Girls on the Run of Mid & Western Maryland
Due to the Covid-19 landscape, many of the families we serve are ALICE families and have found themselves in significant financial distress. We want to make sure that they have after-school programming options that will help develop strong and resilient girls.
Unity Campaign funding will specifically support program fees for 75 girls at schools & community sites in Frederick County. These funds will enable us to make the program a positive reality to girls in our high-risk areas of Frederick County.
GOTR plays a critical role in building girls’ social emotional competencies. Our curriculum emphasizes empowerment and self-care. Girls that participate in our program credit GOTR with helping them manage emotions, establish boundaries, develop confidence, resolve conflict, help others, and be intentional with decisions – life skills that are critical during the current environment and that girls are able continue to use long after our program’s conclusion.
The Girls on the Run (GOTR) program targets 3rd-8th grade girls participating at school & community sites, and includes parent engagement materials distributed to families of the participants. The 16-lesson GOTR curriculum combines training for a 5K (3.1 miles) with lessons that inspire girls to become independent thinkers, enhance their problem solving skills, and make healthy decisions.
Covid-19 modifications for our program include: Pivoting our team locations to local community sites. Should schools allow us in the after-school time frame, we will also host teams at Frederick County Public Schools as in the past.
-Our season will be eight weeks (rather than ten) for Spring 2021.
-We have made accommodations in our curriculum so that coaches can meet in person (social-distancing responsibly) or virtually in the event that is needed at any point in the season.
-We have also provided updated coach training to reflect the current Covid climate.
-Our girls will be given all the program materials individually packed so that no sharing will be needed.
-Coaches have been provided sanitizer, wipes, and masks for use during practices.
-We have modified the activities in our program so that girls will remain apart but still be able to meet in person with a smaller team of girls and coaches.
Each team of girls is led by a team of trained volunteer coaches. These dedicated volunteers are the key to the excellence of our program – not only do they provide positive relationships and create a caring and supportive climate for the girls, they also ensure that the curriculum – which is designed to intentionally teach life skills – is implemented as intended.
Depending on the Covid-19 landscape in June of next year, we will either host an in-person, socially responsibly distanced if required, 5K event in a local park, or team specific 5Ks.