Program FAQs

Yes. Roots is specifically designed for girls who have not yet found their public voice. The arts-based format gives participants multiple ways to express themselves — not everyone has to be comfortable with public speaking from day one. That is exactly what we are here to build.

No arts experience required. The arts are the tool, not the test. Every girl enters exactly as she is.

Girls who complete Roots are eligible for LeadHers in Bloom: Rise, the 15–17 cohort focused on advanced and civic leadership. They can also explore Dreambuilders, our STEAM mentorship program, if they are curious about STEAM.

The program fee is $150 per cohort. Sliding scale pricing, financial aid, payment plans, and full scholarships are available. No girl is ever turned away for inability to pay.

Cohorts run twice per year — Spring and Fall — with 12–16 participants per cohort. Small groups are intentional. This is not a classroom. It is a circle.

Roots graduates are naturally prepared for Rise, but Rise is also open to girls ages 15–17 who are coming in fresh. We do an intake conversation for new participants to ensure the cohort is the right fit.

Civic leadership means leading in your community — school, neighborhood, city, culture. It does not mean running for office. It means understanding power, building influence, and using it with integrity for something bigger than yourself.

Yes. Each participant creates a long-view vision document and presents it at the Rise Ceremony. This is not a performance — it is a commitment made in front of people who matter to her.

The program fee is $150 per cohort. Sliding scale pricing, financial aid, payment plans, and full scholarships are always available.

Rise graduates can continue into Dreambuilders for STEAM mentorship, and at 18 they are eligible for BGA's adult programming — On Purpose and Say Less.

Especially for her. Dreambuilders is designed to dismantle the idea that STEAM is not for certain girls. Mentors meet each participant where she is, and the arts are woven throughout to make every concept accessible and relevant. No prerequisite knowledge is needed.

Each participant is paired with a mentor who reflects her identity and aspirations. Mentorship happens across the full 12-week cycle — guiding the individualized growth plan, the culminating project, and conversations about career pathways in STEAM.

Sliding scale: $0–$150 per 12-week cohort. Financial aid, payment plans, and fully sponsored seats are always available. No one is turned away for inability to pay.

Hybrid. Cohort sessions happen in person, with virtual mentorship and community touchpoints between sessions.

Each participant completes a project or portfolio piece built around her own interests — substantive material she can use for college essays, applications, scholarship submissions, and internship opportunities.

No. On Purpose is a leadership and wellness development program, not a clinical mental health service. Facilitators are trained in trauma-aware and healing-centered approaches, but this program is not a substitute for therapy. We actively encourage participants to have their own therapeutic support.

The hybrid format is designed for real life. In-person sessions are scheduled to minimize conflict with school and work schedules. The online community space allows for continued engagement between sessions.

It is especially for women who do not. On Purpose is not about having answers. It is about asking better questions and building the clarity to find them.

The program fee is $350 per cohort. Sliding scale, financial aid, payment plans, and full scholarships are available. LeadHers in Bloom alumni receive a discounted rate.

Most leadership programs for young women treat wellness as an add-on. On Purpose treats it as the foundation. You cannot build a sustainable leadership practice on an exhausted, unexamined interior life. We start there on purpose.

The Black woman who has been doing the work — professionally, personally, spiritually — and is ready for a container that can hold the full weight of what she is carrying and where she is going. She is not a beginner. She is not lost. She is in the middle of her becoming and she wants company that can keep up.

No. Say Less is a leadership and wellness development program led by trauma-aware facilitators. It is not a clinical service. We strongly encourage participants to have their own therapeutic support, especially given the depth of the content.

Most leadership programs for Black women are still asking them to justify their presence. Say Less assumes you already belong. The work here is not about proving anything — it is about excavating and expanding what you already are.

The program fee is $450 per cohort. Sliding scale pricing, financial aid, payment plans, and full scholarships are always available. No woman is turned away for inability to pay.

They are different programs designed for different life stages. If you participated in On Purpose and have since turned 26, Say Less is a natural continuation. Reach out and we will talk through what makes sense for where you are.

Yes. Sister Circle is an open-door community. You do not need to have done any BGA programming to join. The circle is for any Black woman 18 and older who wants to be in honest, intentional community.

Each circle opens with a grounding practice, moves into a facilitated discussion or creative exercise tied to the monthly theme, and closes with community sharing and intention setting. It is structured enough to go somewhere and open enough to be real.

Sister Circle is hybrid by design. Every gathering is live-streamed and recorded for members who cannot attend in person. The online community space is active year-round.

It is neither. Sister Circle is a facilitated community space for Black women to gather with intention. It is not a clinical service and is not a substitute for therapy. We encourage members to have their own therapeutic support.

Yes. Month-to-month memberships can be cancelled at any time. Annual memberships are non-refundable but transferable.

No. Healing Spaces is trauma-informed, joy-centered wellness programming — not a clinical mental health service. Our curriculum is developed with Boston Medical Center and community clinicians of color, but participation is not a substitute for therapy, and we encourage young people to have their own therapeutic support.

Black girls, femmes, and gender-expansive youth of color ages 12 and up. Each workshop or event lists the appropriate ages for attending — some offerings are open pop-ups, others are enrollment-based series.

Sliding scale: $0–$75 per series, and $0–$25 for pop-ups. Financial aid, payment plans, and fully sponsored seats are always available. No one is turned away for inability to pay.

Both virtual and in-person. Black Girl Rest Rooms pop up at schools, community centers, and YMCA Teen Nights; other offerings run online or at BGA spaces.

Year-round and ongoing — from 1–3 hour pop-ups to 4–8 week curricula. Join a single pop-up or enroll in a full series.