Who We Are

Girls For A Change (GFAC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit youth development organization aimed at empowering self-identifying Black girls in Central Virginia to visualize their bright futures and potential through discovery, development, innovation, and social change in their communities. Our mission is to prepare Black girls for the world and the world for Black girls.

"We are Black girls. We are powerful.
We are amazing."

-Naomi Vickers

Girl Ambassador Participant

2024 Annual Report

Our Values

Our core values, fundamental to the empowerment and development of Black girls, are as follows:
  • Empowering Bold Visions and Playfulness
  • Uncompromising Integrity and Excellence
  • Systematic and Community-Centric Approach
  • Co-creation and Participation
  • Challenging the Status Quo
  • Two-Fold Mission of Preparation and Advocacy

Recent blogs

2024 Bank of America Neighborhood Builder Grant Honoree

We are so grateful for being chosen as a 2024 Bank of America Neighborhood Builders grant recipient! Thanks to this grant, we can expand our team, enabling us to serve even more girls in our new facility. Through this exciting growth, we are dedicated to creating a brave space unapologetically rooted in Black culture and…

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Shine Global Announces ‘Daughters’ as Grand Prize Winner of 2024 Resilience Awards

The 2024 Documentary, Directed by Angela Patton and Natalie Rae Was Recognized at an Awards Ceremony at Paramount Pictures in Los Angeles; also Honored Jim Steyer of Common Sense Media, SpongeBob SquarePants, and Author/Illustrator and Former Miss Teen USA UmaSofia Srivastava LOS ANGELES, CA (October 16, 2024) – Last night, Shine Global – the renowned…

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Celebrating Elevating LeadHers Development Fellow Dani Brown

When Angela Patton sees a gap in opportunities for Black girls and women, she naturally seeks to fill it. Girls For A Change was in need of a Development Director, and Angela wanted to offer an opportunity for an aspiring Black Development Director to join the team. After doing research on development programs for Black…

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Peer Advisor Restore: Afryea’s Experience

I was intrigued after hearing about the Peer Advisor Restore Cohort. Sister Angela introduced it to the GFAC Peer Advisors at one of our meetings. She brought in the program facilitators Sister Ashley Williams and Sister Kiran Bhagat from BareSOUL Yoga to explain the program. They entailed how we would create our own self-care plans…

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