The Girls Inc. public policy team has been particularly busy on Capitol Hill this spring, advocating and hosting events to raise awareness about issues that affect girls’ lives.

On May 1 we will host our annual Take Our Daughters to Congress Day event with the Women’s Congressional Policy Institute. This event will give 20 Girls Inc. girls from around the U.S. the opportunity to shadow a female member of Congress for the day. Take Our Daughters to Congress Day helps the girls envision themselves as the future leaders of our country and helps them better understand how our system of government works. The historic number of women in office makes this year’s event especially thrilling! Follow along on our social media channels on May 1 – the photos are always great!

On March 25, we co-hosted a Women’s History Month event on the Hill with MENTOR, YMCA, Boys & Girls Clubs of America, and other youth development partners, to highlight the importance of strong mentoring relationships in the lives of girls and women and the importance of federal funding to support youth mentoring programs. Local girls who attended got to hear from Reps. Brenda Lawrence (D-TX) and Sheila Jackson Lee (D-MI) and got to participate in discussions with the adults in the room about the mentors and role models who inspired, challenged, and championed them.

Then on March 28, we co-sponsored – with Planned Parenthood, Advocates for Youth, and SIECUS, the Sexuality Information & Education Council of the U.S. – a Hill briefing on the history of sex education, the policy landscape today, and the importance of Comprehensive Sex Education that is culturally responsive and trauma informed. Girls Inc. of New York City staff member Sofia Quintero spoke to an audience of congressional staffers and advocates about the barriers that youth of color face with respect to accessing healthy sexuality education and how Girls Inc. programming makes a difference for girls.