Jewish Women's Foundation of Greater Pittsburgh

The Global Minds Initiative is a "for youth by youth" organization that inspires students of all backgrounds to form social bonds, inter-cultural relationships and to consider global issues through youth-led extra-curricular actives. 15 female immigrant and refugee students and 15 Native English speaking students were selected to participate in the 2017/2018 pilot program, "Music: The Universal Language". Through a dynamic partnership with Pittsburgh Musical Theater (PMT), The Global Minds Initiative provided the opportunity for female immigrant and refugee students to participate in the existing Musical Theater Workshop program at PMT and seek further integration within their student community.

G.O Girls
"Girl Talk"

G.O Girls is a nonprofit organization dedicated to addressing the critical need for supportive services for young women transitioning out of foster care. Girl Talk provides participants with a safe and comfortable environment to discuss issues they face, and is a series of six sessions that each member of a cohort must attend. At the end of the sessions, each participant creates a goal plan.

Holocaust Center
"Girls Empowerment Program"

An educational pilot program focused specifically for young girls and women that will provide empowerment education by teaching the lessons of the Holocaust using powerful stories of female Holocaust Survivors. Young girls and women participated from Gwen's Girls and Jada House International; HC educators conducted one on one site visits at each the facilities as well as invited the participants from each partner organization to the HC to tour the facility and receive additional education. The program introduced female artists involved in the Chutz-Pow! Superheroes of the Holocaust comic book to the participants.

Tzohar Seminar
"Tzohar Arts Integration"

The Tzohar Arts Integration program is a study and teacher training program for college-aged women. In collaboration with Yeshiva Girls elementary and middle schools, Tzohar students planned and led creative arts experiences. Concurrently, Tzohar developed a replicable, arts integration training program for Hebrew and Day schools of all Jewish denominations across North America.

2017 Small Grants

3E Now
"Prevention Education and Empowerment (PEET) Program

PEET is 3E Now's flagship program which educates middle and high school students about teen dating violence and bystander intervention.

Angel's Place
"Early Childhood Education and Family Support Program"

The single women raising children who come to Angel's Place for services are highly motivated to implement a plan to gain education and sustain employment that will create generational change for their family. However, the lack of accessible child care impacts nearly every aspect of a single mother's life from the level of education they can obtain, their mental and physical health care, employment status, and housing options. This program helped to ensure parents have the resources to reach their goals.

Jewish Healthcare Foundation
"Women's Health Activist Movement (WHAMglobal):
Building a Refugee and Immigrant Community Health Worker Model"

This program utilizes doulas (prenatal to antenatal health workers and supporters) to help immigrant mothers gain access to effective care by acting as advocates and cultural brokers, and by providing emotional and social support. The program identified prospective members of three local immigrant communities (Latino, Bhutanese (Nepali), and Somali) and provided the opportunity for training and credentialing using a new curriculum for community health workers. The program also worked to integrate these individuals as trusted members of maternal care teams while simultaneously creating opportunities for their career advancement.

Planned Parenthood
"Peer Helpers Program"

The Peer Helpers program is a teen pregnancy and STD prevention program designed to help students develop the knowledge, skills, and self-efficacy to avoid sexual risk behaviors. The program employs comprehensive sexual health education through a positive youth development approach, using a peer education model. It focuses on youth in underserved middle and high schools in Allegheny County, and consistently meets its goals of 99% pregnancy prevention and 100% school completion for participating students. WF supported the program at Westinghouse High School.

SHIM
"Ruling our eXperiences (ROX) Program for Girls"

In 2013, SHIM's Prospect Park Family Center (PPFC) staff sought to address identified domestic violence (DV) within the refugee population at SHIM. SHIM determined the best approach for their population of girls from refugee families was Ruling Our eXperiences (ROX). This non-profit based in Ohio is dedicated to equipping girls with the information and skills needed to live healthy, independent, productive and violence free lives. This grant hosted a new ROX cohort for 5th grade girls at Paynter Elementary School. The program was open to both international and American-born girls. The goal of this integrated cohort was to facilitate trust and respect among the girls and to lessen the cultural divide that exists.

Women's Law Project
"Breaking the Chains: Protecting the Rights of Incarcerated Women"

Women are being put behind bars at higher rates than ever before. This program had two components: 1) educating pregnant female inmates on their rights in regards to shackling and 2) educating the providers who see these women during health care visits. The goals of the program were to eliminate shackling, educate prison leadership on this issue and make the Women's Law Project legal expertise more accessible to women in the Allegheny County Jail.

Yeshiva Girls School
"Healthy Women: Financial, Physical, Emotional and Mental Well-Being"

Due to the inward facing nature of Ultra-Orthodox communities, various lifestyle choices swiftly become trends. Home births, refusal to vaccinate, and radical diets are some recent examples. For all of these reasons, Yeshiva Girls School recognized the strong need for a "Healthy Women" program. And, by partnering with Community College of Allegheny County to offer college level courses in Biology, students earned college credits at a heavily discounted cost, bringing them closer to earning a bachelor's degree. With this program, they gained the knowledge and confidence to make informed health decisions and take on a leadership role within their communities.

| TOP OF PAGE |


Jewish Women's Foundation \| 1620 Murray Avenue \| Pittsburgh, PA 15217 412.727.1108 ©2024 Jewish Women's Foundation of Pittsburgh. All Rights Reserved.