2023 Summit Reflections

The Girls Spark Teen Summit was my first one, and although my excitement and expectations were high while working up to it all year, I am proud to say I was still shocked by how successful and impressive the Summit was. I had never been in an environment like that and the very last speaker, Lynette Medley, held us all in, with a room full of excited and empowered teen girls cheering and interacting with the speaker as she gave her Period Poverty talk. I met so many great girls of different grades, learned so much about business, self defense, my body, and just felt so proud to be apart of the Girls Spark Teen Leadership Board!

One of my favorite things about the Summit was the addition of the middle schoolers . It was so fun to go around to the tables with just one girl who came by herself, or two girls who didn’t know each other, and introduce them to other girls. Also, watching the middle school girls ask the Teen Board questions about high school, friend problems, and other questions they were worried about was so cool as I saw the teens’ answers, and what the middle schoolers were curious about. There were so many girls who raised their hands high and asked their questions without any shame or embarrassment, which I think was mostly because of the supportive environment they were in. When I was in middle school, I definitely would have loved to have the chance to ask teenagers all about their experiences in high school, and things I was worried about, so I found it to be a really great idea.

Annie Durant, Vice President Elect, Girls Spark 2023-24 Teen Leadership Board