Girls’+
Education
In 1996, Student Leadership Network opened the United States’ first all-girls public school in 30 years, The Young Women’s Leadership School (TYWLS) of Manhattan. The success of TYWLS led to the establishment of 5 more TYWLS schools in NYC. It inspired a movement of Young Women’s Leadership affiliate schools to open nationwide, advancing our work towards gender equity.
Core Pillars
The Young Women’s Leadership Model: Developing Tomorrow’s Leaders Today
Our vision is to provide girls and gender-expansive youth (girls’+) growing up in under-resourced communities with a high-quality college preparatory education that centers the needs of the whole student.
Student Leadership Network supports TYWLS schools with year-round programs and partnerships in four core areas:
Leadership
A wide range of opportunities and support for students to develop and use their voices in the classroom, their school community, and in service of positive social change locally, nationally and globally.
Early College & Career Awareness
A comprehensive early college awareness and access program including network-wide events on college campuses, opportunities to interact with professionals across a myriad of industries, and the support of a CollegeBound Initiative Director of College Counseling.
Health & Wellness
A focus on the physical, emotional, and mental health of all students through embedded social-emotional learning, structured time for faculty advisement and peer support, and partnerships with external organizations.
STEM
A rigorous academic track in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) paired with opportunities to meet and work alongside STEM professionals in classrooms, in the field, and at institutions of higher education.
Girls’+ Education: Impacting Students Nationwide
Today, our Young Women’s Leadership model is foundational in shaping the educational approach of 25 schools nationwide, transforming the experience of 12,000+ students across the country.
They include six TYWLS schools across all boroughs of New York City, public secondary schools that are open to girls and girls+ in grades 6-12 – TYWLS provides a unique educational choice for students from predominantly underserved communities who are often the first in their families to attend college.
Our affiliate footprint includes seven affiliate schools in California, Georgia, Maryland, Missouri, Nevada, New York, and North Carolina, and our partner network of 12 schools in Texas, the Young Women’s Preparatory Network (YWPN).
Partner with us to bring the Young Women’s Leadership model into your classroom.
The Latest
Young Women’s Leadership Schools
Informed by the successful practices of TYWLS and current research in girls+ education, the Young Women’s Leadership model comprises both our Four Pillars of girls’ education programming as well as the WholeGirl+ Education framework for classroom instruction and school culture.
Join Us in Driving Gender Equity!
Want to learn more about our Whole Girl Education framework and help us bring academically rigorous programs fused with strong social-emotional support to girls and gender-expansive youth across the country?
