“My goals as a writer were to talk about myself in a way that would best reflect who I am, not only as a person but also someone to rely on and someone to be interested in. I achieved these goals, because not only did writing about myself in the way I wanted get me into my top choice school, but I also got a scholarship that will pay all of my tuition. So I have set myself up for a great future.” — Nyasiah, Girls Write Now Mentee, Class of 2017
This year, Girls Write Now is wrapping up with a 30% increase in mentor-mentee pairs, including a record-breaking number of senior mentees: our Class of 2017 is 59 mentees strong! It has been an incredible year, with more than two dozen workshops ranging from dramatic writing for one-woman shows, to interview skill-building and resume-writing, to storytelling with code! Mentors and mentees met over one thousand times to work on writing and media projects together, producing over three hundred individual and collaborative pieces that were performed at the CHAPTERS Reading Series, exhibited at QWERTY Digital Media Exhibition, submitted to the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards (winning 73 awards), and published on the Multimedia Anthology and in the print edition of Rise Speak Change — not to mention the hundreds of other pieces filling mentee portfolios.
Thanks to some agonizing months of hard work — and, of course, close collaboration with their mentors — our Class of 2017 seniors count literally hundreds of college acceptances among them, and their college careers will be funded in part by scholarships from the Posse Foundation, the Ascend Educational Fund, arts scholarships, deans’ scholarships, presidential scholarships, National Merit Scholarships, and more.
Campuses up and down the East Coast will be graced with Girls Write Now alumnae, including Tufts University, Middlebury College, Columbia University, Northeastern University, Cornell University, Ithaca College, The New School, CUNY Hunter, SUNY Purchase, Smith College, Manhattan College, City College, Hampton University, Binghamton University, Wells College, and many more.
To our graduating seniors: we just ask that you remember us when you’re all wildly successful academics and writers, and be sure to join us for PostScript and other alumnae opportunities! You definitely haven’t heard the last of us yet, and we know we’ll hear about all the incredible work you do for years to come.
“Girls Write Now is an inspiration for girls in New York City. The organization is multifaceted, addressing technology and college but focusing on writing. I would recommend it to anyone and everyone!”
— Girls Write Now Mentee, Class of 2017