Girls on the Run (GOTR) is a non-profit prevention program that uses an interactive psychology-based curriculum and running to encourage pre-teen girls to develop self respect and healthy lifestyles.

Our Mission

To educate and prepare girls for a lifetime of self-respect and healthy living.

Description:
The GOTR Program

Girls on the Run is a life-changing, experiential learning programs for girls in third through eighth grade (Girls on the Run for 3rd - 5th grade and Girls on Track for 6th - 8th grade). The programs combine training for a 3.1 mile running event with self-esteem enhancing, uplifting workouts. The goals of the programs are to encourage positive emotional, social, mental, spiritual and physical development.

The Girls on the Run objective is to reduce the potential display of at-risk activities among its participants. The goal is fewer adolescent pregnancies and eating disorders, less depression and suicide attempts, as well as fewer substance/alcohol abuse problems and confrontations with the juvenile justice system.

Girls on the Run delivers our message to young girls through volunteer coaches and mentors. Our 8 or 12 week character building program of experiential learning through running teaches very specific and well-defined social and personal skills. The program culminates in a non-competitive 5K run event which gives the girls a chance to shine and an overwhelming sense of accomplishment.

History:
Molly Barker, MSW, founded Girls on the Run in Charlotte, North Carolina, in 1996. A 4-time Hawaii Ironman triathlete, Molly began running at the age of 15 an age when she found herself stuck in the "girl box," when only girls who were a certain size with a certain beauty were popular; when girls who wanted to fit in had to mold their personalities and bodies to fit the requirements of the box.

Using her background in counseling and teaching, current research on adolescent issues and her personal recovery from alcoholism, she developed the earliest version of the curriculum with the help of 13 brave girls at Charlotte Country Day School. Twenty six girls showed up for the next session, then 75, and so the program grew.

Girls on the Run is now in over 150 cities across North America, with tens of thousands of girls and women participating. In 2006, Girls on the Run hosted over 60 end-of-season races with over 60,000 people participating. The program has been featured in People, Runner's World, Running Times, MSNBC, ABC News, NBC News, NPR, ESPN, and CNN News.

Girls on the Run of Dane County began in 2004 the way most things that involve women do — by making connections. A small group of women from Madison who ran together shared an interest in helping young girls be better prepared for life. At the same time, a woman from Verona with a young daughter and son read about Girls on the Run in a magazine and a mother of two daughters from Stoughton searched the Internet to find a program that could prepare her daughters for their bright futures as young women. Each of these women separately contacted Girls on the Run International and came together to start Girls on the Run of Dane County. The pilot program began in winter 2005 and culminated in all participating girls completing the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in June 2005. Since then, 500 girls have participated in 10 different sites throughout Dane County. Our vision: To help girls and women in Dane County feel good about themselves and their roles in society, we will provide access to a GOTR program to every 3rd through 5th grade girl in her community by 2020.

Contact people:

Sara Pickard, Executive Director, (608) 234-1958, (email) Britt Ryan, Volunteer Coordinator, (608) 238-3530, (email)

Office fax number: (608) 227-0141

Address:

P.O. Box 5563 Madison, WI 53705

Web Site: http://www.girlsontherundaneco.org

Miscellaneous Information

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