08/20/2020

Coronavirus Tracker: Meeting Girls’ Needs During the Pandemic

August 20, 2020

Current updates on association response to the global COVID-19 crisis, along with a roundup of conference, travel and business news and information.

Helping Girls Thrive
A new initiative by Alliance for Girls, a California-based coalition of girl-serving organizations, aims to fill the data gap on the needs of girls during the ongoing pandemic and to better meet those needs. When Girls Thrive is a research and advocacy initiative that includes an online survey about the challenges girls and gender-expansive youth currently face.

The COVID-19 crisis has led to closures or reduced availability of services that support girls’ mental, emotional, and physical health, according to the Alliance. Initial survey results indicate that Black youths and youths of color are feeling the most pronounced effects of the pandemic. For example, 10 percent of all respondents and 13 percent of Black or African American respondents reported having no caring adult in their lives, and Black and African American respondents are experiencing more isolation and more difficulty accessing support and safety.

“Even during this challenging time, girls are showing incredible resilience and leadership,” said Emma Mayerson, founding executive director of Alliance for Girls, in a news release. “To make our communities stronger, we must invest in girls by listening to their needs, including them in decision-making that directly impacts their lives, and investing in the ecosystem of champions—individuals, organizations and schools—they depend on.”

Please select this link to read the complete article from Associations Now.