Donorbox is proud to showcase GirlForward, a nonprofit organization that aims to empower teen refugee girls by providing them with educational and leadership opportunities. The organization, located in Chicago and Austin, offers offers three programs: a mentoring program, summer education program and after-school tutoring. In all three of these settings, the young women get to interact with each other as well as with their mentors. These programs aim to help solve some of the main challenges faced by young refugee populations, such as poverty, limited education, language barriers, social isolation, trauma, and a need for role models.
Blair Brettschneider, founder of GirlForward, decided that she wanted to start a mentoring program for young refugee girls after working at a refugee resettlement agency in Chicago. There, she worked with Domi, an 18 year old refugee from Congo who was incredibly academically motivated, hoping to go to college and become a nurse. Unfortunately, it was easy to see how few opportunities were made available to this young woman and others like her. Brettschneider noticed how, in the refugee community, there are very few girls present in after-school programs once you reach middle school, and even fewer in high school or higher education. These girls tend to have more domestic responsibilities and expectations, making it increasingly difficult for them to focus on furthering their education.
This was the case for Domi, who was struggling to balance school and her home life, having to leave her after-school tutoring sessions early to cook dinner and care for her siblings. Brettschneider believed that by creating a program like GirlForward, where young women could interact one-on-one with adults as well as other refugee girls their own age, she could help foster an environment focused on education and opportunity. She started meeting with Domi and nine other girls on a weekly basis, helping them practice their english but also giving them somewhere to play and talk, as girls their age should be able to. These weekly sessions quickly blossomed into what Girl Forward is today.
One of Brettschneider’s biggest accomplishments at GirlForward is sending graduates of the program off to college. Currently, the percentage of women who have graduated from the GirlForward mentoring program and have gone on to attend college — be it a 4 year school, a community college, or a professional training program — is close to 100%. In fact, thanks to her mentoring sessions, Domi was able to graduate high school and enroll in nursing school. The organization also prides itself on its ability to provide the girls with unique opportunities. In 2015, GirlForward was selected for Reader’s Digest’s “Best of America” issue, allowing 17 refugee girls, as well as a few staff members, to travel to Washington D.C. to visit the nation’s capital.
For the future, Brettschneider plans on expanding the program to more cities, aiming to reach out to an even larger refugee population. After testing out a pilot program last year, GirlForward officially launched the Mentoring Program in Austin this year, marking the start of their nationwide expansion.
In order to keep this incredible program going, Brettschneider relies mostly on grants and contributions from individual donors. GirlForward has been using Donorbox since November and has already raised over $15,000, but is looking to increase its number of recurring donors. The program’s budget is currently just under $300k, with every dollar going straight to a girl’s mentorship; but as it expands, so must its revenue. If you are interested in donating to Girl Forward and helping young refugee women adapt to their news lives in the United States, click here.
