intergenerational girlhood

One of TGP's core elements is disrupting normative ideas of power inside and outside of the classroom. Our space is contingent upon the sharing of power in intergenerational ways, subverting power dynamics between professors, research assistants, interns, students, facilitators and girls, ensuring reciprocal learning processes. Meet the people that make all of this possible!

DR. AMY RUTSEIN-RILEY

TGP Founding Director and Principal Investigator, Interim Dean of the Graduate School of Education, and Associate Professor of Sociology, Lesley University in Cambridge, Mass.

Amy teaches courses in girls’ and women’s studies, sociology, qualitative research methods, and adult learning and development. She is the co-chair of the Women’s Studies Steering Committee and Women’s Center where she has initiated programming focused on women’s health, sexual assault prevention, and a leadership enrichment and development study group for women faculty. The work. closest to Amy’s heart is The Girlhood Project.

CHERYL WEINER

Emerging Girlhood Scholar:

Girlhood Student > Research Assistant > Professor

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Cheryl Weiner, MPH, is a doctoral candidate at Lesley University. Her work focuses on Jewish adolescent girls’ social identity development. Cheryl currently serves a co-instructor of the course Girlhood, Identity and Girl Culture and co-manages The Girlhood Project. Prior to this role, she participated in TGP as a student participant, ethnographer, and researcher. Cheryl values the ongoing—and sometimes unexpected—learning she receives from her continued participation in TGP.

KATHRYN VAN DEMARK

Emerging Girlhood Scholar: Girlhood Student > Teaching Assistant >Research Assistant > Professor

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Kathryn Van Demark is a 2016 graduate of Lesley University where she studied Holistic

Psychology and Wellness, and began her work with The Girlhood Project. Kathryn participated in TGP as a student and Emerging Girlhood Scholar by serving as a Teaching Assistant, Researcher, and now a co-instructor of the course Girlhood, Identity and Girl Culture. Both her academic and professional work centers on emerging adults at the intersections of leadership development, education, wellbeing and social justice.

SARAH MITCHELL DOYLE

Emerging Girlhood Scholar: PhD Research Fellow

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Sarah Mitchell Doyle, M.Ed., is a doctoral candidate at Lesley University. Her TGP research focuses on creating space for emerging scholars to practice feminist pedagogy in girls’ groups. Sarah also teaches a range of Sociology courses at Lesley, and is an ally to student-parents and other vulnerable learners who continue to be marginalized by education policies and systems. Sarah works closely with high school student activists and co-creates social justice curricula in her community.

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Mary Medrano

Teaching Assistant

Mary Medrano has worked with TGP since the beginning of 2020 and is a senior at Lesley University studying Psychology. Mary has a lot of experience working with and supporting youth as she has worked for The Steppingstone Foundation for two years. She hopes to bring her skills and infectious energy to assist upcoming facilitators and TGP members in creating a fun and brave space. After graduating from Lesley in the Spring, Mary plans on continuing to work in supporting youth and pursue an acting career!

Fia Walklet

Project Intern

Fia Walklet is a Girlhood Scholar who first took the course in Spring of 2020, and has since contributed to and co-wrote a scholarly article, alongside other TGP’s facilitators, on the implications of COVID-19 on feminist pedagogy and girl-centric work, advocacy, and activism. Fia also is an avid reader and writer who regularly incorporates feminist literary criticism in her analytical work. Fia is a candidate for a Bachelor’s degree in December 2021 in English with a minor in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Lesley University. 

Kaelyn Anderson

Program Assistant

Kaelyn Anderson is a 6 year TGP alum, Boston native and the current facilitation consultant for The Girlhood Project. During her time at Lesley she studied a variety of subjects but focused her studies on Sociology, Social Work, and Gender Studies, with particular focus on the intersections of race, identity, class and gender. She was a key role in the emergence of our high school program and her role today focuses largely on the high school students and how we can continue to support and uplift their incredible voices, as well as helping our wonderful college students facilitate this co-constructed space.

Jocelyn Martinez

Course Assistant

Jocelyn Martinez is a Girlhood Scholar and has worked with TGP since the beginning of 2020. Starting off as a student in the course, she eventually published a paper about girlhood during COVID-19 and its effects on our program with the TGP team. As a first generation born U.S. Citizen she has always felt at home building community and supporting immigrants. Jocelyn will receive a Bachelor's degree this December for Global Studies with a minor in Environmental Science at Lesley University 

rshonda smith

Course Assistant

Rshonda Smith is a Girlhood Scholar and has worked with TGP since spring 2020. Rshonda started off as a student in the TGP course, and after graduating was invited to come back to be apart to the team to serve as a mentor, and to gain further scholarship to apply to the start of her career as a recent graduate. She currently holds a bachelors in arts with a concentration in Children, Youth, and Family Studies. 

CO-CONSPIRATORS

CO-CONSPIRATORS

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