| March 1st, 2018

FAMU mentoring program hosts “For Our Girls”

By: journeymagazine

By| Asia Irvin

The Florida A&M Big Sister Little Sister (BSLS) Mentoring Program hosted a community event, “For Our Girls,” at Jake Gaither Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon, where girls were given the opportunity to fellowship with women organizations and were given tips on how to maintain great physical, mental, and emotional health as they mold into young women.

Founder of BSLS, Aneisha Hughes, said her dedication to empower young women to be successful started back in the summer of 2011 when the program was founded. “When BSLS was first organized, we had a small number of girls. Over the years it has grown tremendously and I️ am blessed to be a part of a sisterhood organization,” Hughes said.

Paris Ellis, FAMU Broadcast Journalism alumna, provided tips on how to stay mentally healthy. She suggested a few steps in which the young women should take to lead to the path of mental wellness. She noted, “With being mentally healthy it is important that you make time for yourself, challenge yourself, and educate yourself.

“With educating yourself,” Ellis added, “You should use social media as a learning tool rather than for pleasure. It would serve a great benefit to utilize educational applications in your spare time rather than surfing on apps like Instagram and Facebook.”

Guest speaker Erica Miller, who is a FAMU Health Science Premed student, highlighted the importance of physical health.”Incorporate some form of physical exercise in your daily routine whether it be in the gym or walking up stairs,” said Miller.

Miller performed a few demonstrations of cardio fitness routines that can be done at home. She noted, “Many people ignore the fact that physical health is just as important as mental and emotional health because all three go hand in hand.”

The participants were put into groups for “girl talk,” where they each wrote down topics of their personal interests. The topics that were  suggested the most were discussed aloud. Many girls wanted to know the best way to deal with stress in school.

Chief Executive Officer of BSLS, Jessica Winfrey spoke about ways to cope with stress in school. She suggested taking a step back before you even let yourself get stressed. She said, “it’s ok to take a step back and ask for help if you need it.”

“Planning is also important,” she said. “Always use a planner or organizer to jot down deadlines and important dates. It’s a must that you keep your priorities in order and always remember that school comes,” first emphasized Winfrey.

“For Our Girls” ended with a $500 scholarship giveaway, raffle prizes, and gifts for each participant in the Big Sister Little Sister program. According to Hughes, the next BSLS event will be held in a few weeks in Orlando, FL.