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Baltimore
B.R.A.T.Z.
Brilliant, Resilient, Ambitious, Tenacious, Zealous
On Dec 5, 2023, Baltimore BRATZ was established as a for-profit organization with the purpose of providing a safe haven where inner-city young women can participate in a targeted after-school/summer program of classic dance training, mentorship, and career readiness. Our program promotes physical wellness and integrates necessary life skills to prepare and empower young ladies for leadership in their communities and success in their futures.
Our program will help young women in Baltimore recognize their potential and greatness. They will be surrounded by like-minded peers and positive role models that will motivate them to begin mapping out their futures. Our meditation through movement program model will help young women to focus on their mental wellness and develop essential life skills. Baltimore BRATZ promotes character development through dance and fellowship.
THE POWER OF
OUR DANCE PROGRAM
Dancing has been proven to have positive effects. The girls and young women in our dance program will see the increase of their self-esteem, self-confidence, reduce in anxiety and stress and improves mood and attitude.
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The
Community
Need
There is a great need, especially for high-risk youth in low-income neighborhoods, for programs that provide support and enrichment activities during after school hours and throughout the summer in Baltimore, MD. Young ladies are desperately in need of this intervention due to the particular dangers and risks they face.
In 2021, the Baltimore City Health Department released a report stating that “from 2016 to 2020, 208 Baltimore City children from birth to age 17 died an “unusual and unexpected” death, representing nearly a quarter of all child fatalities in the State of Maryland.” Over 35% of children died from homicide and suicide. Adolescents are struggling for safe spaces and need positive role models to keep them away from harm.
In addition, Baltimore City has a teen birth rate of females aged 15 - 19 that is more than twice as high as the state of Maryland and nearly twice as high as the national average. Teen pregnancy is one of the top reasons that young women do not complete high school, which often results in poverty and continued unemployment. Offering young adolescent females in Baltimore mentorship and career readiness will steer them away from the dangers of teenage pregnancy.
A growing body of research shows that supervised after-school and summer programs benefit children's academic performance, increase child safety, and enhance their self-esteem.
Our
Call to
Action
Baltimore, MD has significantly higher than average incidents of crime, juvenile arrests, teen pregnancy, and youth drug use. Local communities suffer from a lack of constructive activities for its youth. Founder, Shaniyah Graham saw the potential benefits of a quality after-school and summer program. To provide a safe haven for the inner-city female youth of Baltimore, MD, Ms. Graham developed a program organized around meditation through movement research.
The founder, Shaniyah Graham has a positive reputation in the community for advocating for the livelihood of young ladies in Baltimore. Baltimore BRATZ centers on the possibility of reducing crime, teenage pregnancy, and youth violence through dance and mentorship. In decreasing those risk factors, young women in Baltimore can benefit from better academic performance, mentorship, and useful life skills to become more productive community members.
Let’s Work Together
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