Empowering Young Women from Ohio State University

Vicki Pitstick is the Program Manager at the University Honors & Scholars Center at The Ohio State University.  She is also a long time advocate of Girls Circle who has recently become a Licensed Girls Circle Trainer and is working on developing new curricula for GCA.  In short, we LOVE Vicki Pitstick!

She recently wrote an article on Girls Circle for The Principal’s Office, a virtual community of over 5,000 Ohio school principals learning from each other.  Please read her article and comment if you are so inclined. Thank you to Vicki for all of her beautiful work with Girls Circle!

Read the article here or below:  http://principalsoffice.osu.edu/files/story.11.09.php

Empowering Young Women with The Girls Circle Program

by Vicki Pitstick

Empowering young girls and women has always been an interest of mine. This might be because my own parents always told me that I could achieve anything I set my mind to, but it is also largely due to the fact that I have three elementary-aged girls of my own, and I want them to be able to make good decisions about anything society throws at them. About a year and a half ago, I decided that I wanted to be more proactive in finding ways to empower young girls and women. I wanted to find a way to help them build self-esteem but also to assist them in developing ways to combat societal pressures and the challenges that come with adolescence. This is when I discovered the Girls Circle program.

The Girls Circle model, a structured support group for girls from 9-18 years, integrates relational theory, resiliency practices, and skills training in a specific format designed to increase positive connection, personal and collective strengths, and competence in girls. It aims to counteract social and interpersonal forces that impede girls’ growth and development by promoting an emotionally safe setting and structure within which girls can develop caring relationships and use authentic voices. http://www.girlscircle.com

In the summer of 2008, I attended the 2-day Girls Circle training, and I knew I wanted to find a way to incorporate this model into my work with college women, with young girls in the Columbus community, and with my own children in the future. This was the beginning of what is now called The Girls Circle Project at Ohio State, where I work as Program Manager in the University Honors & Scholars Center. The Girls Circle Project consists of training college women to run Girls Circles with middle school and high school girls in local schools and agencies in the Columbus area. During their training, the women participate in a Girls Circle themselves in autumn quarter, and they are also required to attend the 2-day Girls Circle Facilitator training that the Girls Circle Association offers. In addition to all of this, other speakers from the campus and the community are brought in to present such topics as racial awareness, mentoring, and handling group dynamics.

During the 2008-2009 academic year, 11 college women were trained to be Girls Circle facilitators, and the impact Girls Circles had for the young girls and the college women was truly rewarding. The college women learned a lot about themselves and also helped change young lives in the process. The amount of caring they developed for the middle school students they worked with was heartbreaking and touching in so many different ways. They learned about leadership, dealing with adversity, and working cooperatively. Most important, they realized how crucial it is to have strong, female role models in young girls’ lives in order for them to grow up and continue making positive changes in our society.

Research has shown that young girls who participate in Girls Circles reveal statistically significant improvement in four long-term outcomes (The Girls Circle website):

• a decrease in self-harming behavior
• a decrease in rates of alcohol use; an increase in attachment to school
• an increase in self-efficacy

Additionally, girls’ surveys revealed significant increases in six skills developed over the short term:

• finding things they have in common with a new person
• trying to see beyond girls’ reputations
• telling adults what they need
• feeling good about their bodies
• picking friends that treat them the way they want to be treated
• telling people how much they mean to them

Anecdotally, we heard from the administrators from the two schools where we ran Girls Circles that the young girls had a better attitude toward school and their teachers and that they were interacting with one another in more positive ways. Here is one story that exemplifies this research:

Every other week I hold a Girls Circle with my students who are Girls Circle facilitators. It is exciting to hear them talk about how one of their girls made a connection with another girl who she never used to talk to. In one school where we ran a Girls Circle, there were 2 groups of students—the A Group and the B Group. The A group learned at a more accelerated rate, which sometimes caused jealousy and hurt feelings among the girls at the school. Most of the Girls Circles that my students run have a mixture of students from the A group and the B group. Two of the facilitators shared that by the end of the Girls Circle they were running last winter quarter, girls from group A and B were talking as friends instead of rivals. They were so thrilled that they could see that their Girls Circle had truly affected the girls they were working with! We are seeing that allowing young girls to have a safe space to share their thoughts and dreams can greatly affect their attitude toward school, others, and themselves. Letting them see that they are not alone in the things they think about, worry about, and care about can do a great amount for self-esteem and self-efficacy.

This program seems to have a ripple effect in so many ways. The college women have also done Girls Circles with some of their sisters and their friends during breaks and one woman ran one in a juvenile detention center in her hometown. All of the original 11 wanted to keep doing Girls Circle next year in the schools as well as help me train more college women to become Girls Circle facilitators. They just cannot seem to get enough of Girls Circle! Also, as my students talk about it with their peers, they want to know more about Girls Circles and how they can get involved too.

Due to the excitement of the original women trained, this year 24 more women are currently training to be Girls Circle facilitators and will begin running Girls Circles in more schools and at more agencies in the Columbus area in January 2010. Our goal is to do more assessment, more follow-up, and figure out more ways to positively influence the young girls we are working with. These college women are giving up their time to work to help young girls grow, make better decisions, and take responsibility for their actions. They are helping shape the future for these girls, and I am helping to shape the future for these college women. It is an ongoing, pay-it-forward process that we think will work and benefit many along the way.

I was very blessed to have loving parents and amazing mentors in my life, and I hope for the same for my own daughters and for every young girl in our society. During Girls Circle training, the trainer shares that having just one adult role model in a girl’s life can make a huge difference. The Girls Circle Project is working to put as many adult role models out there as we can and, in turn, touch the lives of as many young girls in the Columbus area as possible.

Vicki Pitstick is Program Manager, University Honors & Scholars Center, The Ohio State University. If you would like more information about The Girls Circle Project or Girls Circle Facilitator training, contact Vicki at pitstick.10@osu.edu or 614/292-1794.

Take a Seasonal Breather to De-Stress

Here we are in November, when the weather is colder, skies are getting darker, holidays are approaching rapidly. Some of us look forward to the time with family and friends, while others of us carry apprehension about the layers of emotional challenges and experiences that arise through the holiday seasons. For the girls in Girls Circle, the holidays are a source of potential hope and disappointment, stress and longing, as they seek to gain a sense of connection and love from family and caregivers.

No matter what we feel, it’s normal to have some anxiety, and it’s wise to anticipate what may challenge us and how we want to care for ourselves. For girls in particular, it’s helpful to stop now and then and ask them to notice what they are feeling in their bodies – their arms, their bellies, their necks. So often, kids are very disconnected to their physical bodies and just a small but regular attention to the body and breath can be helpful to increase awareness of themselves while promoting wellness.

This is an excellent time to build in some relaxation practice in the circles and councils. These can be brief activities – 2- 3 minutes. In groups I’ve facilitated, girls want to talk and have conversation, but when I’ve also introduced some progressive…. …. ….

Share Your Stories with Us

Want to share your pictures, video, and other media sources of your Girls Circles and/or Boys Councils?

We’d love to see them and possibly post on our new upcoming website!

Use the below “Media Release” form with your group, print it, have them sign it and send it back to us with your photos and/or videos!

LINK TO MEDIA RELEASE FORM

Use either of the below “Case Study” forms to print, fill out and email back to us at moorea@girlscircle.com to share your personal experience facilitating groups.  We love to highlight the stories of our ambassadors in the field.

LINK TO GIRLS CIRCLE CASE STUDY FORM

LINK TO BOYS COUNCIL CASE STUDY FORM

Thank you for sharing your Circle and Council experience with us and maybe we’ll share your experience with our entire online community.

In the words of Jennifer Stone, “Go easy and if you can’t go easy, go as easy as you can.”

- Moorea, Training Coordinator
Girls Circle Association

Diversity Awareness Month with Girls Circle

As “Diversity Awareness” month winds to a conclusion, we continue to honor and celebrate the vast diversity of girls, women, leaders, and communities that are part of the Girls Circle movement.

Thank you, all of you!

Diversity in Girls Circle is about culture, identity, expression, perspective, voice, ethnicity, connection.  It is also something that – when not intentionally recognized– can leave some girls feeling disconnected, judged, or left out.

We have a great curricula – Honoring Our Diversity – for girls.  This 12 week guide is RICH with topics, activities, and discussion questions to acknowledge, involve, raise awareness, and enjoy each girl’s experiences. Some of the topics addressed in this Activity Guide are stereotype busting, local action, culture clashing, and of course, honoring diversity.

A very cool feature of this guide is the Journal that’s included. For each week’s topic, there’s a message and space for girls to write or draw about something related to the topic and activity.

Even when we haven’t prefaced it, always keep in mind as a facilitator that there are all kinds of girls and all kinds of situations.  So, name the obvious: if you are of a different culture or ethnicity than the girls in your group – just say it.  Let them teach you about themselves.  They are leaders.

Thanks!
Beth

 

An Important Message from the Founders (plus video!)

Dear Friends of Girls Circle and Council for Boys,

We are reaching out to our community with an update and important request for your support. Please view our 2 minute video message https://www.girlscircle.com/expand_the_circle.aspx and help us reach our fund-raising goal by December 1st. Donate here today

We want to acknowledge so many of you that have helped expand our mission by implementing the Girls Circles – and more recently the Councils for Boys and Young Men – empowering communities of caring that have touched the lives of countless youth nationally and around the world.

Together, we have responded to adolescents’ essential and urgent need for belonging and we have all witnessed the social change and the shifts in organizational culture that have improved the overall quality of services from the local yoga studio, to the Girls Scout troop, to the after school program, to the Boys & Girls Club, to the group home….to the facilities and treatment centers that house youth in the juvenile justice system.

Now, for the first time in our organization’s history, we need to ask for your financial support. With the current economic situation, and government grants and funding dwindling, we are reaching out to you to help us to continue to be able to respond to the demand related to providing essential training and technical assistance, professional development, support, and quality manualized curricula.

We know that by working together to provide caring communities and safe places for youth, we can continue to create change in the world.

If you can, will you please join the effort to help? We are a Project of the Tides Center, a 501(3)(c) organization and your contribution will build the bridge we need to cross over during these challenging times. We hope you receive this request knowing how dearly we value your friendship and shared commitment to youth and healthy connections.

Donate on our website at https://www.girlscircle.com/expand_the_circle.aspx

Sincerely,

Giovanna & Beth and the Girls Circle/Council Team

LGBT Community, Girls Circle and The Council for Boys and Young Men

October is Diversity Awareness Month. Are you aware that “adolescents who are lesbian, gay, or bisexual are more than twice as likely as their heterosexual peers to be depressed and think about or attempt suicide”? See many LGBT safety and health-related stats and tips at: http://stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov/adults/tip-sheets/tip-sheet-33.aspx

An issue facing legislative attention is H.R. 2262 – the Safe Schools Improvement Act, which extends and specifies categories of identity which are commonly targeted by bullying and harassment. It would name sexual orientation and sexual identity among other categories in which students are often harassed and which need protection under the law. For more information on this bill, see

http://www.glsen.org/cgi-bin/iowa/all/library/record/2432.html

So how are the needs of LGBT youth addressed by Girls Circle and The Council for Boys and Young Men?

Our number one goal is safety – physical, relational, cultural, psychological. This means that all participants of every Girls Circle… … …

FREE Public Conference Call on Girls Circle & The Council Tomorrow, Wednesday Oct 14th.

Every second Wednesday of each month, The Girls Circle Association is hosting two types of monthly teleconferences as follows:

Facilitator Support Circles – for those currently leading circles or councils or for those who wish to begin, we will host a “virtual” support circle for facilitators across the nation

Informational Gatherings – for those who wish to learn more specifically about the Girls Circle or Council for Boys & Young Men programs and how it can enhance their current programming.

Calls will be held on the 2nd Wednesday of each month. Both calls are at no cost!

JOIN THE CALL:
Conference Dial-in Number: (712) 432-1601
Participant Access Code: 933215#

Email us at info@girlscircle.com if you’d like to submit a topic or question that you’d like us to address on the call.
More Details:

Facilitator Support Circles
Second Wednesday of Each Month
1-2pm PST, 3-4pm CST, 4-5pm EST

This call will rotate between addressing Girls Circle and The Council for Boys and Young Men each month and is intended to be a support circle to adults currently running either or both of the two programs. See below for a schedule of topics for the rest of 2009 and mark your calendars.

• October 14th – The Council
  Topic: ACTIVE BOYS – HOW TO GET THEM TO ENGAGE IN COUNCIL
• November 11th – All Programs
  Topic: CONFLICT IN GROUPS
• December 9th – All Programs
  Topic: GETTING BUY-IN FROM YOUR COMMUNITY

Introduction to Girls Circle & The Council
Second Wednesday of Each Month
11am-12pm PST, 1-2pmCST, 2-3pm EST

This call is for the general public as an introduction to both Girls Circle and The Council. In addition to a Q&A period, we will be covering the following topics:

• What is The Council / Girls Circle?
• How it Works in Different Youth Serving Sectors, i.e. education, juvenile justice mental health, child welfare, community-based orgs
• Current Research Outcomes / Findings
• Methods of Implementation
• Funding

Please join us and the Girls Circle and Council for Boys & Young Men community on these informative and collaborative calls.

Talk to you soon!

- The Girls Circle Association Team

How to Engage Disconnected or Disinterested Girls

Recently we’ve made a slight but important revision to one aspect of our Girls Circle Facilitator Training –regarding managing challenging dynamics that show up in Girls Circle. We’re doing a similar piece in the facilitator training for The Council for Boys and Young Men.

Following a trainer’s demonstration role play, we are adding a task for participants to develop, write down, and then practice with a partner some verbal intervention regarding a challenging behavior. The verbal intervention is a communication that expresses kindness, acknowledgement, naming the dynamic observed, inviting discussion, taking the concern to the group for their input and how they can relate to that concern, and offering choices for participation even if limited. Or, any combination of these.

Kitty Tyrol, Senior Training Manager, made this addition… … …

Easing the Pain by Coming Together

Beth found an interesting article today in the Science Daily http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090927150348.htm

Called “Pulling Together Increases Your Pain Threshold” whereby a study of an Oxford rowing team found that as boys worked together, they were able “to tolerate twice as much pain as when they trained on their own.” Further conclusions from the study indicated that “acting as a group and in close synchrony seems to ramp up pain thresholds’ and “this effect may underlie the experience of warmth and belonging that we have when we do activities like dancing, sports, religious rituals and other forms of communal exercises together. “

And of course, Girls Circles and Boys Councils. This study confirms how important and powerful community is and how the brain responds to an environment that promotes bonding and working together. From a female perspective… … …

Are We Women Happy Yet?

Maureen Dowd’s column in Saturday’s NY Times, Blue is the New Black
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/20/opinion/20dowd.html?_r=1
tells us that according to the General Social Survey, women are less happy than before the 1970’s, and men feel better. But why?

Well, first let me ask a few questions about the survey, for example, how is “happiness” defined? What questions were asked? To whom? By whom? How representative were they? And if all that checks out, then let’s go ahead and ask why we might be generally less content than 40 years ago.

I bet a lot of this decline in happiness is related to economics, and a second influence being our inexperience and discomfort with the practice and power of taking care of ourselves.

Women have more educational and career choices in America than we did when I was in high school in the early 70’s, but due to economic policies that have favored… … …