Young women have always faced challenges growing up. Although we have made much progress in the last decade, it is still very important to continue to prepare girls to not only face these challenges, but to excel as adults in their careers and in their relationships. With the public school system already overburdened, leaders in our community have seen this need and some have assumed the responsibility of sharing their expertise, time, and talents to lead this new generation.
Destiny’s Daughters of Promise is a premiere leadership organization preparing teen girls to thrive in their purpose, lead with confidence, and excel in the workforce. Led by Executive Director Lorraine Thomas, the Cobb-based nonprofit partners with local schools, corporations, churches, foundations, and local businesses providing life skills education to equip young women with a path to healthy, adult independence. Through robust educational workshops offered to 5th-12th grade girls, they prepare students for college, careers, and community service.
What DDP offers are a variety of opportunities for youth to participate in life-enhancing workshops facilitated by professionals and subject matter experts. The sessions are offered from August through May during the school year. The primary categories of the sessions are: Healthy Relationships and Basic Life Skills; Academic Enrichment; and Community Service. Their programming is delivered by educated professionals who focus on the development of young girls in a safe and supportive environment. In addition to classroom time, participants also get out in the community to engage in service activities. To make the classroom presentations more accessible, virtual sessions have been added and are open to girls nationwide.
Serious about their program’s effectiveness, leadership has collected data on outcomes of the program. In 2020, they found that participants on average had medium to high scores for the self-esteem/self-efficacy scale, indicating moderate success at developing self-esteem and self-efficacy among program participants.
“We will be celebrating our 11th Annual Girls to Women Leadership Symposium this April. This has been an amazing experience for our girls over the years and we are looking for volunteers to serve as ‘Mentors for the Day.’ The event is designed for supportive women in the Metro Atlanta area to mentor, speak, interact, and just have fun with the girls. Mentors are encouraged to share insights they have learned along the way with the girls in a small group setting. The event and fundraiser luncheon will be held on April 29, 2023, at Tanyard Creek Overlook in Acworth, Georgia. You can visit https://www.ddpgirls.org/mentors to sign up to be a Mentor for the Day on our website,” shared Executive Director Lorraine Thomas.
To support the leadership education and mentoring work being done through Daughter’s Destiny of Promise, you can make donations here.
