As the leaders of Strong Women Strong Girls (SWSG) explored ways to grow and stabilize their small nonprofit, the top concern for Marissa Escajeda was that any change “would keep the girl at the center.”Escajeda was chief executive of the Pittsburgh operations of SWSG, which in October became an affiliate of the much larger Girls Inc., a mentoring organization that serves 114,000 girls in the U.S. and Canada. SWSG’s mentoring programs focused on girls in grades three to five, but since merging with Girls Inc., it will expand and work with girls from age 5 through post-high school.“It was a really heavy decision to make, to let go of SWSG,” says Escajeda, who now leads Girls Inc. of Greater Pittsburgh.“What’s exciting is that we can follow the girl throughout her youth … and follow our model … in a big organization with resources.”Girls Inc. was founded in 1864 in Waterbury, Connecticut, to support “girls and young women who were experiencing upheaval” after the Civil War, according to a history on its website. It’s now based in New York City.It now has 75 affiliates and reported net assets of $64 million in 2023, according to a federal tax filing. SWSG launched two decades ago in Boston and Pittsburgh, and the Pittsburgh operation has an annual budget this year of around $900,000, says Escajeda.Like SWSG, Girls Inc. offers one-on-one mentoring and programs that help girls develop leadership skills and advocate for themselves in the face of bullying, harassment and gender discrimination. It also provides lessons in financial literacy and STEM topics. Local organization Strong Women Strong Girls joined Girls Inc. as an affiliate last October. Alone, Strong Women Strong Girls could provide mentoring programs only for girls between grades three and five. As part of the national group, the Pittsburgh branch’s programming is for participants ranging from 5 years old to beyond high school. Photo courtesy of Girls Inc.In Pittsburgh, the young girls are mentored by trained students from six local universities: the University of Pittsburgh, Duquesne, Point Park, Robert Morris, Carlow and Carnegie Mellon.The college student mentors in turn are mentored by local professionals including Aleya Jennings, director of corporate sponsorships and individual giving at Fred Rogers Productions, who currently mentors a student at Pitt. Jennings is also the board chair of Girls Inc.’s Pittsburgh affiliate and helped craft the merger.“Since I came to SWSG,” Jennings says, “the idea discussed was how to serve more girls and women and continue to do what we’re doing on a larger scale because we know the need is so great.”Aleya Jennings, board chair of Girls Inc. of Greater Pittsburgh. Photo by Brian Cook courtesy of Girls Inc.As a Black female executive, Jennings says she is “really unapologetic in my request to mentor Black women because we’re marginalized and disadvantaged.”“I’ve benefited from the power of mentorship at many stages of my career.”SWSG approached Girls Inc. about combining, and several factors made it an obvious partnership, Jennings says. The organizations have a very similar mission, and Girls Inc.’s national brand equity allows the former SWSG to “be more bold with our outreach,” she says.As part of the Girls Inc. network, Escajeda says, the Pittsburgh affiliate’s fundraising efforts should benefit from “a little more name recognition” — especially among corporations that support Girls Inc. affiliates elsewhere.Corporate funders for SWSG have included UPMC, Eaton, Dollar Bank, PPG, U.S. Steel, Duquesne Light and American Eagle.Philanthropic support includes The Grable, Howmet, FISA and Birmingham foundations and McAuley Ministries. Even before the merger, Pittsburgh had connections to Girls Inc.Tony Bucci, chair of the advertising agency 9Rooftops, is a past national chair of the organization; and Deb Hopkins, director of affiliate services and expansion for Girls Inc., is also based in Pittsburgh.Because both SWSG and Girls Inc. focused on at-risk girls in low-income communities — including many girls of color — Girls Inc. of Greater Pittsburgh will continue its programming in places such as Wilkinsburg, McKees Rocks, Aliquippa, Coraopolis, Homestead and Mount Oliver; as well as city neighborhoods including the Hill District, Homewood, Carrick, Greenfield, North Side, Brookline, Westwood, Stanton Heights and Larimer. The organization provides programs at 40 sites including schools and community centers in the Pittsburgh region.Two Girls Inc. members pose for a photo. Photo courtesy of Girls Inc.As part of Girls Inc., the former SWSG can also tap a large library of programs and curricula already developed by Girls Inc. for older girls, including healthy sexuality, violence prevention and substance abuse prevention. The Pittsburgh affiliate is developing a pilot program for middle school girls beginning this fall and eventually hopes to work with high school students, says Escajeda. “At many Girls Inc. affiliates, girls come at age 5 or 6 and stay through high school,” she says. “That’s our goal.”For Escajeda, 35, the organization’s mission to reinforce leadership and confidence among girls is personal. She became pregnant with her first child as a junior in high school.After she delivered her daughter, “All the messaging … from teachers and counselors … about what I could do and where I was going stopped,” she says. “I was told I needed to get a job.”Her family was supportive, however, and backed her decision to study full time at Duquesne University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in theology.Escajeda later earned a master’s degree in ethics, peace and global affairs from American University and a master’s degree in public administration from Pitt.Marissa Escajeda, CEO of Girls Inc. of Greater Pittsburgh, is photographed with pennants for some of the universities the organization works with at its Squirrel Hill office. Photo by John Beale.As a single mom going to school and working to take care of her daughter, Escajeda says, “I spent a lot of my 20s doubting myself. The message from high school followed me and it took a lot of telling myself, ‘I’m worthy.’”Now married with two more children, pregnant with a fourth, and watching her 18-year-old prepare for college, Escajeda hopes the young females who are mentored through Girls Inc. “see the bumps in the road don’t have to deter you and take you off track completely.”“That’s what motivates me and I’m fighting for them.”The post Girls Inc. bolsters Pittsburgh nonprofit while ‘keeping girls at the center’ appeared first on NEXTpittsburgh.