Youth Guidance’s Working on Womanhood (WOW) program empowers girls and young women of color to develop the confidence, resilience and leadership skills needed to thrive in school, their communities and throughout their lives. Founded in Chicago and now serving young women in Boston, Dallas, and Kansas City, WOW is grounded in narrative therapy and an evidence-based curriculum that fosters emotional intelligence, healthy relationships, and visionary goal-setting. Through supportive mentoring and structured group experiences during the school day, participants strengthen their sense of identity, build meaningful connections, and develop the confidence and skills to create lasting, positive change for themselves and in their communities.
Girls and young women of color across Chicago continue to navigate adolescence without enough spaces that affirm their identities, foster meaningful connections, or provide opportunities to build relationships beyond their own neighborhoods. The impact of that isolation is profound. Research evaluating WOW found that participation led to a 22% reduction in PTSD symptom severity, along with significant decreases in anxiety and depression among participants.
Every other year, WOW extends this work beyond the school building through the WOW UnConference, a youth-led empowerment retreat designed for girls. More than just attendees, participants serve as planners, facilitators, performers and leaders, shaping every aspect of the experience. The UnConference creates a powerful space where girls build community across neighborhoods, celebrate their identities, strengthen their leadership skills and discover that their voices, experiences, and aspirations have the power to inspire change in themselves and others.
The Girls Opportunity Alliance Fund will support this year’s UnConference, bringing together roughly 200 WOW participants and 100 additional girls in grades 6 through 12 from GOA partner organizations across Chicago. The event is planned by 12 to 15 girls in order to give them real experience in project management and communication, which WOW staff helps them translate directly into résumés and future opportunities. During the conference, participants choose from workshops on health and wellbeing, identity, and goal-setting, which are facilitated by youth leaders alongside trusted adult partners. By bringing together girls from communities across Chicago, the WOW UnConference fosters new relationships, broadens perspectives, and reinforces a powerful message: every girl has the capacity to lead, inspire others, and shape her own future
For more information about Youth Guidance Working on Womanhood, please visit the organization’s website.
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