Name: Ziva DeMattia

Social Justice Group: Girls Access to Education Globally

Date of Fieldwork: January 19, 2023

Name of Organization and person (people) with whom you met and their title(s):Ashely Steimer-King the Program Director of Girls Learn International

Type of Fieldwork: Interview

What I did and what I learned about my topic, activism, social justice work or civil and human rights work from this fieldwork?[:: :

On January 19th, we interviewed Ashely Steimer-King who is the program director of Girls Learn International (GLI). We got to learn about their entire program, and more about what they do to help girls access education. Their organization is important because they make sure girls and their families have stability in their lives, so that the girls are able to attend school. GLI’s mission is to advocate for girls’ education across the U.S. and around the world and to empower and support new generations of people fighting for social change.

I learned so many new details about GLI’s work from Ashley and how they help girls access a safe education. One of the things I learned is that if another priority comes up when they are working with families, such as access to food, water, and shelter, GLI will help them access these things before trying to encourage the girls to attend school. I also learned that sometimes a family’s culture or religion can get in the way of the family wanting their daughters to attend school. GLI offers a variety of subjects in their educational programs and some of them are teaching the girls about mental health and sex education, since they usually haven’t been taught about these things. Once they give these girls an education, it not only helps them learn new things and be educated but it also opens up new opportunities for them, and that is one of their goals. GLI is still helping many girls access a safe education, so the girls have more opportunities to choose from throughout their lives.