June 23, 2005 | Read Time: 2 minutes
Twice a week, a group of about 16 girls gather in Alexandria, Va., to get homework help, eat a nutritious dinner, and work on art projects that they can use to decorate their bedrooms. The two-year-old program — called Space of Her Own — is a fusion of social services and art instruction that seeks to build self-esteem among girls ages 12 through 14 who are on court probation, have siblings on probation, or have been referred by a school guidance counselor for truancy or other problems.
The program is run by the Art League and the Court Service Unit, both in Alexandria. The Art League provides the space and instructors for the classes, and the rest is covered by a $12,000 grant from the city.
Girls in the program are paired with volunteer mentors, most of whom are teachers, social workers, or guidance counselors, who agree to work with the girls for a full year, even though the group sessions continue for only three months.
The court does not require girls to attend. Those who don’t show up for every class, however, risk missing out on the program’s pièce de résistance: a bedroom makeover, Trading Spaces-style.
“Basically, we try to hook ‘em in with a free bedroom, and then we try to throw in as much stuff as we can to help them along the way to make better choices,” says Linda Odell, co-manager of the Space of Her Own program and program coordinator at the Alexandria Court Service Unit.
“I’ve run probably 15 youth programs throughout my career,” says Ms. Odell, “and this is the only one where kids show up and participate throughout the whole entire program.”
During sessions in the first two months, the girls gather to decorate lampshades, papier-mâché masks, and other items, quietly debating colors and designs while listening to jazz.
In the third month, the girls and their mentors divide into teams, and like the popular cable-television show, they switch houses for a weekend to redecorate another girl’s bedroom. In addition to the art projects they designed, the girls use donated furniture and extra supplies purchased with the $250 allotted for each room makeover.
Once the work is complete, the girls get together for the unveiling of their new rooms, which often elicit shrieks of surprise and pleasure.
But the girls leave the program with more than a revived bedroom: Based on follow-up surveys of the girls, 100 percent reported improved attitudes about themselves and their role in society after the completion of the program, says Ms. Odell. Of 27 girls who have participated, only two have gotten into additional legal trouble, she says.
Brittany James, a 12-year-old in the program, says the program has given her a new appreciation for art. “At first, I was going to quit,” she says. “I was afraid because I didn’t know how to draw.”
She pauses, and then smiles. “And I still don’t know how. But I’m not scared anymore.”
