WORCESTER—Shortly after Tiffany Lillie took over as the CEO of Girls Inc. of Worcester, a visitor came to the front desk on Providence Street, asking to see her. When Lillie didn’t recognize the woman, she reintroduced herself.
“It was my kindergarten teacher,” Lillie said. “She said she’d been a Girls Inc. girl 68 years ago, and said that was why she became a teacher. She said when she saw I was working here, she had to come and say hello. There’s such a legacy and a history here.”
Founded in 1864, Girls Inc. was originally dedicated to serving girls and young women who were adjusting to the aftermath of the Civil War. In the century and a half since, the organization has changed with the culture and social structure of the country, but still devotes itself to nurturing the potential of girls. The core values have remained the same – that every girl can “develop her own capacities, self-confidence, and grow up healthy, educated, and independent.”
The Worcester chapter was founded in 1916, and Girls Inc. is Lillie’s first job. Now, six weeks into her job as CEO, she sees positive changes, with some historical values still in place.
“It’s been a wild ride, but in all the best ways,” she said.
At the end of last school year, Girls Inc. abruptly closed, leaving families scrambling for after-school care and summer activities. But staff, board members, and parents came together to be sure there was summer programming, Lillie said, and some of those parents are now on the board of directors.
“Everyone has come together,” she said. “We have had development addressing equity and community. We’re led by the girls, and there’s been an increase in family involvement and community partnerships.”
Girls Inc. is open to girls from kindergarten through high school. Among its offerings is the Eureka program, a six-year model that follows girls from middle to high school. The goal is to expose young women to opportunities in STEAM-related fields (science, technology, engineering, arts, mathematics) and the components include healthy living, life skills instruction, and academic enrichment and support.
“There is ‘A Day in the Life’ where girls can shadow mentors and community members,” Lillie said. “It exposes them to STEAM careers and can help with long-range planning. For example, if you are in seventh grade and you want to go into engineering, you might want to take particular courses in eighth grade, to be on track for courses in high school.”
Girls Inc. has collaborated with the YWCA and created a violence prevention program called Girls Promoting Safety (GPS). While this does address domestic violence issues, Lillie said it also encompasses dating, relationships, and self-esteem.
The building also has an SEL (social-emotional learning) department, dedicated to positive mental health.
“SEL provides check-ins, groups, and emotional wellness,” Lillie said. “We’re seeing the most complex young people we’ve ever seen.”
In addition, the SEL department provides clinical support, social groups, and referrals and is equity-based, helping the program look at services and offerings through that lens.
“It’s rooted in mental health, and it’s trauma-informed, and we are doing it responsibly,” Lillie said. “We look at everything from our books, to our materials, even the art on the walls. We want to represent all cultures, and at the center of it all are the girls’ voices. We want to create purposeful pathways.”
Girls Inc. prides itself on supporting all aspects of the girls’ lives. There is a donation center, Lillie said, where caregivers can “shop” for their kids, and there is also “Girl Pad Go,” which provides free menstrual supplies for young women. The shelf is right in the lobby, Lillie said, to demystify and normalize the process for the youngsters.
There is also an upcoming meeting with a representative from the Worcester Public Schools, called “Know Your Rights,” where teenagers will review not only the expectations of their schools but also how to advocate for themselves when they feel they’ve been wronged.
Girls Inc. offers enrichment activities such as basketball and swimming, and there is a robust after-school program. Girl-guided tours are held on the second Thursday of the month, and recently, Camila, 11, and Jazmari, 10, showed a visitor around their space. The after-school rooms are separated by grade, with kindergarten and first graders in one room, second and third in another, and so on. The spaces were designed by the girls themselves. The girls were eager to visit the Bee Cart – they earn “bee tickets” for expected behavior and kind acts, and once a week they can cash them in for little prizes.
Last week, most of the girls were preparing for a showcase, a performance where they can show off their talents and the things they’ve learned. For example, Lillie said, some of the girls have been learning about architectural engineering and are designing the sets.
The benefits of these programs extend beyond practical knowledge.
“It’s easier now for me to make friends,” Camila said. “I tend to be antisocial with people I don’t know.”
Lillie said the diversity of the girls creates unique opportunities.
“We all get to bond on different things,” she said. “We are all New Englanders, we are all girls and women, but we might be from different cultures, and we get to create unity and learn from each other.”
Recently, she said, she was speaking in Spanish to a staff person, and a girl approached her and asked how she knew that language. Lillie explained she is Puerto Rican, and Spanish was her first language.
“The girl was a ninth grader, and she said, ‘You’re Puerto Rican and you’re the CEO? That’s so cool. I didn’t know that was possible,’” Lillie recalled. “It was such a cool moment.”
To learn more about Girls Inc., visit www.girlsincworcester.org.
Christine M. Quirk is the former editor of MotherTown and has written for the Telegram & Gazette, Bay State Parent, and the Times & Courier. She is a novelist and an instructional aide at Abby Kelley Foster Charter Elementary School in Worcester. She can be reached at cmqwriter@gmail.com
