OUR MISSION

The mission of Friends of Whitney Young (FoWY) is to build and maintain a vibrant school community among its students, families, administrators, faculty and alumni. FoWY conducts a wide range of fundraising activities and community-building initiatives to support and enhance academic and extracurricular programs at Whitney Young.

OUR HISTORY

FoWY was founded in 2001 by a small group of parents. The notion was to form an independent fundraising organization for Whitney Young. Throughout the 90's many public schools formed “Friends of..” organizations as a way of raising funds through a charitable non-profit entity and to ensure that funds would be used for the school and not subsumed by the Chicago Public Schools. FoWY is an independent 501(c)(3) charitable foundation which means your donation is tax-deductible. It has an independent board of director comprised of Whitney Young parents, alumni and students.

The Friends of Whitney Young also own and operate the fowy.org domain for use with our Google for Nonprofit Workspace.

FoWY's EIN: 38-3646059

We are all Friends of Whitney Young

The moment your child accepts his/her offer from Whitney M. Young Magnet High School you become a member of a special community; Friends of Whitney Young (FoWY).  Your membership is free and automatic…what you do with this special opportunity is up to you.

Support your friends
​and school

Financial support is an ongoing important facet of public education. For Whitney Young to continue to provide a top-notch education for our children, we rely on the financial support of all parents. FoWY has several campaigns throughout the year to raise necessary funds for the school, and we invite all parents to participate.

Get to know your friends​

Look for opportunities to join in community events sponsored by FoWY. These events are a great way to meet people, get involved at Whitney Young and learn more about the community of “friends” you have just joined.

Help lead your friends

FoWY was established to
support our children and to provide a mechanism for our community to come together to make a difference. Getting involved in FoWY is an opportunity to invest not only in your child’s education and experience at Whitney Young, but also to make a difference in the lives of every student that walks our halls. Use FoWY as a way to get to know the interesting and engaging parents behind these champion students at Whitney Young.