Building a Better Future for Girls: Lessons from the Girls Opportunity Alliance Convening

On Friday, August 28, 2025, the Girls Opportunity Alliance (GOA) convened a group of approximately 80 stakeholders from girl serving organizations throughout the Chicago area united in a single purpose – to create a better future for girls.  On this day, I was stressed.  I had a few missed deadlines.  And I still hadn’t scheduled the follow-up appointments my doctor advised two weeks ago.  But all of that could wait.  With our executive director Ayeshia Johnson on a much-needed vacation before the 2025-2026 school year starts up, I had the opportunity to sit-in for her and represent the Coalition on Urban Girls (CUG).  Showing up for our girls was the most important thing on my list – especially today.  And maybe I’d even meet Michelle Obama.  Wow, that thought was enough to fluff me up!

I reviewed all my talking points to make sure I would be able to speak to the urgency of the needs as expressed in CUG’s recent white paper “Are the Girls Well?”. Four in ten older girls need to contribute to the family finances (parentification).  One in four girls experience symptoms of depression and anxiety (this one strikes close to home as my daughter and a few of her friends have dealt with this).  Fifty percent of girls report that online content makes them feel worse about their lives (but they, like us, won’t put the phones down). I was armed with the facts now, so the only thing left was to pick a seat and enlighten the person sitting next to me.

First on the agenda was Praize Production, a group of young women who reminded us with their contemporary dance routine that “they are beautiful in every single way.”  The final words of that song, “so don’t you bring me down today” were a command, not a request.  I was here on assignment; I will not let our girls down.

Second on the agenda was a “wellness activation” exercise.  We were encouraged to consider commitments we could make to ourselves to jump start or accelerate our wellness journey - micro (5 min), medium and macro (half- to full-day).  For me, it was morning porch therapy (I think I may have invented this); stepping-up my workouts so I actually sweat (but maybe I should schedule the follow-up with the cardiologist first); and finishing my book (checking this off is really about creating joy in my life – that’s wellness right?). Check, check and check. Now back to the girls.

Third on the agenda was a doctor’s panel - a conversation about women’s health.  This one really hit home for me.  Even one of the doctors on the panel admitted to not prioritizing her own health.  We all laughed, but another doctor snatched us back to the seriousness of the matter, reminding us that if we don’t advocate for our own health, who will?  She was right, I had ignored the pelvic pain for a few months.  How did I end up with fibroids anyway? None of the women in my family has fibroids. They are not that serious, right?

Fourth was a panel discussion on leading through ambiguity.  Here the panelists discussed the importance of proactive leadership in this fast-changing funding and regulatory environment. We were encouraged to “build relationship with your funders” and “to not be afraid to make an explicit ask.” I was tracking with all of this until one panelist spoke about having to navigate the stress of this work while managing the symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis (MS).  Wow, I’ve never met a doctor with MS.  I have MS, and some of these recent abnormal test results (not related to my MS) started to snatch me mentally away from the reason I was there … this was supposed to be about the girls not me!

The second to last session, was all about problem solving and taking action. The table where I was seated was focused on marketing and communications.  Using the tool given to us, we decided on a future state for our conversation - to create for our organizations a communications machine that effectively demonstrates impact and encourages giving to sustain and grow the mission.  Working through the tool, we reached a few specific actions we could take.  The action for which I advocated was to incorporate marketing/fundraising into everyone’s job.  Marketing/fundraising cannot reside with only one or two people. Our organizations are full of passionate program staffers who do the work of transformation and have tremendous passion.  We should build storytelling - with an explicit fundraising ask – into their roles.  Wow, finally something about the girls - well indirectly. It was really a recommendation for leaders in the room to share the increasingly challenging responsibility of fundraising with other people in their organizations.  

The final session Girl Talk was an opportunity to pour into us as leaders. These panelists of accomplished leaders shared strategies, victories, and sage wisdom for this current environment.  The challenges we are facing aren’t new, but we must be even more creative in how we talk about our work; and we must build relationships.  We were reminded that this work has never been easy, but there is strength is sharing the burden of giving our girls better outcomes.   Then the inescapable message of the day was back. For leaders in these demanding roles, working together and self-care were critical strategies.

So maybe that was the biggest takeaway of the day.  This wasn’t about me impressing upon others in the room the urgency of the work that we all do.  It was about building alliances, gathering new leadership tools, and taking better care of ourselves and each other. That’s the gift I received from the Girls Opportunity Alliance – a gift that will keep on giving.

Our girls are learning from us, and they will never prioritize wellness, if we ourselves do not.

Jennifer McIntyre is a Steering Committee member for the Coalition on Urban Girls.  She currently serves as the Executive Director of Marketing & Communications for the Evangelical Covenant Church. Since leaving this convening, she has scheduled 3 follow-up doctor appointments – one with a physician on the GOA Doctor’s Panel.  Meeting Michelle Obama is still on her list of things to do one day.