Girls Initiative

Girls Initiative Training

ARISE Girls Initiative Training at the Milton Girls Academy, Milton, FL

In Florida, 25% of juveniles arrested are female (1 out of every 4 is female). Within the past decade, there has been a 67% increase in the numbers of girls behind bars, according to the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice. This is indicative of a national trend. With so many young women suddenly flooding juvenile justice facilities, ARISE established the Girls Initiative: Gender Specific Awareness Training. These young women are not the same as young men behind bars. Staff working with these women need to understand the distinction between genders in order to provide the best care. The Gender Specific training will teach staff the differences between genders and the specific way in which to handle girls in their care.

ARISE began its Girls Initiative by developing a Gender Awareness Training for the Department of Juvenile Justice staff who supervise young girls in detention and residential facilities. The Initiative was a partnership between ARISE and Vicki Lopez Lukis, a community volunteer who has worked with girls in the juvenile justice system for the last several years. Through our work with Mrs. Lopez Lukis, we realized that juvenile justice workers were treating boys and girls in the same ways which was having a negative effect on the girls in the system. To remedy this, we cover topics we find fundamental to addressing the current gender disparities in the juvenile justice system.

Vicki Lopez Lukis

Vicki Lopez Lukis worked with ARISE to develop the ARISE Gender-Specific Awareness Training


Topics Include:

    1. How girls express aggression differently than boys;
    2. The role that parents play in a girl’s anti-social behavior;
    3. How girls participate in bullying;
    4. Forms of victimization and other common factors that play into girls’ delinquency;
    5. Types of crimes that girls commit
    6. Girls’ protective factors
    7. Actions staff can take to positively impact the lives of girls under their care.

Girls Initiative Training Cost

$995.00 Plus Trainer Travel Expenses
Time Commitment: 1 Day (7 hours)
Participants: 10-25 people

Girls Initiative is ideal for:

This training is ideal for any of the following people working with at-risk girls and young women:

Girls Initiative Video Testimonials