You may remember that the August 2002 issue of ESSENCE magazine listed SisterMentors as one of 50 programs that empower girls! In response, we received an overwhelming number of emails asking us to mentor more girls.

Here's what we've been doing in our community:

Earlier this year we expanded our mentoring to a new group of girls of color in two public middle schools in Alexandria, Virginia. The girls are twelve and thirteen year olds, in 6th and 7th grades and are primarily Black and Latina. We are now mentoring 25 girls of color in the Washington Metropolitan area.

Why are we mentoring girls in Alexandria and in the Washington Metropolitan area in general?

A recent report on youth in the region, prepared by the Brookings Institute, stated that Black and Latino children in the District of Columbia and Alexandria are exposed to "deep poverty, distressed public schools, and persistent crime." The report stated that the District of Columbia has the lowest high school graduation rate in the region and "has not reached a 60 percent graduation rate in the last decade." In Alexandria, although teen pregnancy has been reduced, Alexandria still has the highest teen pregnancy rate in Northern Virginia. The report goes on to add that young people who drop out of school will face "decreased employment opportunities, low wages, and limited career advancement opportunities."

One of the most important aspects of SisterMentors' mentoring of girls of color in middle and high schools is our investment in futures. The women doctoral candidates in our program are changing the futures of the girls they mentor by inspiring the girls to stay in school and go on to college. These girls will become educated women of color and change the futures, not only of girls, but also of many in their community. We are setting in motion a cycle of successful futures and are very excited about the impact we are having by helping to decrease the high drop-out rate among girls of color.

As you know, another important aspect of SisterMentors' program is the women of color doctoral candidates we help to complete their dissertations and get their doctorates.

The women themselves face enormous challenges in their pursuit of the doctorate since at least fifty percent of graduate students drop out of their programs, particularly at the dissertation writing stage, and the percentage is considerably higher for women of color.

These women doctoral candidates give back to their community by mentoring the girls in our program. They are role models for girls of color --- the girls see women who look like them and who have persevered and achieved academic success despite the odds.

So far, SisterMentors has helped 14 women of color to complete their dissertations and get the doctorate, including our most recent graduate, Kangbai Konaté. In the next few months we will help 2 more women to get their doctorates and we continue to help 14 more women to progress in their goal to complete their dissertation.

We are indeed investing in futures and would like to ask you to invest along with us. Your donation will help us to add more women to our program, some of whom are still on a waiting list. The more women we have in the SisterMentors' program, the more girls we can mentor!

Our goal this year is to raise $20,000 by December 15, 2002. We would appreciate your donation of $100 or more to help SisterMentors reach this goal, but will also appreciate anything you can give. Please remember that your donation is tax deductible since SisterMentors' umbrella organization, EduSeed®, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.

Please make your check payable to EduSeed® and mail to EduSeed/SisterMentors, 1666 K Street, NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20006.

Thank you for your generous support of SisterMentors!

Shireen K. Lewis, J.D., Ph.D., Executive Director