Mission Statement
This Is ME fosters substance in the world of adolescent and teen girls through programs designed for the “whole girl.” With the guidance of exceptional women, girls have the opportunity to explore their individual strengths and learn to sustain positive relationships in a supportive, creative, and open environment.
Statement of Inclusiveness
This Is ME recognizes the individual strengths of all girls and women regardless of their ethnic and racial backgrounds, sexual orientation, physical ability, religious/spiritual beliefs, or socio-economic status. We provide a safe and open environment for the full participation of all members, staff, and volunteers.
Core Values
Mentorship, positive peer relationships, introspection.
History
This Is ME has been serving adolescent and teen girls in northwest side communities of Chicago since January 2000.
The idea for This Is ME was planted when the founder, Heather Sattler, began researching youth issues in 1997. What Heather found was an overwhelming need for adolescent girls to have separate time and separate space. However, as Heather continued to research she found that there was a severe lack of quality girls programming in the Chicago area serving this need.
Heather took the initiative to gather girls and women from the area she grew up, to find out exactly what the need was locally. This led to the formation of an Executive Committee and Girls Council to lay the foundation of This Is ME. The first program offered by This Is ME came in January of 2000 at the Irving Park YMCA. This Is ME achieved 501(c)(3) organization status a year later in February of 2001.
The organization has since expanded, now offering five different programs at four different partner sites and has grown from serving six girls at the organization’s founding to more than 75 girls this semester. Recognition of This Is ME to date includes being the featured organization in the Chicago Girls Coalition’s first newsletter and the American Association of University Women naming founder, Heather Sattler, one of five “women in charge” across the nation for her work on behalf of girls and women.
This Is ME is proud to have recently served its 575th girl.
