
Philadelphia Financial Scholars
We believe access to financial and entrepreneurship education is critical to overcoming systemic economic barriers. Philadelphia Financial Scholars aims to provide Philadelphia high school students, teachers and families with the tools needed to develop financial skills, build greater wealth and achieve financial empowerment.
Philadelphia Financial Scholars’ roots date back to 2016, when the FS Foundation, the philanthropic arm of FS Investments, partnered with the University of Pennsylvania to create a financial literacy program for high school students. Since that time, the program has expanded significantly and now includes in-class financial literacy education, after-school entrepreneurship workshops, a summer business accelerator program at The Wharton School, and a nights-and-weekends curriculum for teachers, families and adult members of participating school communities. The program has reached more than 1,500 students since its inception.
Building on this proven model, other companies in the Philadelphia financial services community, as well as several law firms, accounting firms, entrepreneurs and civic organizations, have come together to expand the program and reach more teachers, families and students with these critical financial literacy and entrepreneurship programs.
Our team

Kerry Wagner Woodward is the first Executive Director of Philadelphia Financial Scholars. She oversees curriculum and professional development, school partnerships, corporate sponsorships, program expansion, mission advocacy, and collaborates with the Board of Directors on the strategic vision of the organization.
Kerry began her career in investment banking at Deutsche Bank, gaining valuable experience and training in corporate finance, M&A, and capital market transactions. She then moved to the Philadelphia region and worked as the Director of Investment Analysis at Preferred Unlimited.
After spending two years volunteering with students at KIPP Philadelphia and Girard College, Kerry pivoted to full-time work in the Education sector by joining the Philadelphia School Partnership in 2012. Kerry served as Portfolio Manager for the $100 million philanthropic fund and was privileged to develop strong and lasting relationships with school leaders across the city.
Next, Kerry served as the Chief Operating Officer at Boys’ Latin of Philadelphia, where she began an afterschool program teaching financial literacy before working as the first faculty liaison with the Philadelphia Financial Scholars program beginning in 2016. Prior to joining Philadelphia Financial Scholars, Kerry worked as the Deputy Chief of Institutional Advancement at Mastery Schools where she was responsible for development, communications, and other special projects for the 24-school and 14,000 student network.
Ms. Woodward earned her B.A. from Wellesley College and a Certificate of Business Excellence from Columbia Business School.

Danielle Hernandez is the Financial Empowerment Specialist at Philadelphia Financial Scholars. She supports high school educators by offering guidance on instructional strategies, enhancing curriculum, and creating professional development programs that enhance content knowledge and allow for collaboration among educators. Danielle believes in a strong home-school connection and leads parent empowerment workshops that complement the classroom curriculums to ensure that students and families can develop important life skills together.
Danielle started her career as a Staff Accountant and quickly realized her true passion was to provide financial education to high school students. After her first 3 years of teaching, she found her home at The Preparatory Charter High School in 2008. During her 15 years at Prep, she created curriculums for courses such as, College Career Readiness, Personal Finance, and Introduction to Business. During the 2022-2023 school year, Ms. Hernandez collaborated with Philadelphia Financial Scholars as a Teacher Partner, working to expand access to financial and entrepreneurship education for students in Philadelphia.
Ms. Hernandez earned her B.S. in Business Management-Accounting from East Stroudsburg University and a Business, Computer, and Information Technology (BCIT) from Gwynedd Mercy University.
Teacher partners & schools
Ronald McGee
Belmont Charter High School
Anthony Edmond-Pinckney
Boys’ Latin of Philadelphia
Brittney Whitehead
Building 21
Brian Dutill
Carver High School of Engineering & Sciences
Larry Fain
Cristo Rey
Kadjijah Hankerson
Dobbins Technical High School
Tim Calenza
Benjamin Franklin High School
Chris Cantanno
Freire Charter School
Spencer Engel
George Washington High School
Corrida Tutt
KIPP Dubois
Maria Pishko
Lincoln High School
Jamcy Philips
Martin Luther King High School
Nirali Patel
MaST Community Charter School
Robert Brown
MaST Community Charter School
Alex Santomarco
MaST II Community Charter School
Matt Milligan
MaST II Community Charter School
Kimberly Jones
Simon Gratz High School Mastery Charter
Marcus West
Mastery Hardy Williams High
Hurann Cooper
Mastery Lenfest Campus
Danielle Hernandez
Preparatory Charter School
Jonas Harris
TECH Freire
Our Board
Brian Gildea, Chairman
Hamilton Lane
Brendan Clark, Vice Chair
Clark Capital
Ryan Oswald, Treasurer
EY
Marc Bryant, Secretary
FS Investments
John Coyne
Ategenos Capital
Toni Damon
Cherry Hill School District
Kelly Davenport
Freire Schools
Steve DeAngelis
Villanova University
Josh Deringer
Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath
Mia Fioravanti
Hilco Redevelopment Partners
Michael F. Gerber, Founder & Chairman Emeritus
FS Investments
Keith Leaphart
Philanthropi
Shawn Lytle
Macquarie
Chiwuike Owunwanne
KeyBank
Sulaiman Rahman
DiverseForce
Sarah Roth
Argosy Capital
William Sasso
Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young
Jeff Wicklund
The Enterprise Center
Rob Zion
TIFF Advisory Services
Title sponsors



Sponsors













“We expect young people to succeed after high school without teaching them how to balance a checkbook or understand what interest rates are and why they matter. In today’s world, we need to better equip our youth.“
Mike Gerber
Founder & Chairman Emeritus, Philadelphia Financial Scholars
Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, FS Investments