POV

Library resources for Girls, Teens and Parents:

KQED's Latino Heritage
This fun site includes crossword puzzles, lesson plans and resources surrounding "My American Girls." The crossword puzzle is about Latinos in the United States and includes brief essays on people like César Chávez, Luis Valdez and Dolores Huerta. Lesson plans are developed for use with the film and explore the immigrant experience, living between two worlds and the Dominican Republic.

Delve Deeper
This is a suggested listing of fiction and nonfiction books, videos, andweb sites offering more information on topics ranging from multiculturaland identity issues to health, sports, and issues related to raising teensand daughters. Delve Deeper into Resources for Girls, Teens, and Parents is produced in collaboration with BOOKLIST, the review journal of theAmerican Library Association (ALA).

Organizations supporting The MY AMERICAN GIRLS High Impact Television Campaign:

ASPIRA
The ASPIRA Association promotes the empowerment of the Puerto Rican andLatino community by developing and nurturing the leadership, intellectualand cultural potential of its youth so that they may contribute theirskills and dedication to the fullest development of the Puerto Rican andLatino community everywhere. While still mainly a Puerto Rican organization,it now reaches out to include all Latinos and a significant group of non-Latinosthroughout the United States. Presently, ASPIRA serves over 25,000 studentseach year in over 400 schools, through its core activity, the ASPIRA Clubs.ASPIRA provides leadership training, career and college counseling, financialaid, scholarship assistance, educational advocacy, cultural activitiesand, most importantly, continuing opportunities to implement communityaction projects.

MANA: A National Latina Organization
MANA, A National Latina Organization, is a nonprofit, advocacy organizationestablished in 1974. Its mission is to empower Latinas through leadershipdevelopment and community action. MANA fulfills its mission through programsdesigned to develop the leadership skills of Latinas, promote communityservice by Latinas and provide Latinas with advocacy opportunities. Supportfor these programs is derived from members, corporations, foundationsand government grants. A HITV National Partner.

The 4-H National Council
National 4-H Council's mission is to advance the 4-H youth developmentmovement to build a world in which youth and adults learn, grow, and worktogether as catalysts for positive change. 4-H is one of the largest youthorganizations in the United States with more than 6.8 million participantsand more than 610,595 youth and adult volunteers working directly andindirectly with youth. Universally recognized by its four-leaf cloveremblem, 4-H serves youth through a variety of methods including organizedclubs, school-enrichment groups, special interest groups, individual studyprograms, camps, school-age child care programs and instructional televisionprograms.

The National Hispanic Institute
The National Hispanic Institute's primary work is to provide high achievingLatino youth in high school and college with key learning experiencesthat hone their skills as future leaders in the Latino community. Amongthe most distinguishing characteristics of the NHI is in the kind of workit conducts and the manner in which youth are trained. Students are preparedfor the eventualities of leadership in the Latino community once theybecome fully developed adults. The Institute's training focus is on guidingits participants to see themselves as social architects responsible forshaping the future Latino world. To achieve these ends, they are constantlychallenged intellectually, emotionally and culturally to critically reviewtheir readiness to enter the world as leaders. A HITV National Partner.

These educational and girls' organizations offer additional resourcesof interest to parents and students alike:

Colleges and Universities 50States.com
The website 50states.Com includes basic information on the 50 states (mottos,flowers, birds, nicknames and dates of entry into the union). It is alsoa great site for people just beginning to explore options in higher education.It is easy to navigate, since the links to all the colleges and universitiesin America are arranged alphabetically by state.

Fastweb
FastWeb lets students create a personalized profile that can be matchedagainst their databases of colleges and scholarships. The website seeksto aid students in making the decisions that shape their lives: choosinga college, paying for college and finding jobs during and after college.

Girls Inc.
The focus of this site is to help girls become strong, smart and bold.The site includes girls' bill of rights, tips for parents on raising financiallysavvy girls and more. Girls Incorporated is a national nonprofit youthorganization dedicated to inspiring all girls to be strong, smart, andbold. Girls Inc. develops research-based informal education programs thatencourage girls to take risks and master physical, intellectual and emotionalchallenges. Major programs address math and science education, pregnancyand drug abuse prevention, media literacy, economic literacy, adolescenthealth, violence prevention and sports participation.

The National Parent Teacher Association
National PTA is the largest volunteer child advocacy organization in theUnited States. It is a not-for-profit association comprised of parents,educators, students and other citizens active in their schools and communities.The organization seeks to represent the interests of youths and childrenin the community, and before governmental bodies and other organizationsthat make decisions affecting children. The National PTA also works toassist parents in developing the skills they need to raise and protecttheir children and to encourage parent and public involvement in the publicschools of this nation.

The Young Women's Christian Association
The YWCA is the oldest and largest women's membership movement in theUnited States. Three hundred and thirteen YWCAs operate across the country,representing two million women, girls and their families. The movement'smission, to empower women and girls and to eliminate racism, is the guidingprinciple for all YWCA child care, shelter, health, fitness and socialjustice programs.