Each new year gives me an opportunity to reflect, refocus, and reimagine how to enact positive changes through my work in the community. With every new year comes new knowledge, and with knowledge comes the power to create lasting change. At the Delores Barr Weaver Policy Center, knowledge gained through our research, partnerships, and engagement with girls, families, and communities fuel the conversations and actions that can transform systems.
Knowledge sparks dialogue, and dialogue drives growth. This year, we are especially committed to deepening the conversations that matter most to the girls we are honored to serve. The more we learn together, the more effectively we can create systems of care that not only meet girls’ critical needs but also value their experiences and consider their voices.
I remember the first time I met 15-year-old Rachel* inside the Juvenile Detention Center. She sat across from me with her arms crossed, her posture guarded, her eyes sharp with skepticism. She had no interest in engaging in services with the Policy Center, and she made that clear immediately. She looked at me and asked, point blank, “What’s so special about you?”
It wasn’t a question looking for reassurance. It was a challenge, earned, justified, and shaped by years of disappointment.
Rachel had moved through eight foster care homes in just three years. She had worked with more than a dozen service professionals including caseworkers, counselors, and advocates. She told me, without hesitation, “No one can help me. My last foster mom said I’m a lost cause.”
For a 15-year-old to carry that sentence as truth is devastating. And yet, it made sense given what she had experienced.
Instead of responding by sharing what made the Policy Center different, I paused. I resisted the urge to convince her. Instead, I asked a different question: “How do you feel people have failed you?”
Rachel didn’t hesitate.
She started with her mom. She explained that her mother needed help but instead of being supported, she was judged and villainized. Over time, the shame and barriers became too much. Visits stopped. Attempts to reunify faded. Rachel understood this not as abandonment, but as a system that punished vulnerability instead of responding to it.
She talked about the foster homes that didn’t last and the constant transitions that left her feeling disposable. She described case workers who framed every disruption as her fault, every reaction as defiance, every survival strategy as a character flaw.
Then she said something that has stayed with me ever since:
“Sometimes I’m treated like a child and my opinion doesn’t matter. But when it’s convenient for adults, suddenly I’m an adult and responsible for everything I do. They never ask if I felt like I even had a choice. Sometimes it’s just survival. Sometimes it’s all I know.”
In that moment, the truth was painfully clear. Rachel had been failed repeatedly by systems designed to protect her, by adults tasked with caring for her, by processes that prioritized compliance over understanding. And yet, she was the one paying the consequences.
Rachel didn’t need someone to fix her. She needed someone to listen. To believe her. To recognize that her behavior made sense in the context of her experiences.
That conversation changed me.
Rachel taught me the importance of slowing down, of listening deeply, and of not assuming that I know a girl’s story before she tells it herself. She reinforced why See the Girl is not just a philosophy, but a practice. To see the girl means to look beyond the file, the charges, the labels, and the narratives others have imposed. It means honoring lived experience, acknowledging harm, and recognizing resilience where systems have only seen failure.
Rachel was a girl asking to be seen.
Stories like Rachel’s remind us why this work matters and why showing up makes a difference. As we begin the New Year at the Policy Center, our first quarter offers powerful opportunities to engage, learn, and help create lasting change. I hope to see you at one of our upcoming events.
- February 10, 2026, 5:30 – 7:00 pm, Jessie Ball duPont Center
See the Girl: Behind Closed Doors Town Hall – A space to elevate the voices of girls and shine light on the often-unseen experiences that shape their lives. Together, we’ll explore how systems can do better when they listen with empathy and act with accountability. - March 30-April 3, 8am – 4 pm, Jessie Ball duPont Center
Girl-Centered Practice 5-Day Training This signature Policy Center training strengthens understanding and implementation of girl-centered approaches. Join us to gain practical strategies to improve responses to girls in crisis and learn to apply research findings to employ healing, gender responsive practices that improve outcomes for girls. - April 15-17, 9am,-4pm, Jessie Ball duPont Center
Summit for Change (formerly See the Girl Summit) Our annual gathering of thought leaders, advocates, and practitioners to share ideas, challenge assumptions, and explore how policy and practice can align for meaningful change.
Each of these events reflects our belief that learning together strengthens our collective impact. Through research, knowledge sharing, and open conversation, we can continue to reimagine systems that truly see, hear, and value every girl.
As we welcome this new year, I am filled with a deep sense of hope and determination. My hope is that we will all embrace curiosity, share what we discover, and allow our learning to guide us toward greater compassion and justice. Because when knowledge is shared, growth follows, and with growth, change becomes possible.
Please join the Policy Center in our efforts to advance girls’ rights and create communities where girls are safe, protected, valued, and equal partners in their futures. Please join us to See the Girl for her true potential, not her present circumstances.
*Name changed to protect confidentiality.
