Girl Power! Club

Program Overview

Youth Outreach Services is a nonprofit organization that sponsors substance abuse prevention programs for youth in Chicago. The organization's program directors recognized that girls face unique developmental issues and challenges and that traditional prevention programs designed for boys do not always meet girls' needs. Therefore, they decided to create an afterschool club specifically targeted to girls.

Youth Outreach Services' Girl Power! Club is a year-round program that involves girls from three schools in Chicago, Illinois. Approximately 90 percent of the girls who participate are Hispanic/Latina. The purpose of the club is to engage girls in positive activities that help them develop skills, establish friendships, and build self-esteem. Studies have shown that participation in such activities is an effective strategy for preventing substance abuse and other risky behaviors. The Girl Power! Club offers a safe afterschool gathering place where girls can share quality time and provides girls with a healthy alternative to joining gangs or becoming involved in other risky behaviors.

Program Format

The Girl Power! Club meets once a week after school. Some days are devoted to indepth discussions of issues such as alcohol and drug prevention, self-esteem, leadership, and teamwork. Other days are devoted to creative writing and offer girls the opportunity to share their favorite poems with each other. During each meeting, some time is spent playing games that teach the girls about themselves and provide a fun outlet for their creative energy.

The girls also engage in long-term art projects. The first major project was a mural that the girls designed and painted. The project began with a group discussion about the purpose and value of public art. The girls brainstormed positive images and messages they wanted to share with the community and worked together to complete the project. The mural was installed in a storefront window of the Youth Outreach Services building with the following statement signed by the girls: "Girls drew this mural to express their personality, thoughts, and feelings. We can do anything when we put our minds together. This mural is by girls who have chosen a special road...their own!" Subsequent murals the girls have created have been used to beautify the Youth Outreach Services building and local schools.

Media Outreach

Youth Outreach Services has yet to focus on widespread media outreach. Instead, the organization distributes informational flyers about the Girl Power! Club to area schools and relies on word of mouth.

Funding

Youth Outreach Services is a nonprofit organization that receives state grant money for its prevention programs, including the Girl Power! Club.

Use of Girl Power! Products

Youth Outreach Services uses the Girl Power! diaries to encourage creative writing. In addition, girls who participate in the club receive Girl Power! bookmarks, pins, and posters. These items serve as recruitment incentives and help the girls feel that they are part of a national effort.