Our Background
History

Founded as Bay Area Girls Center in 1997, GirlVentures was started by Bay Area educators Elizabeth McLeod and Megan Armstrong who met while earning their  Masters of Education from Harvard.  While teaching in the classroom, Megan and Elizabeth discovered what many studies had documented—adolescent girls  were experiencing disturbing losses of self-esteem and confidence which in many instances lead to depression, eating disorders, substance abuse, early pregnancy, school failure, and other self-destructive behaviors. These same studies also documented that a loss in confidence among middle-school girls creates tentative learners, leading to a real loss in competence.  Ultimately, girls caught in this vicious cycle are likely to close many doors to professional career goals, economic prosperity, and healthy psychological development.

To address the mounting needs of adolescent girls, GirlVentures was created to help girls recognize and celebrate their strengths and to assist them as they navigate the difficult and sometimes traumatic transition from childhood to adolescence. 

During GirlVentures' first summer of operation, 7 girls participated in our inaugural Project Courage course. Since that time, nearly 3,000 girls have participated in our programs and we have grown to serve approximately 300 girls per year.