Young Women of the West...What is YWOW?
Our youngsters today need strong role models. They might pick rock stars or athletes, but they also need REAL people down the block and next door. Our teenage girls especially need to meet women who are successful in their careers and personal lives.
One way to bring positive role models into the lives of these teens is through mentoring programs. Ann Clarke has been running a program called Young Women of the West since 1995. If you'd like to learn more about the program, and how to start your own mentoring program for teenage girls, read on!
YWOW is the acronym for Young Women Of the West. The purpose of YWOW is to give 16 to 19 year old girls who want to run their own business an opportunity to explore the world of entrepreneurship. YWOW does not specifically target any certain group of students, but draws a mix, from "A" students to "at-risk."
Here's how the program is administered in the Thompson R2-J District:
School Liaison Vicki Mivshek begins student recruitment for the Workshop Phase school begins in September. At the same time, Program Administrator Ann Clarke and Business Liaison Donielle Saxton begin recruiting success business women as workshop speakers. In the Workshop Phase, we have five training sessions off campus in settings such a the Home State Bank board room or The Java Coffee Lounge, a woman-owned business. The workshops are 3 hours long and held about every three weeks from September through December. The first workshop begins on September 25 th at Home State Bank with Lindy Hafeman of AAA Colorado and Brittany Conant of Walker Communications asking the girls, "Are You Ready To Be An Entrepreneur?"
(Click here to read more about YWOW)
Y.W.O.W. homepage | Y.W.O.W. Workshop Training Topics | Y.W.O.W. Internship | Importance of Mentoring | Y.W.O.W. Program Info
Students at YWOW workshop.
Mentors and students have said ...
"I am thankful that you put so much effort into all of us. You care, and you make a difference. You have seen us blossom and grow, and I am thankful that you and the other ladies were there for me."--Tonya Runnels
"Thank you for everything you’ve done and everything you and the speakers have taught me. Young Women of the West has brought us great role models and we have many women in business to look up to."--Tonya Korkow
Find out how you can start a YWOW program in your part of the world!
Mentoring | 