GEN's Voice

Issue 32
February 2004

In This Issue:

Here’s what’s going on in February:

“Secrets to Raising Parents You Can Live With”

Do you wish your relationship with your mom was better sometimes? If you want more fun, freedom, and respect, less fighting, frustration and fewer rules, discover the power of effective communication and the art of negotiation. Learn simple strategies to get your mom to listen to you, respect your opinions, and trust you more. Unlock the mysteries of "parent psychology," decode confusing things parents say, and learn positive steps you can take when your parents are/mom is unfair in this interactive 1- hour workshop with local teen-parent  counselor, Donna Rose, LPC. 

For girls.
Thursday, February 5, 3:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m., Canyon Vista Middle School

“Dads and Daughters: Heart-to-Heart.”

Dads will learn what they can do to help their daughters be all they can be. Daughters will be encouraged to confide, through a facilitator, those things they need from their fathers to feel more confident, competent and strong. Dads also will share with one another what seems to work in forging strong father-daughter bonds. Join fellow dads and Juan Sanchez, Ed.D. Executive Director of Southwest Key Program, for a memorable morning with your special Valentine.  Breakfast will be served.

For girls and fathers.
Wednesday, February 11th, 7:30 a.m. – 9 a.m., Mendez Middle School library

“Supporting Your Daughter’s Healthy Sense of Self.”

Girls are saturated with messages telling them that attractiveness, sex appeal and popularity are their most important values. This often leads to a steep decline in self-esteem in the middle school years. Shannon Huggins, LMSW –ACP, from Creekside Mental Health, will walk parents through what they can do to support their daughters’ inner selves and what girls can do to resist unhealthy messages.

For Parents.
Thursday, February 12th, 11:30 a.m., Westridge Middle School

“Ancient Tools for Modern Girls.”

Come get a taste of how yoga can help your mind, body and spirit. Learn basic yoga moves and how to incorporate relaxation techniques into your daily life. Understand your body in a way completely different from what fashion magazines tell you, and find out how to let go of stress at home and at school. Yoga is fun! Wear comfortable clothing. It’s best to do yoga on an empty stomach; if you need to eat beforehand, please eat lightly. Anita Stoll, LMSW-ACP, is a certified hatha yoga instructor, and Kelly Inselmann, LMSW-ACP, is a certified kundalini yoga instructor.

For girls
Thursday, February 19th, 3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m., Kealing Middle School

GENaustin’s Speaker Series guest Rachel Simmons, bestselling author of Odd Girl Out: The Hidden Culture of Aggression, and Odd Girl Speaks Out: Girls Write About Bullies, Cliques, Popularity, and Jealousy in , filled the house and then some on January 22.

A capacity crowd of about 250 listened and asked questions of Rachel and a panel of three clubGEN teen facilitators. Attendees found Rachel’s presentation relevant to their interests, and supported the focus of programs GEN offers – we are clearly offering programs that are meaningful to girls, parents, and those who work with them.

Special thanks go out to our event co-chairs Nicole Basham and Christine Carlucci, our event sponsors The Silverton Foundation, the Dell Jewish Community Center, Harcourt Publishing, BookWoman, and Milkshake Media.  Thanks also to businesses that provided food and raffle items:  Quack’s 43^rd Street Bakery, Jo’s Hot Coffee, Amy’s Ice Cream, Soccer World, Toy Joy, and Bath and Body Works.  Thanks also go out to all our volunteers who made the event run smoothly.

As a bonus – Executive Director, Anita Mennucci, extended Rachel an offer to join GEN’s honorary board, and she quickly accepted saying that GENaustin is a unique organization nationally and that she is proud to be associated with it.  Read more about Rachel’s comments on bullying in this week’s Austin Chronicle:  http://www.austinchronicle.com/issues/dispatch/2004-01-23/books_feature.html

The GENaustin Expert is GEN’s online resource for girls and parents seeking answers to questions they may not be comfortable asking anyone else. For the past year, the woman behind the “Expert” has been Stacy Miles-Thorpe, LMSW.

Stacy says that issues affecting girls and women have been important to her since college, when she first read “Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions” by Gloria Steinem. “These issues are even more important now that I have a daughter of my own, now 2 years old. In addition to a baby doll, she also got a Tonka truck for Christmas!” said Stacy.

“Answering ‘Ask the Expert’ questions this past year has been fun, interesting, and challenging,” said Stacy. “My degree is in clinical social work, and much of my experience in counseling is with domestic violence, sexual assault, and child abuse survivors, including adults, teens, and children. This experience has really been helpful in answering some of the tough questions that people ask.”

During the past year, Stacy has seen an increase in the number of questions submitted online. She receives about 3-4 questions a week, mostly from girls seeking advice about friends or the opposite sex. She sees occasional questions from parents, usually about their daughters’ relationships with peers or parents.

“One wish I have for girls and their parents is that they spend more time talking with one another. Adolescence is a pretty volatile time—exciting, scary, unpredictable—and teens really need a positive, supportive adult in their life who will listen as much as they talk. I am thankful that an organization like GENaustin is able to provide opportunities for this!”

To ask a question of our expert, go to http://www.genaustin.org/public/content/links_&_advice/links_&_advice.asp

Girls represent more than half the future workforce, but when it comes to engineering, few girls get enough guidance and encouragement to consider a career in this critical field. Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day (Girl Day), sponsored locally by the Women in Engineering Program (WEP) at the University of Texas at Austin and the Southwest Texas Section of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE), is celebrated across the United States during National Engineers Week each year. Their goal is to let girls of all ages know that they are not only wanted, they are genuinely neededto be engineers.

Girl Day will be held at the University of Texas at Austin campus, February 28, 4:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m. Registration for 1st-9th grades is FULL, but the organization is accepting names for the waiting list. There are still spots available for girls in grades 10-12, and organizers recommend signing up soon!

For more information, and to register, go to:
http://www.engr.utexas.edu/wep/Precollege/Programs/girl_day/index.htm

Ladyfest Texas, the non-profit, woman-centered arts and music festival, is now accepting submissions for music, film, art, spoken word and workshops to be included in the 2004 festival. The event will be held May 27 - 30, 2004 at various creative spaces in Austin including The Alamo Drafthouse, Jo's Coffee, and the University of Texas campus.

GENaustin has been selected as a beneficiary for this year’s festival, which last year raised more than $5,000 for GEN and Casa Amiga.

The Ladyfest Texas mission is to provide a forum to celebrate, showcase and encourage the artistic, organizational and political talents of women. The festival will feature performances by bands, spoken word artists, authors, visual artists and filmmakers, as well as workshops and panel discussions.

The deadline to submit is February 15th, 2004. Interested artists should visit the Ladyfest Texas website at http://www.ladyfesttx.org and download the submission form.

Marci Winters Allen, writer, producer and director of the PBS film Sweetwater will host two “on-camera” weekend acting workshops—one for ages 5-8, one for ages 12-17—February 21-22 at the Acclaim Talent Agency in Austin. The workshop for ages 5-8 will meet from 10:00 a.m.-noon and will focus on improvisation and games, and is $70 for the two-day session. The 12-17 year old group will meet from 1:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m. and will concentrate on improvisation scene study. The cost is $100 for the two-day workshop.

For more information contact Marci at [email protected] , or 707-1097 between 10-5pm Monday-Friday.

Latinitas Magazine, a nonprofit, bilingual webzine for young Latinas, is celebrating its first anniversary publishing on the Web. Come join the party on Sunday February 15, 5:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. at Ruta Maya Coffee House, 3601 S. Congress Avenue. A suggested donation of $5 will go directly to supporting Latinitas Magazine mission to inform, entertain, and inspire young Latinas to grow into healthy, confident, and successful Latina women.

Check out Latinitas Magazine online at - http://www.latinitasmagazine.org

GENaustin's programs are made possible through the generous support of 3M, Alice Kleberg Reynolds Meyer Foundation, Austin Independent School District, Austin Wine Merchant, Austin Ventures, the Dell Foundation, the Favrot Foundation, the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, the Silverton Foundation, Milkshake Media, Shoes for Austin and the Webber Family Foundation.

GENaustin has been selected to take part in Buffalo Exchange’s Tokens for Bags Program. The program allows customers to choose to receive a token instead of a bag when making their purchase and the token represents a cash donation to a particular charity. So the next time you’re shopping at Buffalo Exchange (2904 Guadalupe), be sure to forego the bag and help out GENaustin by placing your token in our box. Our box is in the middle!

Now you can support GENaustin and its important programs simply by shopping online. Just go to http://www.genaustin.org/public/content/getinvolved/shop.asp and follow the links to more than 400 stores, including Barnes & Noble, Land's End, Ann Taylor, Linens-n-Things, Neiman Marcus, L.L. Bean, Dell, Amazon.com, JC Penney, Old Navy, Gap and many more!

Also, mention GENaustin when you shop at Giada, a unique boutique and gift shop just west of downtown, and 2% of your sale will go directly to GENaustin. GENaustin is excited to be a part of Giada's Community Investment Program. Giada is located at 704 W. 6th St., one block west of Katz' Deli. The phone number for Giada is (512) 457-8881.

Inspired by the book Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls, GENaustin, a non-profit, 501(c)3 organization, was formed in 1996.

GENaustin is a non-profit organization based in Austin, TX, and was founded in 1996. GENaustin is made up of volunteers committed to helping girls grow into healthy, confident women who feel valued for what's inside, and not outside, themselves. Our mission is to help adolescent girls develop and maintain healthy self-esteem through the education of the girls, their parents, their teachers and others who touch their lives. 

For more information, please visit our Web site at www.genaustin.org. Our mailing address is P.O. Box 3122, Austin TX, 78764. You may call us at (512) 414-0472 or email us at [email protected].

If this email has been forwarded to you by someone else, please join our newsletter mailing list! Subscribe by sending an email with a subject line of ‘subscribe’ (without the quotes) to [email protected]. or call us at (512) 414-0472. Your email address will be kept confidential and will not be used for any other purpose.

If you would like to be removed from our newsletter mailing list, please send an email with a subject of ‘unsubscribe’ (without the quotes) to [email protected] or call us at (512) 414-0472.

This site was last updated on 04/04/2005.

Copyright © GENaustin, Inc. 2001. All rights reserved. GEN, GENaustin, and GENaustin logos used and displayed herein are registered and unregistered trademarks of GENaustin, Inc. All other trademarks, service marks and logos used herein are the property of their respective owners. Email us at office@genaustin.org.