Girls Coalition of Greater Boston

About the Girls' Coalition of Greater Boston

Created in 1992, the Girls’ Coalition of Greater Boston is a diverse consortium of Boston-area organizations and individuals working together to encourage the healthy development of girls. We expand and enhance the quality of girls' programs by building a sense of community among the adults who work with, mentor, and parent girls. Membership in the Girls’ Coalition is open to anyone interested in supporting girls’ healthy development . To learn more about how to get involved in the Girls's Coalition of Greater Boston, please email us at: girlscoalitioninfo@gmail.com

Girls' Coalition of Greater Boston and Hardy Girls Healthy Women presents Cultivating Hardiness Zones & Becoming a Muse A Strength-Based Approach to Working with Girls

Tuesday, April 27 and Wednesday, April 28, 2010

9:00 am - 4:00 pm
Simmons College, Linda K. Paresky Conference Center, 300 The Fenway, Boston. MA

Spend two days mastering an effective strength-based approach to working with girls and how to incorporate techniques informed by the latest research on girls' health and development into the work you're already doing with girls.

Go to www.hghw.org/events.php to register

Though we encourage you to sign up for both days of training, you may choose instead to register for a single day of training. Both options are available during the registration process.

Workshop Leaders: Lyn Mikel Brown, Ed.D, Anne Belden, M.S. and Lael Couper Jepson, M.S.

Participants will leave with the knowledge and skills to:
Help girls connect with one another and reduce Girlfighting
Show girls how to find the support and resources they need to thrive; and,
Tap into girls' energy and creativity to make the world one that values them for who they are, not how they look;
Create a foundational understanding of facilitation, group process and dynamics within the specific context of working with girls’ coalition groups

Through multi-media presentations, small group activities, practice sessions, and discussion, the training will answer the questions:
What is the cultural landscape in which girls are growing
What is hardiness and why are relational hardiness zones important?
How do we cultivate and sustain hardiness zones with girls?
What form can they take in our community/social context?
What can they offer that girls in our community need?

The training is designed for and open to all adults who live or work with youth, including educators, parents, health care providers, social workers, camp personnel, and other interested community members.

Registration Fees:
$295 by April 13th / $320 after April 13th for both days
$175 by April 13th/ $190 after April 13th for one day
$195 for Girls’ Coalition of Greater Boston members by April 13th/$235 after April 13th for both days
$125 for Girls’ Coalition of Greater Boston members by April 13th/$150 after April 13th for one day

A 15% discount is available for groups of 3 or more from the same agency who register together.

For more information on the training, group rates, or hotel recommendations, please contact Ruya at Hardy Girls Healthy Women (207) 861-8131 or info@hghw.org.  0.7 CEUs will be awarded

Girls' Initiative Youth Policy Report on High-Risk Girls and Gender Specific Programming

Attached you will find the Report on High-Risk Girls and Gender Specific Programming. This report was made possible by a grant from The Youth Public Policy Initiative (YPI) of the Boston Foundation to the Girls’ Initiative at the Black Ministerial Alliance of Greater Boston. Report: Download GI Report Final Report Summary: Download GI-report-exec-sum Very interesting read!!!

Check out Girls Coalition's Leadership Team Member Jenny Amory's thought provoking discussion...

Visit DroppingKnowledge.org and join the discussion that Teen Voices Executive Director Jenny Amory and peer leader Anna-Cat Brigida kicked off! They are discussing how the world would look if it was safe for women and girls.

Faculty and Internship Positions Available- Coastal Studies for Girls (Maine)

Below is information regarding two open positions at the Coastal Studies for Girls in Maine.  For more information about this program visit:  www.coastalstudiesforgirls.org

JOB TITLE:                   Teacher for Intermediate French and Intermediate Spanish

REPORTS TO:              Director of Education               

SCHEDULE:                  Please call to discuss options and availability; Position could range from part-time hourly to full-time, January 11-June 15, 2010; possibility for renewal for the following academic year, August 15-June 15, 2010-2011

START DATE:              January 11, 2010           

JOB OBJECTIVES:        Coastal Studies for Girls is a start-up science and leadership semester school in Freeport, Maine. The major responsibility of a Teacher at CSG is to design and deliver curriculum for 1-3 academic classes, including planning, maintaining class records and lesson plans, instruction, field trips and experiential activities, and student evaluation. Secondary responsibilities include administrative leadership over certain extra-curricular program areas as assigned, such as coordination of the Guest Lecture series or maintaining the school blog. Teachers work closely with Resident Interns for assistance during classes, field trips and extracurricular activities, and are expected to offer informal mentoring in return. This position also involves student supervision during evenings and weekends, according to a predetermined rotating schedule. As the prime carriers of our leadership model, educational philosophy, and our entire academic and experiential program, Teachers are expected to uphold the highest standards for themselves and their students, to serve as a role model and mentor, to have a deep commitment to girls and girls’ education, and to embody the CSG mission and philosophy. A positive attitude is also paramount, along with a sense of humor and the ability to be flexible in an ever-changing environment. 

*For more detailed information about this position visit www.coastalstudiesforgirls.org

AND

JOB TITLE:                      Resident Intern

REPORTS TO:                       Head Resident and Director of Education                         

SCHEDULE:                           Full time, residential

APPLICATION DATE:          Position open until filled; position runs February 1 – June 6, 2010  

JOB OBJECTIVES:   Coastal Studies for Girls is a residential science and leadership semester school for tenth grade girls in Freeport, Maine. The major responsibilities of the Resident Intern include living and working at CSG for a full 18 week fall or spring semester supervising students and assisting the Head Resident, Faculty and Staff.

*For more detailed information on this position visit www.coastalstudiesforgirls.org

SAVE THE DATE!!! Getting Results: Why Gender Matters in Mentoring

DATE:  Wednesday, February 10, 2010

TIME:  7:30 a.m. -9:00 a.m.

LOCATION:  BNY Mellon, One Boston Place

Enjoy networking, a light breakfast, and thought-provoking new research on gender and mentoring from Dr. Jean Rhodes and Dr. Renee Spencer.

Hear from the experts about...

• The role of gender in youth mentoring relationships
• Why outcomes for girls are significant
• How the right training and support makes for longer, stronger relationships...and why this matters more for girls

Teen Voices on the Web!

Teen Voices is an intensive journalism mentoring and leadership development program for teen girls in Boston whose mission is to support and educate teen girls to amplify their voices and create social change through media.  Through our program, we develop a biannual magazine, Teen Voices, as well as publish new content monthly on http://www.teenvoices.com. 

Currently, Teen Voices Online (http://www.teenvoices.com) features an interview with members of the Boston Youth Poetry Slam Team, information about the effects of plastic surgery, and an activist spotlight on Naomi Nelson.  Teen Voices also posts book reviews, short stories and poetry.  Any teen girl can submit her work for publication using this form (http://teenvoices.com/issue_current/tvsubmit_form.php).  If you’re in Boston and are or know of a teen who may be interested in applying to be a teen editor, you can do so here! (http://teenvoices.com/tv_program_application.html).

Teen Voices just released our fall print issue at the beginning of November!  We have special features on gang violence, getting into college, and going green.  We’re also in the middle of our fall teen program, and the girls are working on some great feature articles for our upcoming print and online issues.  Program will run through December 18, and we are so excited about the work that the teens are doing!

 

Be our fan on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Teen-Voices-Magazine/22628146609?ref=nf\) or MySpace (http://www.myspace.com/teen_voices), follow us on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/teenvoices), and check out our blog (http://teenvoicesmagazine.wordpress.com) for exciting Teen Voices updates!

Happy Love Your Body Day!

At the Girls Coalition we are celebrating the 12th Annual Love Your Body Day!

Love Your Body Day is an initiative of the National Organization for Women. NOW reports that, "This campaign is a giant shout out to the fashion, beauty, diet and advertising industries: No more fake images! Show us real women, diverse women, strong women, bold women. And to the women and girls who are targeted by messages telling them that the key to success and happiness is manufactured beauty, we say: It's okay to 'Be You' -- the true you is beautiful."

Here are some things you can do to celebrate Love Your Body Day!

• Throw away, or at least set aside:
• • Your scale and mirrors
  • Fashion magazines
  • One article of clothing that makes you feel badly about yourself
  • Your makeup
  • Diet books, diet pills, and other risky weight-loss aids.
  
  

• Put up sticky notes featuring quotes or positive affirmations on your fridge, mirrors, closet and front door.

• Change the background on your computer to a picture of yourself that you feel great about!

• Write a letter to the edictor of your local newspaper about how the negative images of women in the media affect how women and girls are treated.
• Write and mail 3 cards to women in your life--tell them everything you love about them

Want more ideas for great ways to celebrate? Click here to visit the Love Your Body Day website!

Key Learnings from the Girls Coalition Funder Briefing

This morning was the first Girls Coalition funder briefing, "Pathways to STEM Careers: Where are the Girls?" Many thanks to our panelists and sponsors for making this event fantastic!

For those who were unable to attend this morning, we wanted to be sure to share some key insights that were shared by our experts.

Stats and Facts:

* Women make up only 25% of the over 5 million scientists in the United States. Women of color make up just 2% of that group.

* Women account for more than half of graduate students in some science fields.  In 2006, women made up 76% of graduate students in psychology, 56% in biological sciences, and 54% in social sciences.

 

* In others, particularly hard sciences and engineering, women lag far behind. Women accounted for just 23% of graduate students in engineering and 25% in computer science in 2006.

Ways to Take Action:

1. Help girls get over the "Yuck! Factor" of science: Provide girls with opportunities to engage in science early and often--and to get dirty while doing it.

 

2. Take a Team Approach: Science in schools is often taught as a solitary manner. Research on best practices in science education demonstrate that taking a team approach is more effective. Engage girls in collaborative efforts on science projects and experiments.

 

3. Help girls see science in everything: Science is all around us and is part of everything we do! Help girls to think about how their day-to-day lives connect with science.

 

4. Science as a "helping profession": Girls report that they want to be in careers that help people. Help girls see the ways in which STEM careers are helping people by creating solutions to problems, medicines and new technologies.

5. Create a pathway to higher education: Colleges are rethinking their recruitment practices in engaging girls in science. Work with your local higher education partner to connect girls with science resources on a local campus. Seeing other female students in action help girls to feel more confident about their future in the sciences.

 

6. It's never too early! Many girls decide they are interested in STEM careers in ELEMENTARY school. Mish Michaels saw her first hurricane and decided she wanted to be a meteoroligist in grammar school.

7. No one program can be all things to all girls. Work with local agencies in your community to identify areas of strength and build collaborative partnerships to meet the unique needs of individual girls!

Event Update: Date and Details

Just a reminder of the date and details for the Girls Coalition Funder Briefing, "Creating Pathways to STEM Careers: Where are the Girls?" !

Event Details:

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

8:00am-10:30am

Genzyme Corporate Offices, 500 Kendall Street, Cambridge, MA 02142

Featured Speakers:

Emcee: Mish Michaels, Channel 4 News

Jacqueline Boas, Boston Scientific Foundation

Dr. Connie Chow, Science Club for Girls

Patricia Driscoll, Girls, Inc. of Lynn

Dr. Deborah Muscella, Girls Get Connected Collaborative

To attend, please RSVP to Yasmin Shah, yshah@gmafoundations.com

Event Update: Funder Briefing--Meet the Sponsors!

The Girls Coalition Funder Briefing "Creating Pathways to STEM Careers: Where are the Girls?" will be taking place tomorrow. Two tremendous sponsors were critical in making this event possible! Many thanks go to:

Genzyme: Genzyme has a history of philanthropic commitment in the Boston community and beyond. Genzynme notes, " We believe that employing a combination of cash grants, employee involvement, and in-kind contributions results in sustainable partnerships that have a lasting positive impact in our communities." To learn more about the tremendous community efforts of Genzyme, click here to visit their website!

The Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC): This quasi-public agency of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts was created by the Massachusetts legislature in June 2006. The MLSC is closely affiliated with the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development but is not subject to its direct supervision or control. 

The MLSC was established to promote the life sciences within the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It is tasked with investing in life sciences research and economic development. This work includes making financial investments in public and private institutions growing life sciences research, development and commercialization as well as building ties between sectors of the Massachusetts life sciences community. Click here to learn more about the work of the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center!