LGL Steering Committee
ORGANIZATION PROMOTES EMPOWERMENT, PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT Writer / Shannon Siders Photography / Lauren Hill, Opal & Oak Photos & Events
Over two decades ago, there were virtually zero opportunities for teenage girls in Louisville to participate in meaningful enrichment or personal development. Louisville Girls Leadership (LGL) was formed to fill that void. At the beginning of each school year, LGL welcomes 40 sophomore students from area high schools, with the goal of serving girls from as many schools as possible. This year’s class marks the most diverse group yet, with girls representing 28 schools and 23 zip codes. Over one-third of this year’s participants identify as black or African-American, and nearly another third are mixed, Middle Eastern, Asian, AsianAmerican, Hispanic or Latino.
Last year brought big changes for LGL including a new program coordinator, as well as the addition and expansion of various events and offerings. “Last summer I joined the LGL staff and began to learn what it meant to work for an organization wholly dedicated to their mission, ‘By girls, for girls,’” says new program coordinator Laura Patterson. A group of program alumnae who are current juniors and seniors in high school serve on the organization’s steering committee, and are responsible for designing and implementing the year’s programming for the new group of participants. “Each experience put on by LGL is carefully designed by high school students to challenge their peers to rise up as leaders,” MARCH 2020
Patterson says. “Our steering committee is the force behind each program.” Heba Qaissi, a senior at Walden School who lives in Jeffersontown, is one of the steering committee co-chairs this year. She applied to be a participant in the program two years ago after a friend encouraged her to apply, and she’s been hooked ever since. “Going into the program, I didn’t really know what it was about, just that it included girls and empowerment, which sounded pretty cool,” Qaissi says. “It has been a really powerful and eye-opening experience, learning about issues and how we as girls can be leaders. We learn how to really get involved in our communities and use our passions to create a better world.” After graduating from the program, Qaissi
