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LATEST NEWS | THE RESULTS ARE IN: girlsBEST Positions Girls to Succeed!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2007
“We need to change the economic reality of women now, but in order to be successful, we must start with girls.”
- Focus Group Participant (Women's Foundation, Listening Tour, 2001)
MINNEAPOLIS - As U.S. Census data and research continue to
show, women are more likely than men to live in poverty, the
wage gap persists, and two out of three minimum-wage earners
are women.
To change these statistics, the Women's Foundation of
Minnesota
focused on girls. In 2002, we created the girlsBEST (girls Building Economic Success Together) Initiative as a key strategy to boost girls’ economic futures.
Based on extant research and a statewide Listening Tour that took us to 14 communities across the state in 2001, we learned
that: Minnesota women and girls view poverty, teen pregnancy,
a scarcity of leadership opportunities, gender violence,
inadequate health care, racism, isolation, and institutional
sexism as critical problems in their communities having a
disproportionate impact on females.
The following year, girlsBEST was launched as a five-year funding and public awareness initiative promoting economic security for Minnesota girls. And in 2007, we hired an independent consultant to evaluate the first generation of the
program, resulting in thegirlsBEST Final Evaluation Report and
Executive Summary.
(Grantees, from top)
How did the first generation of girlsBEST fare? Girl Power!, YouthCARE,
Youth News Initiative
Four key findings:
| 1) Findings validate girlsBEST model and program practices. Data have validated the girlsBEST incremental approach and the efficacy of the emphases on mentoring and supporting girls, focusing on cultural identity, experiential leadership and outreach to underrepresented girls. These notable practices work for girls. |
2) Girls increase self-confidence. The emphases on nurturing, on opportunities to try, to succeed, to fail, to work with successful women – all have combined to produce one of the initiative’s most stunning accomplishments: The majority of core-group girls show a highly developed sense of self and a strong sense that they can accomplish whatever they aspire to. An overwhelming 93 percent of core group girls believe, “I can accomplish whatever I set out to.”
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| 3) Girls build aspirations for the future. The initiative has also been very successful in creating a sense of future for girls who began the program with little or no sense of aspiration. We know that education is the key to economic well-being. Therefore, it is significant that 96 percent of participating girls plan to graduate from high school, and 94 percent of girls believe that they will attend college. |
4) Building activism. The girlsBEST model has been notably successful in creating a sense of public and issue awareness and a sense of agency among the girls that they can take on and make a difference on issues they care about. We were particularly struck that nearly all (95 percent) of survey respondents in 2006 indicated that it is important to work for equal opportunity for girls and women. |
To download and/or view the full reports online:
Final Evaluation Report and Executive Summary.
For more information on the girlsBEST Fund, click here.
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