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September 2, 2005
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Media Contact: |
Mike Andrei
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The American Association of University Women Buffalo Branch, Inc. Awards Grant for Collaboration between Life Cycles Center, Inc., Daemen College and West Side Community Services to Provide Program for Teen Girls
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The American Association for University Women Buffalo Branch has awarded $820 to Life Cycles Center, Inc. to financially support "Girl Talk", a 6-week educational program that focuses on body changes, body image and media awareness, and positive decision-making skills. The program will partner Life Cycles Center staff with two Daemen College service-learning students who will help facilitate the program for 15 girls. The program is specifically aimed for girls on the West Side.
"There is such a fit between the work we are doing and the AAUW's mission," notes Rae Frank, Executive Director of Life Cycles Center, Inc. "This grant is allowing us to provide supplies and materials that would otherwise not be available to the girls." The Girl Talk program will start in October and will be run in six-week blocks with one two-hour session each week. Eileen Stewart, Founded and Rae Frank will serve as the facilitators for the program and train and supervise two Daemen College service-learning students who will assist in facilitating the sessions. Daemen College and West Side Community Services (161 Vermont St.) will recruit 15 girls to participate. The sessions will take place Life Cycles Center, Inc. at 640 Breckenridge, a home-like space conveniently located only 1.3 miles from WSCC. Since 2003, Daemen students and faculty have provided direct services to poor and low-income youth and families on the West Side of Buffalo through The Daemen College-West Side Partnership. Cheryl Bird is Executive Director of the Center for Sustainable Communities at Daemen College and oversees the efforts of the Partnership. "There is a strong need in the community for after-school activities in the neighborhood, which has been a large component of our efforts. It will be great especially for the girls to be able connect with other girls and also spend time with the older college students." The Girl Talk sessions focus on topics including understanding the menstrual cycle, media and the construction of cultural ideas of beauty; decision-making skills; taking photographs, making images; and understanding media images and marketing techniques. The first half of each session is devoted to sharing information on the topic, and the second is a planned activity, such as beading, that integrates the topic and provides another way of understanding the topic. Girl Talk ends with a celebration of Maidenhood, where girls are encouraged to invite mothers, aunts, or significant women). "Girl Talk is about empowering girls to understand their bodies and, in the end, to prevent teen pregnancy" states Eileen Stewart who founded Life Cycles Center with her sister, Rae Frank. "Our sessions are designed to create a lasting foundation for girls so they make self-respecting choices." Since 1999, Girl Talk has been presented to over 200 girls in public and private schools, community centers, summer camps, and one mental health center. For more information about Life Cycles Center, visit www.lifecyclescenter.org . |