2021 Project Soar Annual Report

2021 Annual Report

Soar

‫تحليق‬

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Dear friends and supporters, As I write this message, we are emerging from troubling times. In 2021, the world continued to traverse an unprecedented health crisis that impacted every aspect of our lives. And as is often the case, the situation was particularly difficult for teen girls. Indeed, the Malala Fund estimates that as many as 20 million girls will never go back to school because of the pandemic. In Uganda, a key country where Project Soar works, schools were closed for 22 months – one of the longest school closures in the world. Perhaps it’s no surprise then that there was an estimated 20%+ spike in pregnancies among Ugandan school-going girls and an increase in child labor by 15%, affecting girls in particular.

Amidst the difficulties teen girls continued to endure everywhere, we find hope in success stories. Like 15-year old Hiba, a Soar Girl from Douar Laadam, Morocco, who said: “After becoming a Soar Girl, my confidence is so much higher. I was going to drop out of school because I had bad grades, but the Soar workshops on education motivated me to never quit or give up on my goals. Now I am the first in my class.”

And Hiba is not alone. Over 2021, Project Soar served 1,360 teen girls. With the help of their Soar Facilitators and Soar Clubs, these girls leaned into their newly found leadership skills and fought tirelessly for their right to an education, negotiating with their parents to avoid child marriage.

And it paid off! 98% of Soar Girls in

Morocco passed the school year, and 100% of the Soar Girls who took the grueling Baccalaureate test in 2021 passed (as compared to 55% nationwide). And less than 0.5% got married underage versus 14% nationwide – an astonishing feat given that Soar Girls live on less than $1/day and were especially vulnerable under the pandemic.

2021 also saw Project Soar make remarkable progress with its pilot program in NW Syria.

Amidst bombs dropping, Project Soar was able to adapt its award winning toolkit for the special needs of internally displaced girls and girls living in conflict zones. More than 173 Syrian teen girls have received 50+ hours of Soar empowerment and are better for it. As Nada, a 16-year old girl from NW Syria said, “Being divorced, I felt weak and broken. Soar is helping me re-gain my confidence.”

And so while our world ostensibly changed forever during 2021, the mission of Project Soar remained the same: strong, resolute, and effective. Empowering teen girls to be the leaders of today and tomorrow. But we couldn’t have done it without the concerted efforts of the Project Soar staff, facilitators, board members and our global community of allies. It is in times of crisis, that solidarity and togetherness urge us forward. Thank you all.

With the hope of a more just world for teen girls everywhere,

Maryam Montague Project Soar Founder and Executive Director

Who we are .......................................... 4

UNFPA Partnership.............................. 10

Soar Stories ........................................... 18

The Soar Mission ............................... 6

Empowered Girls Dialogue .......... 12

Donors & Financials .......................... 22

2021 in Review .................................. 7

Global Impact .................................... 14

Soar Team .............................................. 24

Our Work ................................................ 8

Soar Syria .............................................. 16

‫تحليق‬ WHAT

Nonprofit 501(c)3 organization, registered in the US and Morocco

WHEN

E s t a blished in 2 0 1 5

WHERE

Morocco, Uganda & Syria Headquartered in Marrakech

WHO

M a rg inalized tee n g i r l s

HOW

Signature empowerment curriculum helping girls understand their:

VALUE VOICE BODY RIGHTS PATH

4

The Soar Pledge

The Soar Mission

in Review

2021

Empowering girls in Morocco and Syria

1,360

31

1,495

girls served

Soar Clubs

41

15

5

squads in Morocco & 14 squads in Syria

hours of empowerment workshops

Soar Dialogues

grants received

99%

100%

100%

99%

vs. 7 4 % o f 9th grade &

vs. 55% of students

vs. 3 9 % o f girls enrolled

vs. 86% of girls

nationwide

in h i g h e r e d. nation wide

nationwide

Soar Girls avoided dropping out of school 80% o f 1 2 th grade

Soar Girls passed the BAC 2 exam

eligible Soar Girls pursued higher ed.

Soar Girls avoided child marriage

stud e n t s nationwide

24

days training Soar Facilitators

120 hours of

English language camp provided

103

Soar Facilitators

1,284

BeGirl menstruation kits distributed

18

volunteers

859

volunteer hours donated

Project Soar Founder named Gratitude Fellow

7

Soar girls across Morocco and Syria

Soar Clubs help Girls put into action

join Soar workshops in their

their leadership skills in their own

communities led by trained Soar

communities. Led by girls, for girls,

Facilitators. Workshops are rooted in

Soar Clubs receive continued support

the Soar Empowerment Pillars:

and are equipped with a toolkit that helps them effectively manage their Clubs through:

Each workshop helps develop teen

In 2021, Soar Club activities included

girl confidence and skills through

exam study sessions, environmental

a combination of:

club meetings, book clubs, advocacy plays on sexual harassment and child marriage, nature walks, and all-girls sports events. In 2021 there were:

Soar Clubs in Morocco Soar Club members

8

In 2021, Project Soar expanded Soar

Project Soar is growing the teen girl

Dialogues with the continued support

feminist movement. Soar Facilitators

of Civil Society in Development (CISU)

and Girls are trained to build

and Crossing Borders. Soar Dialogues

platforms for girl and women-led

help foster the leadership skills of Soar

community-based change. Our feminist

Girls, supporting them to mobilize and

staff also includes a communications

advocate around teen girl rights in

team who is dedicated to growing our

their own communities. Girls learn to

online reach locally and abroad:

map and engage with community allies,

people reached through

and plan and lead the dialogues

Facebook posts in 2021.

themselves with the support of their

*106% increase from 2020.

Soar Facilitators. Dialogues address such issues as girls dropping out of

new likes on Facebook

school, sexual harassment, child

people reached through

marriage and other issues identified by

Instagram posts in 2021.

the girls themselves. In 2021 there

*140% increase from 2020.

were:

new followers on Instagram

Soar Dialogues held Community members in attendance

Twitter impressions

new followers on LinkedIn

9

Maryam Montague (left) Mr. Luis Mora, UNFPA (right)

Many Moroccan teen girls suffer from poor

This entailed a roundtable in Rabat on

menstrual hygiene due to poverty, social

May 28th, 2021, with ministerial,

stigmas, limited access to menstrual products,

government, and civil society officials

and faulty school sanitation facilities. A

gathered to discuss teen girl public

recent study found that

health. Our partnership continued when we

(Lghoul, Loukid, Hilali).

In 2021, we launched joint activities in

2021 activities culminated with a

partnership with the United Nations Population Fund Morocco. We aim to fully realize the rights of teen girls in Morocco, particularly around access to education

The campaign took place from October

and health services, including menstrual

11th, Day of the Girl Child, to December

hygiene products and management.

11th, Human Rights Day, when a 2-minute

Activities kicked off on May 28th, Menstrual

video was debuted featuring the

Hygiene Day when we together:

voiceover of Soar Girl Oumaima.

We plan to continue to scale with the UNFPA Morocco in 2022.

“The celebration of Menstrual Hygiene Day is an opportunity to launch joint action with Project Soar to break down the barriers that prevent millions of adolescent girls from enjoying their rights and ensuring their healthy transition from childhood to adulthood.”

2

national press conferences held in Rabat: May 28th, 2021: Menstrual Hygiene Day October 11th, 2021: Day of the Girl Child

- Mr. Luis Mora, UNFPA Morocco

Our Goal:

74

148

to build a better enabling environment for Moroccan teen girls around menstrual hygiene and awareness.

10

1 Million 1

impressions from the digital campaign

11

Acco r d i n g to the UN Adolescent Girls Ta s k

to support girls in leading dialogues in their

Forc e , t h ere are two key means to unlea s h

o w n c o m m u n i t y a n y w h e r e . W i t h C O V I D - 19

girl s ’ p o t e ntial: 1) P romote and empower

restrictions lifted in fall 2021, we held:

adol e s c e n t girl leaders; and 2) Enhance Comm u n i t y Dialogue.

W i t h a l l o f t h e s e l e a r n i n g s , S o a r C o m m un i t y D i a l o g u e s w e r e o f f i c i a l l y p i l o t e d i n 2 0 21 : I t is p r o v e n that inv esting in girls creat e s a domi n o e f fect that yields multiple bene f i t s , not o n l y f o r individu al girls, and the wom e n they b e c o me; but for families, communit i e s ,

EGD a l s o supports providing our core

and c o u n t ries. With funding from the Ci v i l

empo w e r ment progra mming Soar in a Box f o r

Soci e t y i n Development (CISU) and Cro s s i n g

180 t o t a l Soar Girls in 9 communities a c r o s s

Bord e r s , Empowered Girls Dialogue (EGD) i s

Moro c c o , and supports girls to launch t h e i r

desi g n e d to empower marginalized

own S o a r Clubs. 18 grassroots women

Moro c c a n teen girls to gain a voice for

faci l i t a t o r s are paid to implement the

chan g e o n the factors that marginalise t h e m

prog r a m i n their own communities. EGD's

in t h e i r e v eryday lif e. Originally launche d i n

ulti m a t e goal is:

2020 , E G D expanded in 2021 with:

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"I want to show my community that girls are not meant to only be in the house, but rather they can go to school and be future leaders. I want to help all girls have a better future."

"If you asked me the first day I stepped in the training center to plan a community dialogue I would have thought it was impossible for me, but now I am not afraid to plan and manage it alone."

- Safa

- Fati maEzzahra

"I want to help others challenge society’s taboos which diminishes their value."

- Nour

"I am so motivated to make a change in my community.

I hope one day I will be a feminist that all the world will know."

- Sal ma

"Being a Soar Girl means having the responsibility of spreading awareness and changing misbeliefs within my society. I want to challenge the status quo and fix some of the issues that girls encounter."

- Ghi zl an

Impact Global

since 2017

2,179 Soar Girls avoided child marriage

2,027 Soar Girls passed the school year

185,100+ Hours of empowerment provided

260

eligible Soar Girls passed the BAC 2 exam

2,148

Soar Girls avoided dropping out of school

219 eligible Soar Girls pursued higher ed.

Syria Soar

In 2021, Project Soar crossed borders with funding from the Swedish Postcode Foundation and three Syrian NGO partners to pilot Girls Soar in Syria. The program began with rigorous research led

by Untold Research to adapt the Soar curriculum for internally displaced girls:

10 1 300

Focus groups conducted Research report published Baseline & Endline surveys administered

So far the program resulted in:

11 14 173

Trained Soar Facilitators Soar in a Box Squads Soar Girls

"Soar gives the girls a voice to be heard, a mindset to believe in themselves, and raises their self-esteem in a place where hope and opportunity are minimal. The program reaches not only the girls, but the facilitators, the implementation team, the families, and all who have been involved in it."

- Lin, Soar Syria Coordinator 16

- Soar Girl in Syria

Soar Stories

Project Soar is a grassroots girls' rights movement. We know that real change takes time, so we establish meaningful relationships in the communities we work in, and provide a holistic program that helps girls realize their core values. This allows girls to implement new skills in their daily lives and troubleshoot with the help of their peers. As a Soar Girl progresses through each module, she undergoes a transformative process whereby she further develops her self-confidence; speaks up; embraces her adolescent body; fights for her rights; and sets future goals. Here are a few stories of how Soar is impacting teen girls.

18

Soukaina

Soukaina's family was initially reluctant to let her join Project Soar. "Before attending the Soar workshops, I couldn't tell people how I felt, especially my father."

After participating in Soar, Soukaina's favorite part of the program was the workshops in the Voice module, because it helped her find her voice and use it.

"Now I can talk to my father and family about everything -- like my emotions or my period."

Seeing the changes that Soukaina underwent while in the Soar program, her family realized that becoming a Soar Girl was a great way for their daughter to develop her personality and learn about her value, body and rights.

"Project Soar helps girls in every aspect of life, but especially with communicating, standing up for ourselves and exchanging ideas with friends, teachers and people from other cultures."

Since becoming a Soar Girl and completing the program this year, Soukaina gives back to other girls by interning at Soar HQ, registering new Soar Girls and leading workshops.

Soukaina also has BIG plans for the future. She is a dedicated student and envisions pursuing a creative career by becoming a graphic designer. She's committed to improving her English, and wants to learn Italian and Korean, too! With her determination, we are certain Soukaina will achieve her dreams.

19

Fatima

Fatima dropped out of school two years ago at age 16. "I thought that my family and society had the right to decide my future because I am a girl."

When Fatima heard about the Soar program at her community center in NW Syria, she asked her parents' permission to attend. They supported her since she spent most of her time at home. After attending the workshops in the first module, Voice, Fatima was encouraged.

"I committed myself to participating. I understood the importance of completing my education and continuing my studies during this program, and that it's my right to have access to education and study with my friends...

20

...I thought about returning to school, and I convinced my family that education is important to me and that I can succeed in school."

Now, Fatima registered in school again and is confident that she will be able to excel and handle any challenges.

"I thank this program and the facilitators for motivating me to handle the obstacles I was facing. I will be able to achieve my goals,. This program gave us confidence, a group of friends, and changed our perspective on life for the better."

Buses for Biougra

Soar Girls and Facilitators Leila and Hasna saw a lack of safe school transportation in their semi-rural community of Biougra in southern Morocco. So after our training, they hosted their first Soar Dialogue in February 2021 to address this common barrier to education for girls.

In this initial powerful Soar Dialogue in Biougra, 50 members of the community ranging from parents to local government officials and even the school director came together to hear how this challenge affects the girls in their community. This dialogue was so motivating that the attendees all came together and made an action plan for how to solve this issue.

After months of persistent outreach to local authorities and working through bureaucratic procedures in order to secure and fund a reliable school bus for daily student transport, We are pleased to report that their efforts were successful.

Starting in fall 2021, the town of Biougra now offers transportation to the rural students in their community via the provision of two buses.

These two buses, which hold roughly 70 students total at one time, will continue to help improve teen girls' access school in a safe and reliable fashion for years to come.

Soar Girls in Biougra feel very proud of their success, as they know that this bus will prevent other girls from dropping out of school and therefore help prevent potential early or forced marriage.

21

Donors

Our Amazing

Project Soar has expanded core programming and launched new initiatives in thanks to our supportive partners and generous contributors. We are particularly grateful for the generous support of the Swedish Postcode Foundation, which allowed us to adapt our solution for internally displaced girls in Syria, and for the continued commitment of the Moroccan government via the Ministry of Youth and Sports.

Project Soar staff and the Soar Girls are deeply thankful for the heartfelt gifts from all donors of 2021.

$225,000+ Swedish Postcode Foundation

$50,000 CISU Civil Society in Development & Crossing Borders Together Women Rise Trotula Fund

$25,000 Jeremy and Kristin Andrus Family Foundation

$10,000 - $24,999 Ernie and Jeanne Gabiati Canadian Foundation for Local Initiatives (CFLI) Jamie Leigh Luleta Maslak

Indicates a Starling, or monthly donor 22

$5,000 - $9,999 Bill and Melinda Gates Matching Funds Cooley-Fanning Family Fund Jeanne Cumby Jillian Korstrom Mark Eckman MMontague & Peacock Pavilions Shea Fontana

$1,000 - $4,999 Anna Beck Designs Cameron Family Foundation David Labourdette and Jamie Diamond David and LallaZi Mannix Drift Home Collection, Nataliya Borener Eat Pray Move, Erin Lewis Frederick & Julia Cefalo Jill Hurd Joel Montague Karen L. Nuccitelli Lisa Moriyama Marin Community Foundation Moroccan Center for Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship (MCISE) Path North Thierry Marchand TIBU Africa

$500 - $999

Chris Payne Courtney Smith Barton Cynthia Cross Ellen Israel John Hopkins Madeline Weinrib Nancy Pendarvis Harris Nelson Hammell Susanne Karlander Todd Watters

& Financials

INCOMING REVENUE - $ 527,964

Family Foundations $35,500

Corporate $12,115

Corporate $4,728

$314,505 U.S. Association 501(c)3

$213,459

Grants $158,931

Moroccan Association

Individuals $107,959

Grants $208,731

OUTGOING EXPENSES - $431,906

Benefits $12,761

Other Direct Costs $12,063 Other Direct Costs $16,651

Supplies & Equipment $17,575

Personnel $79,880

$227,165 Contracts & Subgrants $21,098

Benefits $16,031

Supplies $22,998

U.S. Association 501(c)3

$210,741

Personnel $88,461

Moroccan Association Travel $30,252

Grants $72,080

Contractuals $36,348

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Team

Soar

Executive Staff (left to right) Maryam Montague Founder & Executive Director Kaydee Dahlin Director of Finance & Administration

Board Members

HQ Staff

Morocco Board Members

(left to right)

Chris Redecke, President Yasmina Sarhrouny, Vice President Aziz Nahas, Treasurer Tala Hadid, Director Sarah Mantah, Director

Tess Dunn Program Manager Fatima Chakir Finance & HR Manager

Ibtisam Bousbibit Soar Syria & Special Programs Coordinator

US Board Members

Fatimaezzahra Amechnoug Finance Coordinator

Ujala Syed Development Coordinator

Fatima Ait Ouknik Senior Program Coordinator

Jenna Lacey Development Coordinator

Kawtar Ait Malek Program Coordinator

Khadija Boulahcen Program Assistant

Warda Bouye Program Coordinator

Maha Idrissi Finance Assistant

Marina Fanning, President Per Sjödell, Vice President Sarita Jha, Treasurer Lalla-Zineb el Mazouni Mannix, Director Patrick Benjaminson, Director Jacqueline Asimwe, Director Caitlin Dowe- Sandes, Director Olayide Odediran, Director Medya Abdulhuseyin, Director

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Kaoutar Arhenbou Program Coordinator

Morocco

92 Soar Facilitators in Morocco

11 Soar Facilitators in NW Syria

The Soar Movement is fueled by our dedicated staff, families of Soar Girls, volunteers, community leaders and allies, but especially our network of

Soar Facilitators.

We are deeply grateful for the tireless efforts of these grassroots women who serve as role models for Soar Girls in their own communities, who advocate for and empower Soar Girls, and who believe that Soar Girls are the leaders of today and tomorrow. We could not do this without you!

2021 sites in Morocco Akka Amizmiz Aourir Azrou Atlas Biougra Casablanca Casablanca Casablanca Casablanca Chichaoua

Ain Sbaa Hay Mabrouka Ria Alandalus Sidi Moumen

Douar Igoudar Douar Laadam El Kebab Fam El Hisn Fes Guelmim Kelaa Des Sraghna N’Zalat Bni Amar Ouled Teima Rich

Sala Al Jadida Sidi Ifni Sidi Jaber Sidi Slimane Sidi Youssef Tan Tan Tanger Tighoumar Tinjdad 25

Call to Action empowerment

Teen girl’s is challenged in every way.

With over 110 million girls at risk of child marriage 1

in the next decade , so many girls are missing the chance to envision

dreams capable

their At Project Soar, we know and believe

.

that every Girl is .

Our signature empowerment program enables girls to realize their Value, Voice, Body, Rights and Path and higher than the hurdles placed in front of them.

Soar

Did you know that ending child marriage could generate $500 billion in benefits annually each year? Our world cannot afford to miss out on the economic prospects that girls’ empowerment entails.

By donating today, contribute to making the world a better place by empowering teen girls to become 2

Contact Us Douar Laadam Caidat al Ouidane Marrakech 40060

you

leaders of today and tomorrow.

1

giveback@projectsoar.org

Follow Us Facebook: @projectsoar Instagram: @projectoar Twitter: @projectsoar LinkedIn: @projectsoar

2

Unicef, 2021 World Bank, 2021