Here at Hardy Girls, we’re asked from time to time what the benefits are to single-gender programming. On why single-gender environments are critical to girls’ success, this study titled “Choosing to Compete: How Different Are Girls and Boys?” (PDF: 289 kb) highlights how differently girls and boys develop in single-gender versus co-ed surroundings. The study [...]
Blog by Dana Hernandez “Mommy, I want to have a princess party this year for my birthday.” Suddenly the air was sucked out of the room and I waited for the oxygen masks to deploy from the ceiling as the living room nose-dived. “What?” I coughed out, wide-eyed to my 4-year-old daughter. “A princess [...]
Blog by Jessi Lusardi While reeling from the shock of new motherhood, I started to notice the amount of media messages focused on mothers and motherhood. The first place I noticed it was at the check out counter at the grocery store (as that was my most frequent, and oftentimes only, outing with a new [...]
Blog by Raina Cole “Mom, when I grow up I want to be a princess,” Eliana said to me. After grasping my heart and struggling to breathe, I asked her why she wanted to be a princess. “Because princesses spin around.” “Well, you can spin around and not be a princess. There are so many [...]
U.S Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-1st district, visited Waterville last week. Waterville Mayor Karen Heck (Hardy Girls Co-Creator) escorted Rep. Pingree to three organizations/businesses in the area, and Hardy Girls was excited to be able to welcome her to our office in downtown Waterville. Read more about Rep. Pingree’s visit to Waterville. Rep. Pingree also taped [...]
By Stacia Hoover At 7, Reina doesn’t know yet what challenges she’ll face but already she senses inequalities. “Mom, why are boys supposed to be braver and better than girls?” “Why do people call things ‘him’ or ‘he’? Can’t the dinosaur be a girl?” I try my best to answer but mostly I say, “Honey, [...]
We’re loving this fantastic letter to the editor that 7th grader Hannah Smith-Erb wrote about violence in The Hunger Games and many schools’ decisions to show it in class. When asked what motivated her to write the piece, Hannah said, “I think schools are trying to normalize violence and that really bugs me.” Hannah has [...]
Review by Jessi Lusardi Zilly tells the story of a young ‘flyer’, who wants to fit in with other flyers who have been criticizing her. She sees a billboard for flying lessons, and decides to sign up. Unfortunately, the lessons have lots of rules, such as “No Flips or Zips,” and the lessons even ban [...]
Josephine Cotton, of Bremen, is the winner of the Girls Rock! Award for Entrepreneurship for her work making jewelry and starting her own small business. She started making jewelry because of a simulation in 5th grade where she also practiced selling to other students. Since then, she has grown her business, now called Shipwrecked Jewelry, [...]
Cassidy Dangler, of Waterville, is the winner of the Girls Rock! Award for Title IX. She earned her black belt in karate when she was ten, and now helps teach other students karate. Cassidy assists in classes with students from three years old to adults and is one of three girls in her advanced belt [...]
