Powerful Choices offered by Powerful Voices at Denny International Middle School
Powerful Choices offers a school-based program for 8th grade girls at Denny International and Asa Mercer Middle Schools. The goal of Powerful Choices programs is to create a space for middle school female youth to: - Be involved in a community of supportive adults, partners, and peers. - Build a supportive and encouraging community with other girls. - To increase communication skills, including stating needs, listening, and empathy. - Develop respect for self and others through the exploration of identity, privilege, and oppression. - Develop skills to be able to identify the difference between a healthy and unhealthy relationship and refusal skills. - Develop leadership through social responsibility and activism. - Grow through connections with community activists, resources, and role models. During the school year, girls meet once a week as a whole group at middle schools, in addition to having monthly one-on-one meetings with a Powerful Voices staff member to discuss areas of growth and personal goals.
Physical Address
2601 Southwest Kenyon Street, Seattle, WA 98106
Hours
M-Th, 9am-5pm.
Application process
Operates thru self-referral or referrals from teachers, counselors, parents/guardians, as well as peer recruitment and outreach. Recruitment is in September.
Fee
None.
Eligibility
Youth who identify as female in 8th grade at Asa Mercer or Denny Middle Schools.
Service area
King, WA
Agency info
Powerful Voices
Invites girls to realize their dreams, engage their communities, and shape a more just world. Works with girls so that they can achieve physical and emotional health needed for social well-being. Girls learn to choose freedom from physical, psychological, and sexual harm. Personal safety and health are the critical foundation upon which we build healthy relationships and safe communities. We embrace the existence of many ideologies, racial or ethnic classifications, cultures, gender identities, generations, socio-economic classes, sexual orientations, nationalities, abilities and life experiences. Powerful Voices respects and appreciates the diversity of the girls we serve, and amongst Board, staff and supporters. Intentional inclusion of many voices leads to creative solutions for issues impacting girls and our community. JUSTICE: We believe in a more just society and work to promote equity. We work toward making equitable gains in health, economic, educational and legal systems. Recognizing that disparity exists among girls, we serve girls with the highest needs and those with limited access to opportunity. INNOVATION: We believe innovation enables us to fulfill our mission. We employ creativity and critical thought to develop new solutions and approaches. Our innovation honors proven practices while leveraging opportunities. INTEGRITY: We believe in acting with integrity. We are ethical, fair, honest, authentic and accountable. Integrity is fundamental to leadership, governance, operations and programming. WE LEAD PROGRAMS THAT BUILD GIRLS’ STRENGTHS AND RESPOND TO THEIR NEEDS. Through school- and community-based groups, girls will gain skills to develop healthy relationships, increase 21st century skills that lead to economic security, develop respect for self and others through the exploration of identity and develop leadership through activism and service. YOUTH EMPLOYMENT Girls will participate in group-based training focused on employable skills such as public speaking, project management, teamwork and communication. Projects will culminate in girl-led social justice projects such as workshops at Powerful Voices’ Girlvolution Conference and the production of a print and online Zine. CASE MANAGEMENT Girls affected by violence will be matched one-to-one with a Case Manager who supports them in setting and achieving goals in academics, employment and basic needs, while also developing skills such as communication, goal setting, time management, accountability, and self-advocacy. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT Powerful Voices will partner with others to advance social justice through workshops for girls in detention, 1:1 mentoring (Adult Ally program), training other providers to use our curriculum (Girl Justice), and girl-led conference on social justice issues (Girlvolution). Powerful Voices will also be an active member of community coalitions such as the Seattle Youth Violence Prevention Initiative and King County Juvenile Detention Oversight Committee.