Education

What Our Grantees Are Doing: Increasing STEM Opportunities for Girls

Posted on by Wendy-Nia Griffin

Pics Science and Engineering on National MallWendy-Nia Griffin is the S.I.S.T.E.R.S program director at Family Support Center, a Maryland nonprofit that offers social and mental health services to families and schools in the metro area.  FSC has received grants from The Women’s Foundation for the S.I.S.T.E.R.S. (Self, Image, Strength, Tenacity, Empathy, Responsibility, Success) after-school empowerment program. S.I.S.T.E.R.S. offers comprehensive outreach, education and mentoring for pre-adolescent and adolescent girls.

From one S.I.S.T.E.R.S. to another sister — this program is making a difference in the lives of tween girls by  imbuing concrete coping and decision-making skills.  The S.I.S.T.E.R.S. groups go straight to the crux of what impacts young girls like bullying and self image, healthy relationships, peer pressure and healthy bodies. The girls set the agenda and thus the group is socially and culturally relevant.

Part of being relevant means taking a look at areas that need improvement, so we recognized that the U.S. lags behind in leadership in the STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) fields.  That prompted us to start an initiative within S.I.S.T.E.R.S called S.I.S.T.E.R.S in Science.  Our agenda remains ambitious and has included a trip to the National Science and Engineering Festival and visits from traditional scientists as well as kitchen scientists (who showed us that scientists can really cook!).

Our culminating event will take us to visit the National Institutes of Health, to expose the S.I.S.T.E.R.S. to world renowned scientists.  There, they will get to use NIH’s top notch facilities in hands on experiments.  Next year the S.I.S.T.E.R.S. program will send the winner of the S.I.S.T.E.R. in Science of the Year Award to the University of Maryland’s Women in Engineering Program.  All we ask is that when she wins the Nobel Prize for Science and Engineering, she remembers to give a shout out to the S.I.S.T.E.R.S.!

Photo: A member of the S.I.S.T.E.R.S. program investigates the wonders of the human brain.  Photo courtesy of Wendy-Nia Griffin.

The Daily Rundown — The Latest News Affecting Women & Girls in Our Region

Posted on by Mariah Craven

After a holiday hiatus, your headline hungry daily rundowner is back and ready to bring you the most important women and girls’ news in 2011.  In today’s rundown: The posse that goes to college together. | Tax season volunteer opportunities. | Recognition for those who advance human rights in northern Virginia.

The DC EITC Campaign is accepting volunteers for the tax season.  This campaign to raise awareness for the Earned Income Tax Credit provides free tax preparation services and financial support to low-income DC residents.  Click here for details and to sign up.

A “posse” of local high school students has received full-tuition college scholarships.  The Posse Foundation gave 62 students more than $8 million in scholarships.  Groups of 10 students (a posse) will go to top colleges together.  NBC Washington has the details.

The Fairfax County Human Rights Commission is now accepting nominations for its 33rd Annual Human Rights Awards. The awards recognize businesses, nonprofits and individuals who advanced human rights in Fairfax County last year.  Submissions are due by February 28th. (via WAMU)

The Daily Rundown — The Latest News Affecting Women & Girls in Our Region

Posted on by Mariah Craven

CB101780In today’s rundown: The impact education has on local employment. | A new bill in the City Council could bring fresh fruits and vegetables to some of D.C.’s poorest neighborhoods. | And a look at how to address the under-representation of women in U.S. politics.

— In the Washington Examiner, Jonetta Rose Barras takes a look at why some D.C. residents don’t have an adequate education and the impact it’s having on their employment.  The Women’s Foundation’s new report, Portrait Project 2010, found that women in our region with degrees earn three times more than women without a high school diploma ($70,000 vs. $18,000).

— Some members of the D.C. Council are proposing legislation that would give subsidies to markets that carry fruits and vegetables.  The recipients of the subsidies would be in “food deserts,” areas of the city where it’s easier to buy junk food.  Currently, there are only three grocery stores available to the 140,000 residents who live in Wards 7 and 8.

— Is a “jump start” measure needed to ensure that more women serve in Congress?  About.com’s Women’s Issues blog takes a look at addressing the under-representation of women in U.S. politics.

Photo Credit: Spirit-Fire via Creative Commons

The Daily Rundown — The Latest News Affecting Women & Girls in Our Region

Posted on by Mariah Craven

Girl_at_ComputerIn today’s rundown: A look at education and neighborhoods in Montgomery County. | The impact of a new Early Childhood Center in Alexandria. | A decline in donations to the 400 largest charities in the nation. | And the new debate over the “culture of poverty.”

— A new Century Foundation report finds that sending students from low-income families to schools in wealthier neighborhoods may be better for student performance. The report, “Housing Policy is School Policy,” looks at Montgomery County’s inclusionary zoning rule, which says that housing developers have to set aside units for public housing.

— Early voting begins today in D.C.  For details on how District resident can cast their ballots before November 2nd, please click here.

— A new Early Childhood Center in Alexandria will give preschoolers a chance to go to class in the same building where they’ll be in Kindergarten and first grade.  The center is being offered by the public school system in Alexandria and is supposed to eliminate the achievement gap that some students face when they enter Kindergarten.  Click here for details.

— The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports that there was an 11 percent drop last year in donations to the country’s biggest charities.  It was the worst decline the Chronicle has reported since it began ranking the 400 organizations that raise the most from private sources.

— What role does “culture” play in poverty?  According to The New York Times, some “scholars are… conceding that culture and persistent poverty are enmeshed.”  It’s an idea that has provoked emotional debate in the past.

The Daily Rundown — The Latest News Affecting Women & Girls in Our Region

Posted on by Mariah Craven

In today’s rundown: Commentary: focus on family poverty to eliminate the racial achievement gap in the District’s public schools. | Same work, less pay — Virginia’s persistent gender gap.

— Before the racial achievement gap in D.C. Public Schools is eliminated, the city needs to address family poverty, according to Walter Smith, the executive director of D.C. Appleseed, a Women’s Foundation Grantee Partner.  In a commentary on WAMU, Smith joins Defeat Poverty DC in calling on local candidates for office to explain what they’ll do to address poverty in the District.

— A new report on the gender pay gap from The Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis finds that the higher the income, the wider the gap. The report finds that Virginia has a persistently larger gender pay gap than the region or country as a whole.  The gap widens as incomes and education levels increase.  Click here for more details.

The Daily Rundown — The Latest News Affecting Women & Girls in Our Region

Posted on by Mariah Craven

In today’s rundown: A new study links poverty to depression among mothers. | Efforts to narrow the racial achievement gap in D.C. public schools stall. | D.C.’s first woman varsity football coach takes to the field tonight for Coolidge High’s season opener.

— More than half of babies in poverty are being raised by mothers who show symptoms of mild to severe depression, according to a new study from the Urban Institute, a Women’s Foundation Grantee Partner.  The study found that just 30 percent of depressed low-income mothers of infants spoke to a professional about a mental health problem during the year before the survey was conducted.  Click here for more.

–“After two years of progress, Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee’s effort to narrow the vast achievement gap separating white and African American students in D.C. public schools has stalled,” reports The Washington Post after analyzing 2010 test score data.

— Coolidge Senior High School’s football team is preparing for their first game under new coach Natalie Randolph.  Randolph is believed to be just the second woman in history to lead a high school varsity football team.  Coolidge opens the season tonight at home against Carroll.  Click here for details.

The Daily Rundown — The Latest News Affecting Women & Girls in Our Region

Posted on by Mariah Craven

School_bus_invasionIn today’s rundown: Local school districts win millions in federal funds.  |  Get to know more about D.C.’s public schools on DC Public Education Learning Tours.  |  And local attorneys general join others in a national call to shut down Craigslist’s adult services section.

— Maryland and D.C. schools have won a combined $325 million in Race to the Top federal funds.  Over $4 billion in Race to the Top dollars was awarded to 11 jurisdictions nationwide for efforts to enact educational reforms pushed by the Obama administration.

— Now that school is back in session registration is open for this year’s DC Public Education Learning Tours. Each tour will culminate with a “deep dive” panel discussion around the tour theme.  Click here for more details and to register.

— Craigslist should remove its adult services section because the website is not adequately blocking ads promoting prostitution and child trafficking, attorneys general in 17 states — including Maryland and Virginia — wrote in a joint letter issued this week. Representatives of the online classified site say they’re working to improve measures to block illegal ads.

The Daily Rundown — The Latest News Affecting Women & Girls in Our Region

Posted on by Mariah Craven

For Sale SignIn today’s rundown: Why D.C. needs to change the affordable housing law.  |  Test results show that a disparity in education in Arlington has created two-tier public education system.  |  And honoring the women who shaped history in Montgomery County.

— Washington, DC needs to change the affordable housing law to promote homeownership, writes Shiv Newaldass in The Washington Post. Newaldass — the director of advocacy at Manna, Inc. (a Women’s Foundation Grantee Partner) — adds that promoting homeownership is “the most fundamental way of addressing the asset disparity in the District.”

— New standardized test results released last week by the Virginia Department of Education show widespread disparity in public education in Arlington. Hispanic and black students and those from economically disadvantaged backgrounds were among the student groups that failed to meet federal standards for English or math.  According to the Arlington Connection, the “disparity creates a two-tier system of public education in Arlington….”

— A free booklet that highlights the achievements of women who shaped Rockville’s history and heritage has been released in Montgomery County.  The booklet’s publication coincides with the 90th anniversary of Women’s Equality Day on August 26.  Click here for details on the booklet and where it’s available.

The Daily Rundown — The Latest News Affecting Women & Girls in Our Region

Posted on by Mariah Craven

In today’s rundown: “Why girly jobs don’t pay well.”  |  Back-to-school help for students of all ages and circumstances.  |  Ways to fix D.C.’s youth employment program for next summer.

— The underlying economics of caring do not reward women, according to an economist who is taking a look at “why girly jobs don’t pay well” in today’s New York Times. The article explores why more women choose to go into “care work” — jobs for which there’s no economic measure for output (i.e., teaching).

— Linda Dunphy, executive director of Doorways for Women and Families (a Women’s Foundation grantee), has back-to-school tips for children of all ages and circumstances.  In the Arlington Connection, Linda discusses how to handle everything from collecting school supplies to providing a stable environment for homeless families to discussing dating violence with teens.

— After another controversial end to D.C.’s Summer Youth Employment, an op-ed in The Washington Post offers suggestions for fixing the problem-plagued program, making it more effective without going over budget.

The Daily Rundown — The Latest News Affecting Women & Girls in Our Region

Posted on by Mariah Craven

In today’s rundown: A Grantee Partner testifies about the unique challenges formerly incarcerated women in D.C. face.  The same Grantee Partner — Our Place DC — also discusses how the female condom could empower women.  And tax holidays for back-t0-school shopping are coming up in Maryland and Virginia.

— Earlier this week, Ashley McSwain, the executive director of Our Place DC — a Women’s Foundation Grantee Partner — testified before a House subcommittee at a hearing called “Federal D.C. Code Felons: Unique Challenges in Prison and at Home.”  Our Place DC helps formerly and currently incarcerated women return home from prison.  Click here to watch a webcast of the hearing.

— Our Place DC was also featured in a WAMU story about the efforts to hand out 500,000 female condoms in D.C. by the end of the year. In the story, Ashley McSwain talks about why the female condom gives women more control over their sex lives.

— Shoppers in Maryland and Virginia will be getting a tax break — just in time for back-to-school shopping.  From August 8-14 in Maryland, clothing under $100 will be tax exempt.  And August 6-8 will be a sales tax holiday on some school supplies and clothing in Virginia.  Click here for more details.