Girls Inc. of Santa Fe

Girls Inc. of Santa Fe

Girls Inc. of Santa Fe’s mission is to inspire all girls to be strong, smart, and bold. Every girl we reach creates a ripple effect that can last a lifetime.

Girls like Lena.

Lena was a really good student at the start of sixth grade. She was first to raise her hand to share knowledge and was helpful to other students.

After learning about engineers at one of Girls Inc. of Santa Fe’s in-school programs, Lena aspires to go to college to become an electrical engineer.

However, over the last year, Lena has become more quiet and anxious. Her grades are still good, but she is not joyous anymore. On occasion she will be irritable, but it is not enough to get into trouble.

Often, trauma is seen as something that presents itself in an obvious manner and is an acute situation. Trauma and toxic stress are complicated and look different in everyone. Sometimes we might not even realize what we’re seeing in a young person is related to trauma.

Turns out, Lena is acting this way because she is terribly stressed by the mounting pressures of school and her dad’s battle with a long-term illness.

Our team is trained in trauma-informed care and trained to recognize it when they see it.

A school facilitator for Girls Inc. of Santa recognizes Lena’s change in behavior as a sign of trauma and asks her if she wants to talk. Lena says yes.

The 23 school-based programs we partner with are showing us the essential need for social-emotional support and guidance. Schools and families overwhelmed with helping kids process the trauma and isolation from these past two years. We are working with them, doing everything we can to serve as many girls in the community as possible.

When we show up for girls when they are young and provide them with a pro-girl, girls only environment, we are able to set them up for future success!

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The Santa Fe Community Foundation invited its community partners to submit stories related to its October topic of New Mexico Women & Girls.