Announcing the Winter/Spring 2021 LAB Grant Recipient: Girls on the Run South Louisiana

We are excited to announce that the upcoming Resilient Leadership Series and Management Incubator classes will be partnering with Girls on the Run South Louisiana as our Winter/Spring 2021 LAB Grant recipient. This organization is a local council of Girls on the Run International, a positive youth development program that encourages girls in growing self-confidence during their key formative years.Since its founding in 2009, this chapter has served over 10,900 girls from grades 3-8, from an 18-parish territory. Positive Youth Development is specifically designed to produce lasting change in competence, confidence, connection, character, caring, physical activity, and life skills. GOTR’s research-backed physical activity curricula has been shown to promote improvements along all of these metrics, helping girls combat bullying and low self-esteem during a vulnerable point in their development (studies have shown that by age 9, girls’ self-confidence begins to decline, and their physical activity levels drop.)According to Carley Wahlborg Fuller, Executive Director of Girls on the Run South Louisiana, their programs are particularly valuable for girls in the time of COVID. "The physical isolation and related stressors of the COVID-19 pandemic have undoubtedly affected our children. Girls on the Run empowers South Louisiana girls to practice empathy and inclusion, make intentional decisions for their physical, mental, and emotional health, and build confidence and resilience as they navigate life's present and future challenges."The GOTR curriculum revolves around 10-week fall and spring programs, consisting of 20 lessons facilitated by trained volunteers at program sites across the South Louisiana service territory. There is a community service component, and each program ends with a 5K event that provides a framework for setting, achieving and celebrating life goals. Girls on the Run is open to all girls, with financial assistance available based on household income. Their goal is to reach and involve as many girls as possible, because every young woman can benefit from the positive, active message this organization promotes.Resilient Leadership Series: Strategies for SuccessGirls on the Run South Louisiana has a goal to reach deep into its 18-parish territory, involving girls in grades 3 – 8 from every socio-economic background. In order to reach this goal, they need three things:

1. More host sites, to enable greater accessibility and improve outreach to diverse communities.
2. Increased volunteer recruitment to guide the programs.
3. Strong outreach campaigns to get the word out to girls and their guardians – wherever they happen to be.

The emerging leaders in our Resilient Leadership Series class will serve as consultants to GOTR; examining their needs and arriving at viable solutions to address gaps in site development, recruitment and participant outreach. Carley has big goals for the organization and this partnership - "This is an excellent opportunity to receive unique perspectives and strategies from bright leaders in our community. I hope the partnership will extend the impact of the Girls on the Run mission to new volunteers, communities, and girls to help us reach our goal of serving 1,000 girls a season." We can't wait to see how the RLS participants work with GOTR leadership to bring their impact to the next level.Past strategic projects with the Leadership Coaching Series (now Resilient Leadership Series) have included work with the Center for Planning Excellence, Cristo Rey Baton Rouge Franciscan High School, and the Baton Rouge Youth Coalition. Our Winter 2021 class members are looking forward to using their diverse skills to enhance Girls on the Run’s ability to serve a broad community of girls.Management Incubator: A Functional Space for ServiceOn February 23, our Management Incubator class will convene and begin their community impact project with Girls on the Run. While the Resilient Leadership Series will be focusing on strategic growth for the organization, the Incubator will be tasked with looking at facility and space enhancements at GOTR’s Baton Rouge headquarters.GOTR leadership has been accomplishing a lot with a little, finding space for staff and storage in a small house-turned-office. They have asked the MI teams to develop solutions for increasing functionality – improving the working space while creating an inviting atmosphere for volunteers, presentations and meetings. Management Incubator participants will develop a plan and budget, and actually do the work of implementation, producing a completely improved space by the end of Project Implementation Day (projected to be in March, 2021.) Previous community projects completed by the Success Labs’ Management Incubator have included space enhancements at Front Yard Bikes, the Baton Rouge Children’s Advocacy Center, and Volunteers of America Greater Baton Rouge’s HIV/AIDS Services.Facility improvements will play a key role in shoring up Girls on the Run South Louisiana’s overall sustainability as they push for growth and greater service reach.Follow Success Labs on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn to keep up with this exciting partnership – and keep up with GOTR SOLA all year long on their Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest.Success Labs is a leadership development and management consulting firm in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. For more than 25 years, our expert team of consultants has worked with hundreds of companies to grow leaders, build teams and drive results through great people strategy. Contact us to get proactive about expanding your company’s potential, and stay up-to-date with our latest news and leadership development updates here.