Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Strong Women, Strong Girls
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Sharing the stories of the inspirational leaders and innovators of today is key to Misstropolis’ MISSion. When we learn of the heights others reach, we are more likely to shoot for the stars ourselves. A young constellation of achievement herself, Lindsay Hyde founded Strong Women Strong Girls when she was a freshman at Harvard. Last year she won the Samuel S. Beard Award, part of the prestigious Jefferson Awards, for “Greatest Public Service by an Individual 35 Years or Younger.” Previous winners include Peyton Manning, Lance Armstrong, Faith Hill and Steve Jobs.
Strong Women Strong Girls is the charitable beneficiary of the Fabulous in Full Force event on May 1st. Misstropolis will be there to celebrate all that SWSG does to help build a generation of confident, empowered, happy girls. Tickets are still available to the event but are selling fast. To buy your ticket, click here.
Misstropolis caught up with Lindsay in between flights and speaking engagements. Here’s what she told us about herself, her MISSion, and what you can do to help:
Miss: You are a truly innovative and inspirational woman. What kind of role models did you have as a young girl?
LH: My mother was an incredible role model to me. Growing up, I really thought she could do anything. She was a single parent, so there was a great deal that she took on independently. Seeing her strength has inspired how I try to live my life. I feel fortunate to have her in my life.
Miss: Were there any difficult experiences in your life that made you especially sensitive to the challenges that young girls face in our society?
LH: Many people think that growing up in a single parent family is a challenge, but what I always tell people is that I wasn’t just living with a single mom, I was living with a Super hero! In fact, it was really seeing the power of female role models, and imagining the the possibilities for women and girls, that made me want to work to provide all young girls with that experience. That experience of feeling like they had a super hero in their lives.
Miss: When exactly did you decide to start Strong Women Strong Girls? What made you realize pairing elementary school age girls with college women would be a good fit?
LH: I piloted Strong Women Strong Girls during my senior year in high school. I went to a public high school with a strong ethic of community service and some truly amazing teachers. When I arrived at Harvard, I looked for existing opportunities on campus to work with girls and when I didn’t find any I said, “Hey I already have this curriculum I wrote in high school. I’ll start Strong Women Strong Girls here!”
Originally the reason that pairing college women with girls seemed like a good fit was because we were all college students! However, as I moved forward in developing the program, it became clear that the energy and enthusiasm of college students is unparalleled. Also, because they are closer in age to the girls in the program, they are able to relate to them in a really unique and special way.
Miss: What kind of research did you do while in the process of founding the organization? What unexpected things did you find out?
LH: I am a total research geek, so I love to look at the data and I work really hard to keep current on the literature. In my initial research, which included the AAUW reports “Shortchanging Girls, Shortchanging America” and “How Schools Shortchange Girls,” I found that a lot of what the research was finding very much resonated with my own experiences. As many girls know, our self-esteem takes a huge hit during our middle school years. But, with good champions and good guidance it is something we can make it through!
Miss: What are some of the challenges you have faced in scaling the organization into other schools and other cities?
LH: Entering into new communities has been an incredibly exciting process! As businesses increasingly become more global, and as technology because more readily and inexpensively accessible, distance is becoming less of a challenge in managing enterprises. And, what we have found over and over again is that it all comes down to building meaningful, authentic relationships with individuals. That translates across any geography!
Miss: Who are some of your favorite historical role models?
LH: Eleanor Roosevelt is definitely a hero for me! I also greatly admire Katherine Graham. I think her work at the Washington Post was so pioneering.
Miss: What do you respect most in a person? In a woman, in a man? (A little Proust here!)
LH: I most respect the desire and ability of a person to build meaningful, authentic relationships. Reaching out across difference, across traditional boundaries, or even just across our increasingly tight schedules, is incredibly important.
Miss: What is your vision for SWSG’s future, in the short term and long?
LH: To serve more girls, better. We’re using a new metric to think about our growth and development, which is “lives touched.” We want to meaningfully engage girls in communities across Massachusetts and across the country to ensure that they have the champions and role models who can support them!
Miss: What are some of the greatest challenges you currently face?
LH: FUNDING, FUNDING, AND MORE FUNDING. We have so many girls who are interested and excited about the program but as a young organization building infrastructure is really core to what we need to be doing.
We are also always looking for volunteers to get involved with us! Here are 10 ways people can get involved!
1. Come visit us at Fabulous in Full Force!
2. Become a member of the strong women, strong girls mentor-to-mentor program.
3. Make an in-kind contribution, such as office space, printing services, or event space
4. Spread the word in your community or office by hosting a “lunch and learn”
5. Make a donation to strong women, strong girls at http://www.swsg.org
6. Volunteer as a speaker for a strong women, strong girls field trip
7. Become a member of the board of directors
8. Write an article about strong women, strong girls for a publication you read
9. Lead a workshop for SWSG volunteer mentors
10. Talk to your local schools about bringing strong women, strong girls to your community!
Comments
Thought this was an article of special importance to those of us who have daughters. The interview give us all a lot to think about and shows us all, once again, just how much one determined individual can accomplish.
Thank you, Robin!
Diane, I agree. Speaking with Lindsay was exciting and inspirational on a lot of levels. I was impressed with the way that she took what can be a deflating experience for many girls and turned it into personal motivation to act. And the concept of grounding the “curriculum” on the work of extraordinary historical women is brilliant. It’s like SWSG is creating an extended family, with each new generation buoyed up by the actions of their ancestors!
Great work, Lindsay! What a fabulous program you’ve created. It’s particularly impressive that you started this in HIGH SCHOOL and kept it up. Great article/interview—thank you Lindsay and Robin, Marty
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