Home | 2007-08 Schedule | Implementation | Steering Committee
University of Missouri-St. Louis • College of Education • Continuing Education
EMPOWERING YOUNG WOMEN
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About the Empowering Young Women Conferences For several decades, counseling and education research has sounded an alarm, calling on teachers, counselors, and parents alike to recognize and address the unique developmental needs of adolescent females. One study in particular, conducted by the American Association of University Women in 1990, found that gifted female students were not achieving at academic and career levels commensurate with their abilities. These study results provided the impetus for the creation of the Empowering Young Women Conference in St. Louis, Missouri. Guided by AAUW findings, the first EYW Conference addressed gender bias in the classroom, sex-role stereotyping, and career options. Given the significance of these issues and the dearth of programming in the St. Louis area to address these needs, the response to the conference was overwhelming. As research continued to emerge in this realm, it became clear that all females--not gifted females alone--possess unique developmental needs that would be best served if addressed through experiences of empowerment. In response, the annual EYW Conference expanded to include adolescent females from throughout the St. Louis area. |
Due to high need and limited time, space, and resources, the EYW Conference redesigned its format to incorporate a train-the-trainer model. This model was implemented with the expectation that conference attendees and their sponsors would take themes and ideas garnered through their participation back to their schools, in an effort to reach more girls. As the research continued to evolve with respect to female needs, it was noted that critical issues of resiliency, once thought to impact girls at the middle- and high-school levels, were becoming more prevalent at earlier ages. In response to these findings, the EYW Conference was expanded to include Girl Talk, Girl Power conferences for fifth- and sixth-grade girls. Since its inception in 1991, the Empowering Young Women Conferences have served about 8,000 young females. While conference themes and activities have varied over the years, the conference's three-fold mission has remained steadfast:
It is our philosophy that empowerment through awareness, action, and female connections forms the foundation for young women to build a balanced sense of self and to set a positive course for the future. School counselors, as agents of change, hold a critical opportunity to facilitate this empowerment process. It is our hope that the Counselor Connection workshop will be the catalyst to initiate, rejuvenate, or perpetuate your empowerment of young women. |
