Middle school can be tough for girls. Here's what IPS is doing to empower these students

Judely “Juju” Agenor and Robyn Lyles already have regrets about things they’ve done when they were younger —and they’re only in the seventh grade.

On a recent afternoon, Judely and Robyn reflected on their past as they penned letters to their younger selves in the Northwest Middle School media center.

Robyn said she warned her younger self to be careful about the friends she chooses and Judely agreed, adding some advice of her own.

“But also to not let anyone say I’m not good at something when I know I am,” Judely said.

Judely and Robyn were among the 50 girls at Northwest, Arlington and Longfellow Middle Schools who participated in a pilot after-school program this year with Girls Inc., a national organization that provides mentorship and empowerment programming.

Starting next school year, IPS will offer Girls Inc.'s “EmpowerHub” program for sixth-grade girls in all seven of its middle schools.

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The free and voluntary program will meet during the school day and before or after school and is designed to help foster healthy lifestyles, improve academic achievement, build life skills and expose girls to STEM-related fields.

The program provides girls with 35 to 50 hours of mentoring each school year and will follow participants through middle school, said Michelle Freeman, vice president of programs at Girls Inc. of Greater Indianapolis.

“That way we can see what kind of outcomes we have at the end of the school year,” Freeman told IndyStar. “Did we decrease absenteeism? Did we increase some of our school and academic achievement markers, like seeing testing scores increase?”

Northwest Middle School Vice Principal Pat Lumbley said this kind of programming is vital for young girls, especially during the middle school grades when negative behaviors such as fighting and bullying can escalate.

“They’re getting to the age where they’re making relationships now by choice and not just geography or based on who you live nearest too,” Lumbley said. “…Now when you’re in middle school, you start making friends based on what you want in a friend and who you share interests with.”

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The program's curriculum includes lessons on healthy lifestyle choices, such as how social media can present unhealthy beauty standards for women and how to avoid aspects of social media that can be detrimental to young girls' mental health.

The girls also go on field trips to places like the Newfields Art Museum and visit the Girls Inc. Indianapolis headquarters.

Northwest Middle School Dean of Students Moshfilay McClain-Anderson said she’s seen many middle school girls struggle to build relationships and the Girls Inc. program at Northwest has helped them connect, she said.

“Just seeing the electricity and the excitement that the girls have to be part of anything after school is just amazing to see,” McClain-Anderson said.

Both Judely and Robyn have seen their grades improve since they began the program in October. They serve as school ambassadors and Robyn is on the student council.

And, their experiences today may help shape their tomorrows. Last week the two wrote to their future selves. Girls Inc. will save those letters for them until they graduate from high school.

Contact IndyStar reporter Caroline Beck at 317-618-5807 or CBeck@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter: @CarolineB_Indy.

Caroline’s reporting is made possible by Report for America and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

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This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: More girl empowerment programming coming to IPS middle schools