B-GILD
Leadership development created for Black girls ages 12 to 18.
B-GILD is the signature leadership program of Girls Lead Change. It was created for Black girls across the diaspora who deserve spaces that affirm who they are, strengthen their confidence, and help them grow into the leaders they are already becoming.
This is more than a program. It is a journey of identity, sisterhood, skill-building, and action. Through mentoring, workshops, leadership experiences, and community-based projects, girls grow in voice, confidence, and purpose while building the tools to lead in school, in their communities, and in the world around them.
At B-GILD, girls are not treated as problems to be solved. They are seen as leaders to be nurtured. We help them understand their value, trust their voice, and step into their power with the support of mentors, local partners, and a global sisterhood.
She is not just the future. She is a leader now.
A healing-centered leadership pathway that helps girls grow from self-discovery to real-world impact.
The B-GILD experience is built around our 6-6-12 approach, a leadership journey designed to support growth over time.
Girls begin with 6 weeks of self-leadership, where they build confidence, deepen identity, and strengthen wellbeing in a safe and supportive environment.
They then move into 6 weeks of leadership development, where they build practical skills such as communication, teamwork, critical thinking, and problem-solving while exploring areas of leadership that matter to them.
The journey continues with 12 months of guided growth and action, where girls apply what they have learned through mentoring, sisterhood, and community-based projects that align with the Sustainable Development Goals.
This is how leadership takes root. Girls move from knowing who they are, to believing in what they can do, to acting on what they are called to change.
I Am. I Can. I Will.
This is our year-long journey. Girls grow step by step.
Six-week Identity Intensive
Six-month Leadership Deep Dive with a track choice
- Twelve-month SDG community service and impact project
- Mentoring and sisterhood support throughout
- Girls remain connected as alumnae after completing the journey
Six-week Identity Intensive
Six-month Leadership Deep Dive with a track choice
- Twelve-month SDG community service and impact project
- Mentoring and sisterhood support throughout
- Girls remain connected as alumnae after completing the journey
Girls create
A personal identity reflection
A voice practice (speech, story, presentation, or creative work)
- A simple wellbeing plan
Mentoring and sisterhood support throughout
- A next-steps goal for the next 90 days
Why It Matters
Why B-GILD Matters
Because Black girls deserve more than encouragement. They deserve investment.
Too often, Black girls are expected to be strong without being supported, capable without being nurtured, and resilient without being given the relationships and opportunities that help leadership grow. B-GILD exists to change that.
We create a space where Black girls are seen, heard, and equipped to lead. By combining healing-centered development, year-round mentoring, local partnership, and a global sisterhood, we help girls build the confidence, skills, and sense of belonging they need to thrive.
The result is not just personal growth. It is leadership in motion. Girls begin to see themselves differently, engage their communities more boldly, and step forward with greater clarity, courage, and purpose.
Girls build leadership skills and choose a focus area. Core skills include decision-making, teamwork, communication, problem-solving, and advocacy.
- A leadership growth plan
- A track portfolio or mini project
- A community issue map (what needs to change and why)
- Choose a real community problem
Connect it to a Sustainable Development Goal
- Design a solution
- Mobilize peers and community support
- Measure progress with simple indicators
- Share results and lessons learned in a final showcase
How change happens (Five Pathways to Transformational Leadership)
Pathway 1: Identity, Confidence and Voice
Black girls are often socialized to silence and self-doubt. GLC intentionally rebuilds self-belief through leadership identity formation, storytelling, grounding, and sisterhood modeling.
Short-term: Increased confidence, stronger identity, greater willingness to speak and self-advocate.
Long-term: Girls who see themselves as leaders and take initiative in community and civic spaces.
Pathway 2: Healing and Resilience
Leadership without healing is unsustainable. GLC integrates mental health literacy, stress management, emotion regulation, and collective care into every session.
Short-term: Reduced isolation, improved emotional regulation, healthier coping strategies.
Long-term: Resilient leaders who prioritize wellbeing as part of their leadership identity.
Pathway 3: Leadership Competencies and Tracks
GLC develops practical leadership competencies through critical thinking, decision-making, collaboration, and advocacy. Girls choose from three specialized tracks aligned with their passions and career interests.
- Entrepreneurship Leadership: entrepreneurial mindset, opportunity identification, financial literacy, value creation
- Political Leadership: understanding power structures and governance, public speaking, debate, community mobilization
- Technology Leadership: digital literacy, cyber safety, coding and AI awareness, design thinking, tech-enabled social impact
Pathway 4: Community Service and Social Impact
GLC connects leadership to action through SDG-aligned community projects. Girls identify local problems, design solutions, mobilize peers, and measure impact.
Pathway 5: Global Exposure and Sisterhood
Through virtual exchanges and Global Trek experiences, girls gain cross-cultural competency, access to mentors, exposure to universities and industries, and transnational sisterhood networks that prepare them for global futures.
The result: Girls prepared for higher education, public leadership, and entrepreneurship – equipped with the confidence, skills, and networks to become the change agents their communities need.
Girls Lead Change protects girls through clear rules, trained adults, and confidential reporting. Adults complete safeguarding training and follow boundaries.
