Throughout our 5-year partnership, Free People has supported Girls Inc. through advocacy campaigns, health and wellness programming… Now add to that list — mentorship.
Since its inception in 1864, Girls Inc.’s mission has remained steadfast: to guide the growth of girls into strong, smart, and bold young women. We at Free People are humbled to join in their effort of providing these girls with unique professional and social opportunities.
Today, we wanted to highlight one FP X Girls Inc. event in particular. Not only because of its timeliness, but because of the incredible impact and genuine connection forged with members of the Girls Inc. Eureka! Program.
Girls Inc.’s Eureka! program is an intensive, five-year STEM based program for rising students that builds confidence and skills through hands-on opportunities in science, technology, engineering, and math. Utilizing a whole girl approach, the program also incorporates physical fitness, personal development, and college and career readiness.
Last week, thirty 10th graders, all high-achieving young women who hail from our local Philly Eureka! Program, visited Home Office to take part in our Mentorship Week activities.
We took Eureka!’s whole girl approach to heart, and curated the week’s events to check off those very same boxes. Read on to learn more about what we collectively achieved!
Mentorship Week kicked off Wednesday with virtual speed mentoring sessions. From Marketing to Operations to Design, the girls were introduced to many department leads from within FP during 10-minute breakout sessions. Fifteen FP volunteers rotated with 30 Girls Inc. girls, who posed questions like, “How can I turn a passion into a career?” “How can I find the best college for me?” “Can I still have hobbies as an adult?”
Thursday we continued with our department presentations where the Sustainability, Affiliate Marketing, and Social Media teams gave the girls a peek into a day in the life of their work and learned firsthand about potential career paths and interests.
And, at week’s end, we welcomed the girls to our Home Office for a day brimming with activity, beginning with yoga (hosted by our very own newly certified yoga instructor, Sammy). After a quick snack, our Business Assistant took the Eureka! team on a tour of our buildings, capped off with an impromptu Q&A about careers, passions, travel, and what it’s like to work for such a creative company.
Our Footwear Team challenged the students to brainstorm a list of names for new shoe styles. Next, the girls participated in a TikTok styling session with our social and styling teams, creating looks for three different occasions. The day ended with a visit to our in-house photo studio so the girls could get a peek behind the scenes, and in front of the camera!
Thanks to all of the volunteers who helped make Mentorship Week such a huge success. The girls considered it the best event of their summer. And we look forward to continuing on this wonderful journey, together.
To learn more about our ongoing partnership with Girls Inc., visit Care FP.
A percentage of every FP Movement purchase is donated to Girls Inc.
Wow, I wouldn’t have thought Girls Inc had been around for 157 years! I wish you success in your future work. Your work is worthy of respect.
I love that FP is doing so much work to empower young women and build confidence in them. It’s something that is dearly needed and it’s great to see from a company like FP!
Girls Inc sounds awesome! Wish this was near me for my daughter.