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Chicago's Girls Have
Set the Priorities
Now We Need the Right
People in the Room
Over the past year, 611 girls across 74 Chicago zip codes told us what they need to thrive. Their answers were clear. Their priorities were specific. And they point to something this city has never done before.
This fall, the Coalition on Urban Girls is launching six Quality of Life Design Labs — the engine behind Chicago's first-ever Quality of Life Plan for Girls.
This is not a committee. It is not a focus group. It is a structured, human-centered design process where community organizations, researchers, practitioners, funders, public agencies, and girls themselves will co-design real solutions grounded in what girls actually said.
Highest Strategic Priorities Identified By Girls
84%
Mental Health
80%
Freedom from School-Based
Sexual Misconduct
80%
Healthcare Access
79%
Safety from Community &
Gender-Based Violence
79%
Menstrual Equity
What is the QLP?
The Quality of Life Plan (QLP) for Girls is our response: a citywide framework aligning research, policy, practice, and investment around girls’ lived experiences and priorities. Over the next year, QLP Design Labs will use human-centered design and community feedback to develop a shared plan for action that improves conditions for girls across Chicago.
Why a Quality of Life Plan?
A Quality of Life Plan shifts the focus from fragmented responses to coordinated, long-term investment in girls. Rather than creating another program, it establishes a shared framework that brings partners together to: Center girls as leaders and decision-makers Transform girl voice into coordinated action Align organizations, institutions, and public systems around shared priorities Move from short-term programs to long-term, intergenerational impact Strengthening the conditions that shape their lives is one of the most effective, long-term strategies we have to transform communities and create a safer, more equitable Chicago.
One Plan. Six Design Labs. Girls at the Center.
The Quality of Life Design Labs are where the plan gets built. Each lab brings together cross-sector leaders, community knowledge, and girls' lived experience to develop actionable recommendations. Each lab stewards one Quality of Life Condition while contributing to one citywide learning community.
The Design Labs are the working units; the citywide QLP is the shared product. Navigators steward and facilitate the process ( not the answer); Guidance Professionals bring research, subject-matter expertise, and systems knowledge; and Design Lab Members contribute lived experience, community knowledge, and cross-sector perspectives to co-design actionable recommendations.
Each of the six Design Labs stewards a Quality of Life
Condition, bringing together girls, community
organizations, researchers, practitioners, public agencies, and funders to co-design evidence- and experience-informed solutions.
Healthy Girls
Physical, emotional, and mental well-being. Equitable access to care, resources, and support.
NAVIGATOR(s):
Meghan Morgan & Yolander Rivers
Safe Girls
Safety from violence, exploitation, and harm — in every environment where girls live, learn, work, and play.
NAVIGATOR:
Dr. Kisha Roberts Tabb
Learning & Opportunity
Quality education, literacy, mentoring, career pathways, and opportunities that prepare girls for lifelong success.
NAVIGATOR(S):
Deida Massey & Yolander Rivers
Stability & Economic Mobility
Housing, economic resources, and community supports that foster healthy development and long-term stability.
NAVIGATOR:
Cheresa Purnell
Connected Girls
Belonging, supportive relationships, positive identity, and meaningful connections that strengthen resilience and community.
NAVIGATOR:
Dr. Darryca Brim
Girl Leadership
Girls as leaders, decision-makers, and co-creators. Their lived experience shapes everything — policies, programs, research, and investment.
Girl-led, with trained facilitators.
Girl Leadership is not one condition among five. It is the capacity that powers all of them.
Girl Leadership dates:
Design Lab Launch:
Additional sessions:
November 13th
December 14th, and
December 11th
Location: TBA
The process is designed so you can join at any session and contribute meaningfully.
How the Design Labs Work
How the Design Labs Work
Each Design Lab follows a structured process from September 2026 through Spring 2027:
Launch & Problem Framing — September 2026
Introduce the condition, build trust, align on the Design Lab process.
Sensemaking — September through October 2026
Analyze girl voice, data, research, and systems conditions to understand what is happening and why.
Strategy — October through November 2026
Identify opportunities, leverage points, and partners that can create meaningful change.
Action — November through December 2026
Develop coordinated recommendations across programs, policy, funding, research, and systems.
Community Review & Validation — January through March 2027
Communities, girls, and partners review draft recommendations and provide feedback.
Final Quality of Life Plan Development — Spring 2027
The Steering Committee synthesizes inputs and develops Chicago's first-ever Quality of Life Plan for Girls.
Who Belongs In a Design Lab
Each lab needs a cross-sector mix of people serious about this work. We are looking for:
Community organizations serving girls on Chicago's South, West, and North Sides. Researchers studying the conditions that shape girls' lives.
Practitioners with direct experience in health, safety, education, housing, or youth development. Funders and public agency leaders ready to align resources with what girls named. Girls ages 13–19 who want to lead, co-design, and shape what comes next.
If this work is calling you — there is a place for you here.
What Participation Looks Like
Design Lab members commit to attending structured sessions from November 2026 through Spring 2027. Sessions are facilitated using human-centered design methods. Members bring their expertise, their networks, and their willingness to be guided by what girls said.
More details on meeting frequency, location, and expectations will be shared with individuals upon registration.
Ready to Join?
Express your interest below. A member of the CUG team will follow up with next steps.
Questions? Contact us at info@cugchicago.org.
Coalition on Urban Girls
Thriving today. Leading tomorrow. Building our city.
coalitiononurbangirls.org