Girl Power
Sunnyside girls raise money to pay for a girl in Haiti to go to school
Girls at Sunnyside Elementary are raising money to help pay school tuition for one or more girls their age in Haiti.
Some of the girls in the Girl Power group at Sunnyside have already had a chance to talk with girls at a school via Skype. Sunnyside students Emily Conlee, a fifth-grader, Ellianna Garcia and Abby Conlee, both fourth-graders, and Zoe Garcia and Stephanie Fundingsland, both third-graders, said the young Haitians were full of questions about what life is like for girls their age in North Dakota. The North Dakota girls learned that life is very different for some of their age mates in Haiti, who might not have the opportunity to go to school because their families are unable to pay tuition. Haiti is still recovering from an earthquake years ago and many families struggle.
“Change in a society starts with children and gender equality is no different,” said Sunnyside reading and math interventionist Sara Medalen in an email. “I believe my job as a teacher is to empower every student to become the best possible version of themselves. I believe the Girl Power project has led to an increased awareness of the power that comes with being literate and the power we have to help girls in other countries and in the U.S. bridge the gap of gender inequality. We believe that strong girls lead to a stronger world. Girl Power!”
Medalen said one of the Sunnyside girls said the girls in Haiti are “just like us” after the group spoke to the young Haitians over the internet.
Last year the group raised money to pay for books for schools in Haiti. This school year the group wants to make an impact on the life of individual young girls through providing an academic scholarship. The group helps children to attend school. Medalen said the Girl Power group will probably get to know which girls they are helping and might have a chance to talk with her via Skype. The school in Haiti is located in Port-au-Prince.
Medalen told the girls in the Girl Power group on Wednesday that the girls in Haiti will also receive T-shirts that say “Girl Power” in English and in Creole French. One of Medalen’s friends will deliver the T-shirts to the school on her next trip to Haiti, which she visits a few times a year.
Medalen, a reading and math interventionist at the school, and fellow teachers McKenzie Jensen, a Title I teacher, and second-grade teacher Amber Sluke, told the girls that they have already raised about $400, enough to pay for tuition for one girl in Haiti. But the group wants to pay for more educational scholarships.
On Wednesday, the girls gathered in groups to discuss ways to sell more T-shirts at a prophet to help pay for more tuitions. Each girl was assigned a role in their small groups and asked to record the conversation or to keep the group on task or to do the research on the internet about how best to sell at a profit.
Medalen said Jeremy Feller from the Power of 1 and Denise Larson from All American Trophy donated T-shirts for the girls at Sunnyside and in Haiti.
The Girl Power group meets several times a month at Sunnyside. Medalen said they plan to bring in women who are in nontraditional careers to speak with students during this school year.
“We really want the girls to be empowered by strong women,” said Medalen.
The young group members are very clear on the fact that they are not better than boys, but deserve all of the same opportunities that boys receive.
Worldwide that is sadly often not the case. Medalen said a staggering number of girls worldwide are not given an opportunity to go to school or even to learn how to read.
People who want to purchase T-shirts and help fund tuition for a girl in Haiti can find more information on the group’s Facebook site at @sunnysidegirlpower.