Excitement is escalating as the 7th Annual Statewide We Are Girls Conference approaches. November 15th will be filled with tons of learning and laughter as girls explore issues such as bullying, body image, and being a girl. We Are Girls featured conference speakers SaulPaul, Ragen Chastain, and Jaime Horn will share their messages and experiences to empower and encourage girls to take the lead.
Featured conference speaker Jaime Horn has over 14 years of experience in communications, politics and international development. In January 2013, she co-launched The Andi Leadership Institute for Young Women (ALI) which seeks to equip the next generation of female peacebuilders, both international and domestic, to be future leaders in their communities. Its goal is to provide young women with conflict transformation and leadership skills during their young adult years, to bridge cultural divides, and offer support and mentorship. Jaime Horn and program director, Kimberly Massey from ALI will talk about how to create your own ‘Trail to Triumph’!
Kimberly Massey holds an MA in Conflict Transformation and has worked with youth for 11 years in various leadership, mentorship, and educational roles. She has worked with international youth programs in leadership, peace and intercultural understanding since 2009. In her capacity as a leader, she has served as program facilitator and faculty for Iraqi, Serbian, Danish, Mexican, Libyan, Egyptian, Tunisian, and Cypriot student programs. Through her work, she has facilitated dialogue, created and led experiential workshops, and worked on all aspects of the programmatic arrangements. Prior to her work with international youth programming Ms. Massey administered restorative justice programs and coordinated reconciliation circles for community members, crime victims, offenders and returning prisoners.
Joining Jaime and Kimberly will be two of eight young women selected to participate in the 2014 ALI program for peacebuilding training in Washington, D.C. Jamie Aron and Minahil Shahid will talk about their own experiences in overcoming difficult life lessons and how to use one’s own strength and voice as a leader to rise above challenging times.
Jamie Aron, age 19, is a sophomore at Mississippi State University’s (MSU) Shackouls Honors College, with a double major in Political Science and Mathematics. Jamie is a Presidential Endowed Scholar, the University’s most prestigious academic award. For her commitment to public service, she was named a Haley Barbour Scholar, in honor of Mississippi’s former governor. Jamie is the founder and director of WE Lead (Women Empowered Leadership Conference), which aims to connect and empower high school women across the southern region. In 2013, she became co-founder and President-elect of the American Association of University Women’s e-affiliate branch at MSU. Jamie recently began an internship with the Borgen Project, which is striving to end global poverty. Jamie is looking forward to the intercultural experience of the ALI program and to bring the learning back to her community to help advocate for positive change around issues such as teen pregnancy and segregation.
Minahil Shahid, age 23, is from Lahore, Pakistan and is working on the Health Reforms Roadmap for the government of Punjab, which seeks to streamline priorities for various social sectors. Currently her focus is on improving service delivery of primary healthcare, with a special focus on family planning. Minahil has also worked with the Center for Economic Research in Pakistan under the Punjab Economic Opportunities Program in which she helped train women and girls from rural areas in the skill of sewing. Minahil graduated from the Lahore University of Management Sciences last year with a major in economics and politics. She hopes to pave the way for females to more actively become part of the public sector and to improve the lives of people in her country through providing them access to basic necessities. Minahil wishes to understand her society better by being able to interact with females from other parts of the world who will be participating in the ALI program.
For more information about the Andi Leadership Institute for Young Women visit www.andileadership.org.
Don’t forget that registration is still open for We Are Girls until November 14th! You can register or apply for a scholarship at www.wearegirls.org. For more information e-mail wearegirls@genaustin.org or call 512-808-4044.