On this week’s episode, Victoria Gichohi joins The Black Woman’s Confidant to discuss empowering young Black Girls and Women. As the Co-Founder of the non profit, Black Girls Leadership Academy, Victoria provides mentorship programs to young Black Girls and Women aged 11-24 nationwide. Currently, Victoria serves as the Program Manager for the Compton Community Health Professionals Partnership where she and her team are developing a pipeline of the next generation of health professionals in the city of Compton and surrounding areas. As someone who is engaged deeply within her community, Victoria shares insights on how we can support young Black Girls and Women in developing self-confidence and leadership skills as well as how they can empower themselves and others.
About Victoria Gichohi
Victoria Gichohi is a true community advocate for all. Victoria holds a BA in Sociology and minor in African American Studies from UC San Diego and Master’s in Public Health at Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles, CA. She currently resides in her beloved hometown of Compton, California. Victoria is most passionate about finding resources and tools that make lives more sustainable and advocating for others. This stems from her upbringing as a child. Growing up in Compton, she was accustomed to seeing poverty in her community. She has seen some of her peers and loved ones encounter housing issues, environmental disparities and even substance use and abuse. She continuously urges families, residents, and stakeholders to combat and create equitable measures for all populations that they serve and invite communities to the table on how to make a more sustainable community.
Currently, Victoria is the Program Manager for the Compton Community Health Professions Partnership, where she and her team are developing a pipeline of the next generation of health professionals in the city of Compton and other surrounding areas. Victoria is a proud member of the lovely sorority, Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Incorporated. She is also Co-Founder of her non-profit, Black Girls Leadership Academy or BGLA, where she provides mentorship programs to young Black Girls & women aged 11-24 nationwide. In her spare time, she enjoys listening to music, catching up with her close friends, spending time with her family, dancing, and all things Beyonce’.
Key Points
00:30 Introduction
1:00 What is The Black Girl Leadership Academy
3:00 How The Black Girl Leadership Academy started
7:30 Creating something for yourself
8:00 Addressing the age difference in the cohort
9:18 The Elevate Summit
12:05 Global service initiatives
13:00 How Victoria wants to see BGLA transform
17:30 Breaking down the value of the program
20:00 How to join Black Girl Leadership Academy
21:54 Serving her community
26: Encouraging individuality within Black girls
28:45 How you can plug in to BGLA
30:30 Conclusion
Quotables
“When you invest in young black women, you invest in the world” – Vitoria Gichohi
Episode Resources
Visit The BGLA Website here: The Black Girls Leadership Academy
Follow Victoria on Instagram : @shhvictoria
Follow BGLA on Instagram : @blackgirlsleadershipacademy
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