Girl Up Members Attend the NJ Coalition Advocacy Summit

Event Summary

On Saturday, February 17th, 57 Girl Up members from 20 different high schools and colleges all over the state of New Jersey attend the 2nd annual NJ Coalition Advocacy Summit in Erdman Center, Princeton. At the summit, 8 members of the Girl Up NJ Coalition Board host a program in which attendees are able to learn more about the “by girls, for girls” mission and how to become more involved in the United Nations Foundation campaign. Members of the Coalition Board prepared a PowerPoint presentation, in which they cover the three main pillars of the campaign: fundraising, advocacy, and spreading awareness, and invited amazing guest speakers, including Miss Seashore Line 2018 Kyra Seeley and Senator Cory Booker’s Deputy State Director Hanna Mori.

About Girl Up
Girl Up is a United Nations Foundation campaign that works with UN programs such as UNHCR and UN Women to give adolescent girls in developing countries social and economic opportunities and an equal chance for quality education, health, safety, and. Currently, there are over 1,800 Girl Up clubs in 48 U.S. states and 98 countries around the world, and the campaign is continuing to grow with every conference and fundraiser organized by students. Ever since its launch in 2010, Girl Up has been able to raise more than $8.5 million, implement policies such as the Girls Count Act, directly impact 66,000 girls through funds and supplies, and bring together half a million girls around the world.

Sarah Xiao, the Girl Up Coalition Leader of New Jersey, is a senior at Freehold Township High School and the president of her school’s Girl Up club. She has been planning this event with the Executive Board (pictured above) for more than a month, and is thrilled with the turnout. By spreading the word to their individual school clubs and through social media, these 8 girls have been able to fill up the entire Cooper Conference Room with both chapter leaders and new members alike. Through this event, the NJ Coalition was able to raise more than $850 for the Girl Up campaign.

Guest Speakers

At the event, Kyra Seeley, who is currently a junior at Rutgers University, and Meadow Paliotta, a freshman at Ridgewood High School, share their platforms of volunteerism and body positivity, respectively. Both inspiring pageant winners share their personal stories of giving back to the community and interacting with youth to encourage them to do the same.
Fatima Jaffari, a co-founder of the award-winning interfaith youth program, Garden State MOSAIC, speaks about her work with teens from diverse faith backgrounds in middle and high schools in the Monmouth County area. Through her multi-faith educational program, Fatima helps youth practice leadership and communication skills, in addition to teaching positive ways to address the differences in all faiths and values. From past experience, Fatima has witnessed first-hand the powerful impact that education can have on children. “If you give a girl in a developing country one book, she will treasure it more than anything, because to her, education is a privilege,” states the program leader and mother of 5 children.
Finally, Hanna Mori, Senator Cory Booker’s Deputy State Director, speaks about her career in politics and Booker’s work with women and girls both domestically and internationally. Two of the several bills which the Senator has supported are S.2120 International Violence Against Women Act and S.1730 Reach Every Mother and Child Act.

Girl Up’s Goal Right Now

On October 3, 2017, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 2408, the Protecting Girls’ Access to Education in Vulnerable Settings Act with unanimous consent. Introduced by Rep. Steve Chabot (OH), Rep. Robin Kelly (IL), Senator Marco Rubio (FL), and Senator Robert Menendez (NJ), the bill focuses on the 65 million people who have been displaced from their homes, especially the 50% who are under the age of 18. Girls who flee from their homes are often the most vulnerable and are the least likely to be in school. When refugee girls cannot attend school, they become extremely vulnerable to human trafficking, early marriage, and forced labor. Now that the bill has passed the House of Representatives, it is now known as S. 1580, and Girl Up is more determined than ever to urge Senators to cosponsor it.
The NJ Coalition Advocacy Summit is just one of the many steps Girl Up is taking to bring awareness to everyone--girls and boys alike-- the problems underprivileged girls face every day. With the help of passionate leaders like the students on the Girl Up NJ Coalition Board, the U.S. is becoming more aware of the girls who are hardest to reach and taking action to support them.