Dallas, TX – Girls on the Run (GOTR), a life-changing, non-profit program for girls in the 3rd through 8th grade, is expanding into South and West Dallas. The Boone Family Foundation awarded a $15,000 grant to GOTR which will provide 100 scholarships over the next year.
The 20-lesson Girls on the Run curriculum combines training for a 5K run with teaching designed to inspire girls to be independent thinkers, to be problem-solvers and to make healthy decisions. This is accomplished through an active collaboration with girls and their parents, schools, volunteers, staff and the community. Meeting twice a week in teams of 8-15 girls, GOTR certified coaches teach life skills through dynamic, conversation-based lessons and running games. Girls on the Run served 729 girls in 2013 and is projected to serve over 900 in 2014.
“The Boone Family Foundation is thrilled to give more girls in Dallas the opportunity to benefit from Girls on the Run,” said Executive Director Cynthia Yung. “This innovative program gives girls a tangible sense of achievement as well as a framework for setting and reaching life goals.”
Working with the City of Dallas Housing/Community Services Department, Girls on the Run will open two new scholarship classes this spring in South Dallas at the Turner Courts Recreation Center and one new class in West Dallas at the Mattie Nash Recreation Center. Registration for the spring season opens January 13, 2014 and classes begin the week of February 10, 2014. In the fall of 2014, GOTR plans to open a class in the Fair Park area and one in the Cigarette Hill/Alameda Heights neighborhood.
“We are grateful to The Boone Family Foundation for this grant,” said GOTR Executive Director Laurie Mitchell. “Because of their generosity, GOTR will be able to work in new areas of Dallas and offer our curriculum to girls who otherwise couldn’t afford to participate.”
Girls on the Run- DFW Metroplex (GOTR) inspires girls to be joyful, healthy and confident using a fun, experience-based curriculum which creatively integrates running. GOTR is a transformational physical activity- based positive youth development program for girls in 3rd-8th grade. The program culminates with the girls being physically and emotionally prepared to complete a celebratory 5K run. The goal of the program is to unleash confidence through accomplishment while establishing a lifetime appreciation of health and fitness. GOTR of the DFW Metroplex is an Independent council of Girls on the Run International, which has a network of 200+ locations across the United States and Canada.
For More information:
Laurie Mitchell, Executive Director
(214) 484-3082
[email protected]