Destination High School:
Conference Explores Girls' Transition from Middle School


Susan Lander, executive director of Music in the Mountains and former WRC executive director, talks about careers in nonprofits and the value of volunteerism.

Eighth-grade girls from all five middle schools in La Plata County converged on the Durango Rec-reation Center on April 22 (2005) for a conference designed to give them the tools and self-confidence to transition to their first year in high school.

This was the fifth year that the Women's Resource Center has presented the "Girls to Women, Women to Girls" conference. "Girls at this age have a lot of concerns as they enter a new and excit-ing time in their lives," said Beth Christie, WRC Youth Program Manager. "We took those concerns into account when planning the topics that would be addressed in the workshops."

Those topics included self-esteem and body image, self-protection, career exploration and more. The conference theme of "Crossroads" was woven throughout the day to illustrate the many choices and decisions that young girls make on their path to adulthood.

For the first time, a self-protection workshop called Bodies and Boundaries introduced girls to ways they could use their voices to take care of themselves - or even defend themselves - when some-one is aggressive or making them uncomfortable.

The Banish Barbie workshops explored how unrealistic media and societal images affect girls' self-esteem. Instructors helped girls brainstorm more positive ways to measure their worth and talents.

Over the lunch hour, a career fair brought together 24 women who volunteered to talk about the twists and turns that led them to their current careers. Emphasis was placed on girls seeing the di-verse opportunities that exist and understanding that adult women in their communities support them.

At the end of the day, the girls gathered in groups according to the high schools they would attend next year. In each of the groups, a panel of high-school girls led an honest conversation on the fears/assumptions that eighth-grade girls may have as they enter high school.

Funding for the conference was generously provided by Coca-Cola Bottling Co. of Durango, the High Noon Rotary Club and the Kiwanis Club of Durango.


In the "Bodies and Boundaries workshop," girls practice an assertive stance and how to use their voices to ward off potential attackers.

Nancy Young, who provides computer technical support for the Southern Ute Indian Tribe Growth Fund, illustrates the ins and outs of computer repair during the career fair.


Laura Hawes of Planned Parenthood leads the "Banish Barbie" session on self-esteem and body image. Here, the girls are writing letters to themselves about things that are important in their lives right now. WRC will mail the letters back to them after they enter high school to remind them of what's important about body image.


Tonya Roberts, a La Plata County deputy sheriff, demonstrates the fine art of finger-printing during the conference's career fair. Twenty-four women in Durango volunteered to present during the career fair including a midwife, a funeral director, a wildlife manager, an acupuncturist and more.

At the end of the conference, the girls created huge graffiti posters with messages they felt were important throughout the day.