through advocacy, allyship, and anti-racism practices to ensure we’re acting in partnership with underrepresented communities.
