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Dear Friends of Girls Inc.,
Happy New Year!
This New Year of 2009 brings vast changes in leadership and with those changes a sense of hope for our girls--who need help now more than ever. Girls Inc. is excited to be able to bring new opportunities to girls throughout the Portland
metro area.
It's only January and the year already promises some exciting highlights:
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Girls Inc. now serves 26 elementary, middle, and high schools across the metro area--that's 27% more sites than 2008!
Our strong, smart and bold programming continues to expand throughout the region, from Hillsboro to East County, including a new site beginning in February at the East County Community Center.
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The Associate Mentoring Program launches three new sites: Reality Check Coaching & imUniQ Beauty Bar, Idealist.org, and CommuniCARE at Girls Inc.
Not only are these organizations breaking new ground in their fields, but now they are mentoring young women to have strong work ethic, smart business practices, and bold futures as the next-generation of outstanding professional women.
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GO Onward goes to school--We've expanded our GO Onward model
GO Onward is such a successful program we've expanded these services to all of our girls not just those transitioning from out-of-home care in residential treatment programs and foster care.
Thank you for your ongoing support and most of all, thank you for your tireless dedication to empower all girls to be strong, smart and bold.
Warm regards,
Annette Klinefelter
Executive Director
Girls Inc. of NW Oregon
Feature Story
Girls Inc. of Northwest Oregon is proud to announce the launch of its new Springboard program. This program was created for families that have little or no experience applying to college. Parents who attend the program will learn how to
help their daughters learn, plan for their future, and get into college, including how to fill out applications and get financial aid.
This 13-week pilot program will be offered at Harriet Tubman Girls Leadership Academy and Lane Middle school (in English and Spanish). Girls Inc. will help parents to become their daughter's guide--the expert in the family.
Upon completion of the program, Girls Inc. will open a 529 college savings account in the amount of $150 for each girl. Anyone willing to donate or match funds to increase the amount each girl receives through this program would be
greatly appreciated by Girls Inc. Please contact Bonni Goldberg at
bonni@girlsincnworegon.org or at 503-230-0054 x5.
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Upcoming Events & Activities
Save the Date: Power of the Purse 2009
Live Auction & Dinner benefiting Girls Inc. of NW Oregon
Thursday, March 12, 2009
The Nines Hotel
Portland, OR
Click Here to Register Online for Power of the Purse Today!
Deadline to register is March 2nd.
Want to Teach Girls to Build Self-Respect?
Respect Rx is offering a new training-the Respect Rally Leader Training-April 18-19, 2009, in Portland for girl advocates who want to teach teen girls to spread respect. The training is based on the best-selling and
award-winning book for girls, RESPECT: A Girl's Guide to Getting Respect & Dealing When Your Line Is Crossed, which has been featured by CNN, National Public Radio, USA Today, Glamour, Teen Vogue and others.
WHAT GIRLS LEARN
The Respect Rally is a four-hour girl conference followed by a 24-session curriculum (The Respect Keep It Going! Kit) that inspires and equips girls with lasting respect-building skills. Rallies can be customized to address your prevention
or awareness-raising focus, such as body image, bullying, communication and boundaries, drug, tobacco & alcohol prevention, goal-setting or dating violence prevention.
When girls leave a Rally, they report that they know how to boost their self-respect, create mutual respect in relationships and ways to take action to change their world so all people are respected. After attending the Rally:
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98% of girls understood the difference between respect and disrespect (up from 51% prior to attending the Rally).
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84% of girls understood how to respect themselves (up from 25%).
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72% of girls pledged to follow their passions (up from 37%).
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90% of girls respected each other as equals (up from 65%).
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82% felt equipped to make positive choices and act as role models (up from 42%).
THE TRAINING
At the two-day Respect Rally Leader Training, you'll learn how to:
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Lead a Respect Rally and get all the presentation materials needed
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Easily integrate the Rally and The Respect Keep It Going! Kit into your existing programming and customize it to meet your needs.
After the training, you will get:
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Post-training Web tutorial videos of select activities and access to all updated and new activities or handouts.
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3 follow-up coaching calls with the Respect Rx team to answer questions or help you customize your program. (e.g. creating a co-ed Rally)
The training tuition is $450 and includes all materials.
PROCEEDS TO GIRLS INC.
Girls Inc. of Northwest Oregon will receive 6.5% of the total sale if you sign up for the April 18-19 training through our partner link.
So please click here learn more, watch the Rally video or REGISTER today!
SPECIALS
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Each adult registrant can register one teen leader for free.
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After registering one full-price tuition, each additional registration for your organization is just $299.
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If you register before March 1, 2009, you'll receive $50 off a full-price tuition registration.
Upcoming Girls Take Off Events
Through a generous grant from REI, Girls Take Off takes girls out for fun and exciting outdoor activities at no cost for Girls Inc. members.
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January 31, 2009: Creating with Herbs
Make cool, natural oils and soaps with local herbalist. Give them as gifts or save for yourself!
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February 14: Snowshoeing
Experience a fantastic winter sport as we trek through Mt. Hood's wintery woods!
Find information on the rest of the year's Girls Take Off Events and view photos from our past events by
clicking here.
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Sponsor Spotlight
Nike Foundation Supports the Associate Mentoring Program
Nike is graciously sponsoring two teams this year through the Associate Mentoring Program. There are a total of 15 mentors paired up with 12 girls between the two groups. So far the girls have received a Nike campus tour, shopped at the
employee store, learned about the Nike Foundation, and how the company is investing in adolescent girls.
Funded by Nike, Inc., the Foundation leverages the brands drive for innovation and positive change, and its ability to inspire both. They believe that when girls receive support and realize opportunity for their futures, they can become an
unexpected and powerful force in transforming their families, communities and the world. The women at Nike are living models of their foundation as they guide and mentor the girls, not only around the world, but in their own communities as
well.
We look forward to seeing the work that Nike and our Girls Inc. girls complete through working together.
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Did You Know...
2009 Girls Council
The Girls Council is an advisory council composed entirely of middle school and high school aged girls. Girls are our organization's most valuable resources, providing Girls Inc. with the information we need to develop meaningful and
relevant programming.
Last month, over two dozen girls applied to be a part of the Girls Council. New council members include:
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Cassie A.
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Mary B.
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Marina C.
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Nicole D.
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Alex D.
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Leslie E.
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Christa H.
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Abigail H.
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Jaida K.
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Britanie M.
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Esmarelda M.
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Liz M.
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Nodika M.
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Jade R.
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Olivia R.
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Andi S.
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Julia S.
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Makala Y.
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Girls Inc. in the News
Girls Inc. of Northwest Oregon's Associate Mentoring Program was recently featured as the "Bright Idea" by The National Clearinghouse on Families & Youth (a free information service of the HHS/ACF Family and Youth Services
Bureau). The following is an excerpt from the article:
When Annette Klinefelter sat down to design a mentoring program for girls in Portland, Oregon, the professional women who would serve as the program's mentors had a few minor stipulations.
They were busy, with constant deadlines and travel. They couldn't volunteer after 5 p.m., when family obligations kicked in. They wanted to interact directly with girls, but they didn't want to disappoint a young person if other duties
called.
No problem.
Klinefelter and her colleagues at Girls Inc. of Northwest Oregon launched the Associate Mentoring Program in 2007, giving middle and high school girls hands-on experience at a workplace. Mentors and mentees meet after school in teams of 10
(five or six women and four or five girls).
Read the entire article by
clicking here.
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Giving to Girls Inc. Means Giving to Girls
Buy your own smart, strong and bold t-shirt today!
 Girls Inc. t-shirts make great gifts for the
strong, smart, and bold women and girls in your life.
Order your t-shirts today!
Become a Girls Inc. Volunteer!
We need the following volunteer positions:
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Co-Facilitators: Using Girls Inc. curriculum, co-facilitators assist the lead facilitator with after school girls groups designed to help reduce relational aggression, build self-esteem, and cultivate communication and leadership skills.
Groups meet once per week for 1.5 hours, typically between 2:00-5:00 pm. Volunteers must have experience working with youth, effective oral communication, willingness to be a team player, and flexibility.
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Media Artists: Over 300 Girls Inc. girls have worked with local media artists to create their own stories and demonstrate them through film, music, magazines, web, radio, and visual arts. We need volunteer media artists to work with girls
to create quality, professional media projects.
If you are inspired to volunteer with girls in either of these capacities and have availability, please contact Shawna Chambers, Volunteer Coordinator, at 503-230-0054 x 8.
Full list of volunteer opportunities
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Sound Off--Join Our Forum!
Get the Forum Started!
Send us any of your comments, ideas, and inspirations to make our community a better place to grow strong, smart, bold, and economically independent girls and women. We will post your letters on our Web site to share with other Girls Inc.
supporters.
We look forward to hearing from all of you!
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