Building upon the success of our Voices Her'd leadership development program for young women and addressing the lack of targeted programming for girls on a citywide level, Groundswell is joining five other organizations, including Girls Write Now, Lower Eastside Girls Club, PowerPlay NYC, Row New York, and Sadie Nash, to establish and pilot the STARS CityWide Girls Initiative with the support of the New York City Council.  
 
The Initiative will create more than 1,000 spots in afterschool and summer programming for young women of color in all five boroughs. These programs will help young women and girls overcome barriers to success, take control of their lives and develop as leaders in their communities through the arts, academic enrichment, STEM, college prep, and sports.  
 
This spring, Groundswell will serve upwards of 100 young women through five projects as a part of the STARS Initiative, including: 
 

• A mural highlighting substance abuse recovery with VIP Community Services in the Bronx; 

• A mural created in partnership with the Community League of the Heights (CLOTH) and New York City Council Member Ydanis Rodriguez in Washington Heights; 

• The fourth mural in Groundswell's Transform/Restore: Brownsville series in partnership with the New York City Department of Probation and the Pitkin Avenue Business Improvement District; 

• A mural at a Riker's Island jail facility created by incarcerated young women in partnership with the New York City Department of Correction and the New York City Department of Education; and 

• The presentation of the spring section of Groundswell's Voices Her'd program, which will result in the creation of a mural in East Harlem on the causes and effects of gendered violence.

 
Follow our STARS Citywide Girls Initiative projects, as well as those of our partner organizations with the hashtag #STARSnycgirls on Facebook and Twitter.