Anoushka

My name is Anoushka Parthasarathi and I’m currently a senior at South Brunswick High School in New Jersey. I’m graduating in a month and I couldn’t be more excited. With graduation comes tons of new opportunities and new memories to make and I’m so eager to get out into the world and seize those.

Earlier this year, when I was thinking about what to do to celebrate my graduation, I said to myself, “It’s just high school, everybody graduates. It’s not that big a deal. Maybe I’ll just throw a small party with some close friends.”

The next day, I went to school and saw flyers around for a fundraiser for She’s the First. I had heard the name before, but I didn’t really know what it was about. I went home and looked at the website, and what I saw was absolutely alarming. Only one in every five girls in the developing world finishes primary school!! Yet, less than two cents of every development dollar goes to girls!!

Upon seeing this, I was shocked. I was shocked at how much I take for granted, how much we take for granted, every single day. We get the privilege of going to a good school and learning in a safe environment 5 times a week. We never think twice about it because going to school is the norm here, and we’re lucky that it is. Agreed, it’s difficult getting up at 6 AM every day and catching a bus an hour later (I’ve given up all hope on trying to wake up that early), but we’re so fortunate that we have that problem.

Everyone should be entitled to an education. In fact, education should be a right, not a privilege. Girls like Malala remind me just how hard it is for girls around the world and it should never be like that. Thinking about this, I felt so frustrated and helpless and confused. I felt restless. I felt like I needed to do something. That’s when it clicked. I could use my graduation as a way to help these girls who so desperately need it. I could use it to raise awareness about this issue. I decided to do a fundraiser while doing something I love, aka dance.

I’ve been dancing for as long as I can remember and I love it more than anything in the world. It’s an outlet for me. Whether I’m sad, happy, mad, frustrated, I just dance and I feel incredible. I feel magic. Pure magic. I thought about it and realized that I could put on a show and make that a fundraiser.

Suddenly, everything started to come together. My dance teacher was excited to help organize the show. Phone calls were made, emails were sent, discussions were happening; it was all such a blur. I came home from school one day and my mom said, “You’re doing the show!” I got so excited and couldn’t wait to prepare.

So much has been done in preparation for this performance and I’m so excited for the day to finally come. I have had regular dance rehearsals at 7 am on Sunday mornings, 3.30 pm on some weekdays soon after school, besides my weekly dance classes and the class I teach early Saturday mornings. I practically camp out at my dance school! I prepared for two other programs while preparing for this one and also took 3 AP exams. I skipped opportunities to hang out with my friends who I may never see after graduation. I have worked really hard for this fundraiser and I urge you all to please come out and support this incredible cause.

High school graduation IS a BIG deal and I cannot think of a better way to celebrate it than by helping other girls around the world graduate. If you would like to support my fundraiser, please donate here.

Jeronima Sulugui, mentor to Starfish One by One students

Many powerful females have repeated quoted the importance of mentors. Mentors are there to guide, give advice, change your perspective and push you to succeed. And mentors aren’t just limited to the professional world; their influence can be useful in all aspects of life. This is why Starfish One by One, our partner school in Guatemala, has adopted the mentorship model to guide young women through their education.

Starfish mentors meet with their mentee group weekly and not only provide academic support, but also to encourage students to develop leadership skills. Mentors also equip students with life skills such as management of personal finances and social and environmental responsibility. The mentors ensure that each Starfish student receives a well-rounded education so that she is ready to lead her family and community.

As an added bonus, Starfish mentors are unique in that they come from the same community as their mentees, can understand the obstacles they face from their families and society, and are themselves shining examples of the power of education. We asked Jeronima, mentor to our very own Ana Teresa, to tell us what she thought the biggest obstacles to education for Mayan girls were. This is what she shared with us:

“Well, in most Mayan families there is the lack of economic resources to be able to send all their children to school. It’s not just the money that families have to pay for classes and materials, but it’s also the loss of income that the families would experience if their daughters studied instead of worked. Apart from the economic strain on families, a lot of parents don’t believe it is worth the investment to send their daughters to school. If it’s for their sons, yes, because they believe that the money he will earn in the future will most likely come back to the family, but if their daughter marries, the money she earns will most likely go to her husband’s family. Many Mayan people also lack experience in participating in groups or in educational settings, especially women, so it can be a bit intimidating for the girls to feel confident at school or really get involved.”

Jeronima continues to be a source of hope and an example in her community of how educating women can benefit families and communities. As a Starfish mentor, she helps girls face these obstacles and achieve their ultimate goal of getting an education.

Thank you, Jeronima! If only we could all be so fortunate to find such a great mentor.

Volunteer Stephanie Florence offered to interview another one of the Trailblazers participating in this spring’s RUN THE WORLD campaign. Wait till you hear how sweet Stephanie W.’s race is… and not just because she’s running it to help sponsor a girl in Tanzania.

Stephanie (but you can call her Stevie) Walker is a PR professional by day and world-changer by night. In true She’s the First fashion, we had to share what Stevie is the first to do — she’s the first in her family to live and work in New York City AND the first to work in PR. Check out her fundraising page; she’s running the Memorial Day Ice Cream Social 10k race around Roosevelt Island. Yes, you heard that right. The race ends with ice cream!

Name: Stephanie (Stevie) Walker
City: New York
Age: 23
Alma Mater: Gordon College
Profession: PR Professional
Tweet her: @BittyLeigh
Donate to her #RunSTF page

What are you the first to do? Or, what do you want to be the first to do?

I’m the first in my family to live and work in New York City, and the first to work in PR.

How are you helping girls to run the world?

I’m working with She’s the First to raise awareness of the program and I’ll be running a 10k in Roosevelt Island on Memorial Day this year!

What is your fundraising goal?

I set my goal at $500.

What’s a training tip or fitness that you’ve learned in the process of being part of the campaign?

The first step is always the hardest, but it’s always, always worth it.

Best piece of support/feedback/encouragement that you’ve received?

“You’re going to run further today than you did yesterday.” I tell myself that every morning.

Your power song?

I’m shameless – anything by Mika will do it.

Tell us about a girl sponsored by She’s the First who motivates you.

Eli from Tanzania inspires me – she isn’t afraid to give a voice to her dreams, and I love that! Check out a video from Eli and her friend, Glory, recorded when a friend of She’s the First went to visit them:

Cassandra Zink has been training for months for a pretty awesome race, called the Great Glow Run, which happens today, on May 11th! Cassandra will be one of 1,000 participants running under the stars, but she’ll likely be the only one in the field racing in the name of girls’ education for South Sudan! Ale Foresto interviews Cassandra about this amazing race, giving us all a little extra inspiration to cross a finish line for girls’ education.

Name: Cassandra Zink
City: Raileigh, N.C.
Age: 27
Alma Mater: UNC – Chapel Hill
Profession: Journalist
Tweet her: @iamcassandra
Donate to her #RunSTF page

What are you the first to do? Or what do you want to be the first to do?

I am the first graduate with a degree in journalism, with a women’s studies minor from UNC – Chapel Hill.

How are you helping girls to run the world?

I’m running the Great Glow Run, a nighttime 5K, in Raileigh on May 11th!

What is your fundraising goal?

My goal is to raise $500 to both sponsor a South Sudanese girl for one year with Project Education South Sudan, and also give a little extra to help She’s the First.

What’s a training tip or fitness that you’ve learned in the process of being part of the campaign?

I’ve learned that it’s important to listen to your body, but there are times you can tell your mind to KEEP GOING!

Best piece of support/feedback/encouragement that you’ve received?

I’ve made a lot of big changes this year, so when a very good friend donated $27, (my age,) I knew my life was moving in the right direction.

Your power song?

Kelly Clarkson’s “Stronger”

Tell us about a girl sponsored by She’s the First who motivates you.

I’m really impressed by Annah Angeth in South Sudan. Her dream to serve the world is very inspiring and humbling!

Annah Angeth, of South Sudan, is an honor student in the seventh grade.

The RUN THE WORLD campaign is going strong in our nation’s capital, Washington, D.C., thanks to Lorraine Brontë Magee! She is both walking AND running in hopes of raising $1,000 for girls at the Arlington Academy of Hope in Uganda. (She quickly met her original goal…so she decided to triple it!)

Lorraine is a true trailblazer, as the founding president of STF’s American University campus chapter. She recently organized She’s the First*{American}’s Walk the World Week, where she committed to walk 10,000 steps each day for five days. (The students had special She’s the First pedometers to track.) As a big finale, Lorraine will run a 5k race in June.

Lorraine ordered these pedometers for her chapter to use.

Name: Lorraine Brontë Magee
City: Washington D.C.
School: American University
Major: Elementary Education
Tweet her: @lorrainebronte
Donate to her #RunSTF page

How are you helping girls to run the world?

As a member of my college’s She’s the First chapter, I help U.S. students become advocates for girls’ education in the developing world.

What is your fundraising goal?

My fundraising goal started at $360, but as of today, friends have given over $820! I’m hoping to bring my total to $1,000 by the end of June.

What’s a training tip or fitness that you’ve learned in the process of being part of the campaign?

I love the quote “You’re braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem.” Training for my first 5k for the RUN THE WORLD campaign has taught me to believe in my own strength.

Best piece of support/feedback/encouragement that you’ve received?

I received an anonymous donation of $360, which is enough to sponsor a scholar  in Uganda for one year. I’m so inspired by that generosity!

Your power song?

I love running to “I Melt With You” by Modern English. Running to the beat keeps me on track, and I love the lyrics “the future’s open wide!”

Tell us about a girl sponsored by She’s the First who motivates you.

Rebecca at the Arlington Academy of Hope in Uganda is the first girl STF*{American} helped to sponsor. She wants to be a lawyer, and she motivates me every day!

Rebecca

Lorraine shares why she's passionate about education.

We have a huge announcement that we’ve been just bursting to tell you: We have two brand new partners! This means you can now sponsor girls in The Gambia and in Peru, bringing our global reach to ten countries and four continents. We’re expanding to new countries because this year alone, you’ve sponsored almost as many students as we sponsored all year in 2012. That’s a huge rate of growth, and we’re making sure we can keep up with you!

Here’s a little bit more about each of our new partners. (And of course, you can read about all of our partners on our directory page.)

Sacred Valley Project, Peru
The Sacred valley Project is a dormitory set up for students who come from Quechua­-speaking rural communities. The students stay at the dormitory and participate in artisanal workshops as well as nutrition and healthy cooking classes. They have weekly seminars on social issues and personal development, and professional tutors come in to give extra support in foundational subjects such as math, Spanish, and communications. They’re also implementing a peer-mentorship model for social support. Learn more here.

Starfish International, The Gambia
Starfish International is a mentorship program for girls attending secondary school in Lamin, The Gambia, where the average family lives on less than $1 per day. The goal is to instill the girls with five core values: Nobility, Independence, Courtesy, Knowledge, and Service. Each sponsored student receives academic tutoring and also learns entrepreneurial skills while she starts her own small business in one of these six areas: Soap-making, lotion-making, lip balm making, vegetable-gardening, photography, or bee-keeping. Learn more here.

We’ll be profiling the first two supporters to sponsor a full tuition at each of our new partners, and we can’t wait for you to get to know the students there (and vice versa). Let us know if you have any questions in the comments!