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2017 Girls Inc.

Annual Report

Leadership

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PRESIDENT & CEO

Judy Vredenburgh

Girls today face real and profound challenges. In fact, 1 in 4 girls experiences sexual abuse or sexual assault by age 17. One in 5 teen girls report experiencing mental disorder. Too many girls are missing out on education opportunities to prepare them for college and careers, particularly girls from low-income communities. And they are missing out on the critical knowledge and resources to prevent unplanned pregnancy and build healthy relationships.

But at Girls Inc., girls are empowered and equipped to overcome these barriers and succeed. They receive research-based programming and supports proven to achieve positive outcomes in the areas of health (Strong), education (Smart), and life skills (Bold). The Girls Inc. Experience, our comprehensive approach to whole girl development, allows girls to discover and build their inherent strengths, develop resilience, and plan for and work towards their future goals.

Knowing the transformative difference we’re making in the lives of girls, we are compelled to grow. And I’m proud to say in fiscal year 2017, we did just that. We grew the number of girls served with the high-impact Girls Inc. Experience by 7 percent to 51,148 girls. Guiding our work is a strong roadmap, our five-year plan, “Leveraging the Power of the Network and Brand: Strategic Plan 2016-2020.” This plan lays out a Bold Goal: to double the number of girls we serve with impact by 2020.

To support this ambitious target, last year we raised and invested significant capital. In 2017, we exceeded our annual operating revenue budget by 21 percent, bringing in $12.3 million to continue and expand our work. And we experienced an extraordinary first, a $10 million, four-year investment by the S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation to support our $20 million capital campaign. These funds allowed us to strengthen our affiliate network, providing $3.5 million in growth grants to local Girls Inc. organizations.

We also made great strides in addressing key priorities outlined in the plan, including building a framework to effectively deliver outcomes for girls; a strong affiliate network equipped to consistently deliver the Girls Inc. Experience; and a policy platform that supports our goal to improve the conditions in which all girls are growing up. You can read more about these achievements in the subsequent sections of this year’s report.

Growth requires strong leadership. Thank you to our outstanding Board of Directors, led by Chair, Melanie Gray. Their commitment to this new plan is tremendous with 100 percent contributing financially to the growth campaign. I conclude by expressing my appreciation to you, our donors, friends, and supporters who make this work possible. We could not have gotten this far without your belief in us -- and in the remarkable girls we serve.

I look forward to what we will accomplish together.

Judy Vredenburgh
President & CEO

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BOARD CHAIR

Melanie Gray

This year marks my first full year as Chair of the Board of Directors, and the first completed year of our new strategic plan for growth in both direct service and advocacy. I am thrilled to say that Girls Inc. reached a new level of growth, impact, and effectiveness in fiscal year 2017. We secured critical funding to expand our reach, including the launch of Girls Inc. of Chicago in partnership with Martha Ruggles Elementary School on the Southside of Chicago. We also made significant investments in building the capacity of our affiliate network.

This year, Girls Inc. raised $13 million in growth capital, toward our $20 million investment campaign. This exceptional achievement allowed us to launch our first round of growth grants to 17 strong affiliates, three-year grants totaling $3.5 million, to expand strategically to serve more girls growing up in low-income communities. This could not be possible without the generous investment of the S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation.

We were also awarded a $2 million, two-year grant from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) to serve girls at increased risk of juvenile delinquency and victimization. Grant funds will support affiliates as they strengthen and expand valuable mentoring efforts to help more girls beat the odds and thrive. Through direct service, as well as public policy and advocacy, Girls Inc. is making a measurable difference in the lives of individual girls and increasing opportunities for all girls to succeed.

This time of significant growth requires serious investment internally. We remain committed to strengthening our capacity both locally and nationally with a clear understanding of what resources, infrastructure, and practices are needed to support sustainability and expansion, including financial health. And I can report that our finances are strong. In fact, we ended fiscal year 2017 with nine months of cash operating reserves, more than double the nonprofit standard.

Growing up a girl today means navigating various gender, economic, and social barriers. One in five girls in the U.S. live in poverty, surpassing the national poverty rate of 13.5 percent. Nearly 70 percent of the girls who attend Girls Inc. live in households earning $30,000 a year or less. These girls face tough odds. But with Girls Inc. in their corner, they are excelling in school, living healthy and active lifestyles, and planning for college and careers. They are strong, smart, and bold.

We are grateful to have you on board at this important time. Together we will ensure many more girls have the knowledge, skills, and opportunity to push past serious barriers, break the cycle of poverty, and be all they can and want to be.

With gratitude,

Melanie Gray
Board Chair

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BOARD OF DIRECTORS

  • First Lady Michelle Obama
    Honorary Board Chair
    First Lady of the United States
    1/20/2017*
  • Donna Brace Ogilvie
    Distinguished Board Chair
    Decd. 2015
  • Susie A. Buffett
    Girls Inc. Lifetime Champion for Girls
    Chair
    The Sherwood Foundation
    3/31/2016*
  • Melanie Gray
    Board Chair
    Partner
    Winston & Strawn, LLP
  • Tony Bucci
    Board Vice-Chair
    Chairman & CEO
    MARC USA
  • Susan Chapman-Hughes
    Board Treasurer (FY18)
    Senior VP, US Large Market Global Commercial Payments
    American Express Company
  • Lori Dickerson Fouché
    Board Treasurer (FY17)
    President of Prudential Annuities
    Prudential Financial
  • Julie Overbeck
    Board Secretary
    President
    Remington Seeds LLC
  • Judy Vredenburgh
    President and CEO
    Girls Inc.
  • Ambassador Nicole Avant
    Former U.S. Ambassador to The Bahamas
  • Jill Bright
    EVP of Human Resources and Administration
    Sotheby’s
  • Rebecca Campbell
    President
    ABC Owned Television Stations and ABC Daytime
  • Joyce Chang
    Managing Director & Global Head of Fixed Income Research
    JP Morgan
    4/19/2016*
  • Taj Clayton
    Partner
    Winston & Strawn, LLP
  • Amy Dillon
    ​Region I Professional Representative​
    President & CEO
    Girls Inc. of Shelbyville & Shelby County
  • Stacy Doré
    SVP & General Counsel
    Hunt Utility Services
    8/14/17
  • Saniah M. Johnson
    Region III Volunteer Representative
    Head of US Corporate Development
    Macquarie Investment Management
  • Peige Katz
    CEO
    Bexchange LLC
  • Bea Lurie
    Region IV Professional Representative
    President & CEO
    Girls Inc. of Chattanooga
    1/1/2017*
  • Cate Luzio
    Managing Director and EVP Global Head of Multinational Corporate Banking
    HSBC Bank USA
  • Suna Said Maslin
    Founder & CEO
    Nima Capital, LLC
  • Regina Montoya
    Chief Strategist
    JMC Strategy Group
  • Lisa Moore
    Region IV Professional Representative
    President & CEO
    Girls Inc. of Memphis
    4/27/17†
  • Sue Napper
    Region IV Volunteer Representative
    Director of Administrative Services
    Owensboro Municipal Utilities (Retired)
  • Kristin A. Pace
    Region II Volunteer Representative
    Partner
    Donahue Fitzgerald, LLP
  • Lori Palmer
    Region II Professional Representative
    President & CEO
    Girls Inc. of Metropolitan Dallas
    9/30/16*
  • Suzanne Parker
    Region III Professional Representative
    Executive Director
    Girls Inc. of Holyoke
    Holyoke, MA
  • Alison Paul
    Leader of U.S. Retail Practice
    Deloitte
    8/14/17
  • Deborah P. Rubin, Psy. D.
    Senior Partner
    RHR International LLP
    4/19/2016*
  • Kim Sharan
    Founder & CEO
    Kim M. Sharan, LLC
  • Lucy Sorrentini
    Founder & CEO
    Impact Consulting, LLC
    4/19/2016*
  • Sonya H. Soutus
    Senior Vice President, Public Affairs & Communications
    Nature’s Bounty Co.
    3/8/17*
  • Sonya Ulibarri
    Region II Professional Representative
    President & CEO
    Girls Inc. of Metro Denver
    4/27/17†
  • Mary Wagner, Ph.D.
    Senior Vice President, Research & Development/Quality & Regulatory/Concept Innovation
    Starbucks Coffee Company
    4/19/2016*
  • Maureen Waters
    Principal
    Point B Inc.
    4/19/2016*
  • Julie Greiner Weiser
    Former Chief Merchandise Planning Officer
    Macy's Inc.
  • Roberta Wilhelm
    Region I Professional Representative
    Executive Director
    Girls Inc. of Omaha 4/19/2016*
  • Nanar Yoseloff
    Philanthropist
    8/14/17

* Date board service ended
† New board member term started FY18

Board

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STAFF LEADERSHIP

  • Judy Vredenburgh
    President & CEO
  • Pat Driscoll
    Chief Operating Officer
  • Lynn Hepburn
    Chief Development Officer
  • Charlene Jackson
    Director of Affiliate Services
  • Lara Kaufmann
    Director of Public Policy
  • Janet Gartin Moore
    Director of Human Resources
  • Sue Odom
    Director of Finance
  • Cristin Rollins, Ph.D.
    Director of Research and Evaluation
  • Penn Sheppard
    Director of Learning Central
  • Veronica Vela
    Director of Marketing & Communications

THE MANAGEMENT TEAM LEADS A STAFF OF 50 PEOPLE.

Board

Accomplishments

GIRLS SERVED WITH THE GIRLS INC. EXPERIENCE GREW BY 7% TO 51,148 GIRLS

GIRLS SERVED WITH THE
GIRLS INC. EXPERIENCE GREW
BY 7% TO 51,148 GIRLS

ANNUAL OPERATING
REVENUE OF $12.3M WAS
21% HIGHER THAN STRETCH
OBJECTIVE OF $10.2M

ANNUAL OPERATING REVENUE OF $12.3M WAS 21% HIGHER THAN STRETCH OBJECTIVE OF $10.2M

$13M WAS RAISED IN GROWTH CAPITAL TO SUPPORT OUR $20M CAPITAL CAMPAIGN

$13M WAS RAISED IN
GROWTH CAPITAL
TO SUPPORT OUR $20M
CAPITAL CAMPAIGN

$3.5M IN GROWTH
GRANTS TO
17 AFFILIATES

$3.5M IN GROWTH GRANTS TO 17 AFFILIATES

$2M TWO-YEAR MENTORING GRANT FROM THE OFFICE OF JUVENILE JUSTICE AND DELINQUENCY PREVENTION (OJJDP)

$2M TWO-YEAR
MENTORING GRANT
FROM THE OFFICE OF
JUVENILE JUSTICE AND
DELINQUENCY PREVENTION
(OJJDP)

GIRLS INC. EARNED THE
HIGHEST RATING FROM
CHARITY NAVIGATOR –
FOUR STARS – FOR THE
THIRD STRAIGHT YEAR

GIRLS INC. EARNED THE HIGHEST RATING FROM CHARITY NAVIGATOR – FOUR STARS – FOR THE THIRD STRAIGHT YEAR

Strategic Priorities

The goals we’ve outlined in our Strategic Plan are ambitious. But the need is great. How do we expand our services to reach more girls and improve the conditions in which all girls grow up? The following are organizational priorities and steps we’re taking to accomplish them.

STRONG AFFILIATES

SMART PROGRAMMING

BOLD ADVOCACY

Our Year

Champions

Donors

Financials

Statement of
activities

Twelve months ended
march 31, 2017

View

Balance
Sheet

Twelve months ended
march 31, 2017

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Inspiring all girls to be strong, smart, and bold