Programs

Our programming aims to provide our  S.O.U.L. Sisters with a powerful community of mentors, organizers, activists, educators, and healers that support young women, femmes, and non-binary youth of color blossoming into leaders with political and self awareness, creative problem solving skills, and strong ethics. We are sensitive to the needs of youth in the foster care, juvenile legal, special education, shelter, and mental health systems.

Sisterhood Academy (SA)

Sisterhood Academy is our regular programming for systems-involved middle and high school girls, femmes, and TGNC youth. SA runs in partnership with schools, community organizations, and government agencies. SA follows our model of trauma-informed leadership development based in restorative practices and social justice education & action. SA participants identify issues impacting their communities and develop leadership skills through the enactment of arts-based action projects. Recent SA organizing projects include: school-wide campaigns around ending the school-to-prison pipeline, and the creation of a vision quilt addressing gun violence.

Youth Social Entrepreneurship (YSE)

Our Youth Social Entrepreneurship programming creates a platform for sustainable income while young women, femmes, and TGNC youth develop professionalism and entrepreneurship skills. These cohorts learn about social issues, identify a message, and design products that raise awareness for issues that directly impact Black and Brown communities. Formerly incarcerated women and/or people of color entrepreneurs provide mentorship and production support. Previous youth-designed products include: handbags, greeting cards, and clothing. YSE can be offered as a unit of Sisterhood Academy or Youth Leaders Board and is also implemented during our Girls Design CampShop Fashion for Social Change today! Review this pitch deck to learn more. Inspired? Donate today and subscribe to our newsletter to see when the next Girls Design Camp applications open!

Youth Leaders Board (YLB)

Our founding program was created to invite constituent leadership at the organization’s inception. YLB members collaborate to design campaigns, attend bi-monthly meetings, organize with local coalitions, and co-facilitate workshops. YLBs have been particularly active in the Black Girls Matter movement. Recent organizing work includes: co-organizing a Black Girls Matter Town Hall, attending the March for Black Women in Florida and Washington D.C., and supporting the Black Women’s Blueprint “Black Women Immigrant Rise” rally in NYC.

Circles Not Cells (CNC)

Circles Not Cells offers restorative justice practices and processes as a service to NYC nonprofits and government agencies serving justice-involved girls and non-binary youth with the goals of preventing recidivism, teaching youth alternative approaches to addressing conflict, and transforming organizational culture.

Restorative Community Conferencing (RCC)

art supplies for organizing projects

We’re currently in the program launch phase for the Restorative Community Conferencing (RCC) which we have been developing since 2017. RCC creates unique opportunities for youth on both sides of harm to activate their personal agency in addressing harm. Our coalition sees exciting possibilities in the relationship between restorative practices, restorative justice and transformative justice. Restorative community practices provide accessible, culturally-responsive tools for healing, community-building and addressing harm. SSLC is skilled and practiced in implementing these tools. We also see that transformative justice offers a framework for thinking beyond the specific case and for looking at the societal and community conditions that led to the violence and our program will continuously build on the skills of youth to address/transform those conditions.

Heart & S.O.U.L. (HS)

Heart and S.O.U.L. is a program rooted in emotional justice with a focus on healing, transformative justice, education, advocacy and peer leadership. Heart and S.O.U.L. creates brave spaces for our girls and non-binary youth to explore topics of emotional justice and gain the knowledge and tools to not only enhance their well-being but to heal.

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