Soroptimist International of the Americas (SIA) is a global volunteer organisation that provides women and girls with access to the education and training they need to achieve economic empowerment. SIA operate in many countries and territories throughout North America, South America, and the Pacific Rim. Turning 100 years old in 2021, the Federation remains committed to women and girls’ education and its transformational power, as education has been shown repeatedly to be the best investment for uplifting individuals, families, and entire communities.

 

The SIA ‘Dream It, Be It’ programme, provides girls with the tools they need to achieve their education and career goals, empowering them to create their own path.

Programme Objectives

• Increase the number of girls who feel prepared to pursue their career goals.
• Increase the number of girls who feel more confident about their future success.
• Increase the number of girls who have tools to overcome obstacles to success.
• Increase the number of girls who can connect personal values with possible careers.
• Increase the number of girls who have professional role models.
• Increase the number of girls who feel comfortable creating achievable goals.

 

Through a seven-session curriculum, the programme provides girls with information about:

• Career opportunities
• Setting and achieving goals
• Overcoming obstacles to success
• Moving forward after setbacks or failures

 

Although all girls face barriers because of their gender, SIA prioritises working with girls who face additional obstacles including poverty, unstable home lives, living in foster care, or teen pregnancy and parenting. More than 98,000 girls have received support, encouragement, and guidance from women in their community since the ‘Dream It, Be It’ programme launched in 2014.

Outcomes

• 88% feel more confident about their future success
• 88% created achievable goals for their future
• 87% have new tools to overcome obstacles to their success

These outcomes speak to the impact that clubs are having on girls and their futures in their local community.  Strong outcomes also motivate SIA to serve more girls every year, with research suggesting 10 million girls living in the SIA countries and territories could benefit from the ‘Dream It, Be It’ programme

In many countries around the world, indigenous girls navigate additional obstacles alongside gender-based discrimination. Challenges include lack of access to education, healthcare, and ancestral lands, as well as facing disproportionality high rates of poverty and violence due to persistent discrimination. A presentation prepared for the SI Voices Webinar which takes place on the International Day of Education, showcases the SI of Terronal ‘Dream It, Be It’ project taking place in Panama. The project worked with the Ngabe indigenous community. Many of the girls experience extreme poverty and are often unable to attend school due to the remoteness of their community. With the ‘Dream It Be It’ curriculum, support of mentors, and skills training, girls in the programme developed vocational skills to support themselves and invest in their communities.

View the PowerPoint presentation from the Webinar on International Day of the Girl 2023 HERE