It\u27s a Girl Thing Enrichment Club

After school programs have served as a safe haven for many youth. It is a place where relationships are cultivated, learning is enhanced, and memories are formed. Throughout the years, after school programs have progressed immensely. What used to be a place for students to hang out and play board games at the school’s 6 to 6 program, has now become an opportunity to expand on students’ development through illuminating enrichment classes. Nevertheless, there still remains a gap when it comes to exposing students to their future implications, especially for our young girls. In both after school programs and in their academic settings, young girls are encountering spaces that place them into these predictable gender roles. They are expected to live according to the expectations placed on them by society; thus, preventing them from acknowledging their full potential as prospective leaders and the endless possibilities that may lie ahead. Therefore, this applied project is focused on analyzing the discrepancies within after school programs as it concerns young girls. In addition, through my application of theory to practice I will present ways that my program, It’s a Girl Thing Enrichment Club, plans on fulfilling the needs of young girls and cultivating future leaders. Keywords: After-school programs, Out of School Time (OST), Project-Based Learning (PBL), After School Education and Safety (ASES), Co-ed and all-girl program