Now 12 years old, Marley has written the book she felt was missing from her school: a story about a black girl by a black girl. “Marley Dias Gets It Done: And So Can You!” is being published by Scholastic Inc. and will be released Jan. 30. Marley said she wanted to use her own experience in activism to show anyone can make positive changes in their communities despite their age. “I’ve always wanted to be an author,” Marley said…
The purpose of the Give Thanks for Girls Benefit Gala honors black girls who have demonstrated through their actions in the community high levels of integrity, academic excellence and ingenuity. Proceeds from the event goes to supporting the GrassROOTS Community Foundation efforts in developing girl changemakers. This year’s national honorees are: Marsai Martin of ABC’s Black-ish;, Haile Thomas, The Happy Organization and Mikaila Ulmer, Me and The Bees Lemonade. Click HERE for full details
For the past seven years, GrassROOTS has been providing necessary resources for Newark, the West Ward neighborhood and the over 1,000 families living at Georgia King Village, a housing development in Newark, and home to a significant number of single, black mothers and their children. Almost 30 percent of Newark’s residents live below the US poverty threshold and 1 in 5 residents of Essex County are food insecure. This year we have partnered with the City of Newark and the…
Thank you United State of Women for highlighting SuperGirl Marley Dias. Meet Marley Dias, one of the youngest changemakers we know. As soon as she learned how to read, Marley couldn’t put books down. But she quickly realized there were far more books about boys and their dogs than about girls that looked like her. And at the young age of 11, Marley decided to do something about it. She began collecting books where girls of color were the…
The Black Girl Excellence Award honors black girls who have demonstrated through their actions in the community high levels of integrity, academic excellence and ingenuity. This award was created to celebrate the ways in which black girls are broadening the imagination and the possibilities for others. Winners are celebrated for their ability to influence and transform the ways we think about and engage black girls. Requirements: Must identify as a black girl Between 10-18 years old Resident of New Jersey Making…
This summer SuperCamp introduced a groundbreaking program for LEAVES girls, the HealthCare Fellows Program in partnership with RWJBarnabas Health. Over four weeks LEAVES SuperGirls (grades 5-8) interned at five designated work sites within the RWJBarnabas System including Newark Beth Israel Medical Center and Saint Barnabas Medical Center. The long term goals of the fellowship program were to help to decrease healthcare’s influence on health disparities; Increase secondary educational achievement for girls; and support community infrastructure. Immediate goals were to…
SuperCamp 2017 was an incredible four weeks filled with learning, building, growing and leading. This year’s theme RESISTANCE exposed the girls to issues around bullying, white supremacy, immigration, the arts, and the legal system. SuperGirls heard from renowned scholars including Khalil G. Muhammad, PhD, Professor of History, Race and Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School, Mary Stricker, PhD of Temple University and professionals like the Honorable Victoria Pratt from Newark Municipal Court and Public Relations Professional and cultural curator Tiana…
Join the GrassROOTS Community Foundation Super Camp Sugar Pledge 2017 Instagram Challenge
GrassROOTS Community Foundation’s fifth annual R3: Roots, Rock Run 5k race was held on Saturday, June 3rd. Nearly 400 women, men, and children came out to the Anna L. Lingelbach School in Germantown to enjoy the interactive and fun morning of family wellness activities. The event provided something for everyone including free giveaways, music, and medals. The three top winners ran an average of 20.79 minutes. They each received race medals and the top two winners received tickets to the…
Plainfield, NJ - May 31, 2017- The City of Plainfield and the GrassROOTS Community Foundation recently hosted a Youth Take Over Day of City Hall involving almost 40 students from Plainfield High School. The one-day event served to educate, promote civic engagement, and expose the students to career opportunities in public service. The students were taken by bus from Plainfield High School to City Hall where they met Mayor Adrian O. Mapp and over thirty Department and Division heads from the City administration team. They had breakfast with their adult mentors and had the opportunity to work with their mentors throughout the day and get a firsthand…