Girls On the Run Chicago
Girls on the Run-Chicago (GOTR) uses the power of running to educate and inspire girls for a life time of self-respect and healthy living. GOTR is one of the largest independent chapters of an international organization, Girls on the Run International, based in North Carolina. Founded by five area women in 1999, GOTR-Chicago now has more than 150 volunteer coaches who mentor nearly 1,300 young girls, age eight to 12, in after-school sessions that combine training for a 5K running event with self-esteem enhancing, uplifting workouts.
Program Spotlight
Hooked On Drums™ brings the upbeat, inspiring rhythms of African djembe drumming from the Malinke people in Guinea, West Africa to kids in urban Chicago. We offer Hooked On Drums classes and youth drum performances through the Chicago Park District, local schools and community organizations. The program gets kids hooked on authentic, traditional music, allowing them to explore African heritage while sharpening their minds on a complex musical idiom with irresistible rhythms. Hooked On Drums™ is deeply committed to using African music as a vehicle for fostering creativity, curiosity, discipline, self-confidence and well-being in inner-city, at-risk youth of diverse ethnic backgrounds.
Website: www.hookedondrums.org
28% (641,975) of Illinois’ K-12 children are responsible for taking care of themselves after school.