First-year student CJ Mongomery works during the summers to empower young girls through her non-profit Diamonds and Pearls. Read on to find out how she does it!
Her Campus: Tell us about the program!
CJ: The name of the program was Diamonds and Pearls. It was designed so that underprivileged girls could be connected to people who grew up in similar situations could inspire and empower them. I really want to emphasize that I did not do this alone I was apart of the design process, and the other girls left for college so I finished the camp alone. I really developed a relationship with the participants, coworkers, and advisor. It was an amazing experience that I hope I get to participate in again. Upon completion of the program, girls received a stipend of $250 to help with back to school needs. I could definitely see the change in attitudes of many of the participants.
HC: What’s the curriculum like?
CJ: The curriculum was not as rigorous as I would have liked it to be, but it definitely packed in a lot of information in a little bit of time. My friends and I talked about topics such as how to handle bullying, self-esteem, what it means to “dress for success”, and a plethora of other things that I can’t remember at the moment. We realized that these topics were often not addressed in the areas they were from, so we wanted to create a safe space for them to be educated and answer questions that might be ridiculed elsewhere.
HC: How long does the program last?
CJ: The program lasted around 8 weeks, I believe.
HC: Where do you get your funding from?
CJ: The program was sponsored by the City of Chattanooga through the Youth and Family Development sector of the city.
HC: How did this all get started? What was your inspiration?
CJ: An amazing woman named Barbara Readnower contact me and 2 other people with this amazing idea to start a girls empowerment program. I was beyond thrilled to jump on board. She kind of told us what she wanted and envisioned, and the 3 of us ran with all these ideas and added in curriculums and field trips to tie together all the loose ends.
HC: What’s the application process like?
CJ: Since it was the first time the application process was fairly simple. The girls filled out interest forms with contact information and a few other questions. There were originally supposed to be interviews, but since the number of applicants was not near our target number interviews were not necessary.
HC: What speakers have you had, and what are the criteria for choosing them?
CJ: We really utilized Ms. Barbara’s connections from around the city. We searched for women who were established, with a fairly flexible schedule, and a willingness to educate young ladies. We had a police officer, a lady who teaches etiquette classes, city officials, and several entrepreneurs.
HC: What do the speakers talk about?
CJ: The speakers spoke on their area of expertise, and whatever the ladies were curious about that they felt like applied to the daily lesson. They also offered words of encouragement.
HC: Tell us about your commitment to inclusivity.
CJ: Many of the girls in the program came from predominantly black inner city neighborhoods. However, I hope that it will expand beyond that and include girls of many races from a variety of neighborhoods who just have a desire to learn about being strong women in the face of adversity.