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Today we’re happy to announce Hayley Kilpatrick, founder and executive director of Girl Talk, as one of our 20 People to Watch.

Inspired by her own experience, Hayley created a program to help middle school girls deal with the pressures and anxieties of being a young teen. Girl Talk organizes high school girls to mentor middle school girls to build self-esteem, develop leadership skills and understand the importance of community service.

Today, Girl Talk is one of the fastest growing nonprofit mentoring programs in the country. It has reached more than 35,000 girls in 43 states. Currently, Haley is working hard to ensure that Girl Talk has a Chapter in all 50 states.

The Century Council is proud to celebrate the innovative contributions it has made over 20 years and can attribute our success to the support, encouragement and commitment of people like Haley Kilpatrick. We look forward to continued progress in the fight against drunk driving, underage drinking and a safer and healthier America with great partners like Haley.

Century Council Blog

It’s not easy being a young woman.

There are numerous pressures on you growing up – you’re expected to be smart but cute, independent but demure, confident but not domineering.

Adding to all this, young women can occasionally be mean to one another. Sometimes, rather than supporting one another, young women try to tear each other down, or boost themselves up at one another’s expense. The idea that esteem for one’s self and among one’s peers is a zero-sum game is one that has damaged the self-image of many women.

That idea is one that Haley Kilpatrick has made it her mission to eliminate. Via her Girl Talk program, Haley tries to encourage older girls to take younger ones as mentors and in so doing, short-circuit the idea that popularity is dependent upon tearing down other girls. Girl Talk also creates a network of support that might not otherwise be there, making sure that younger girls have a wealth of knowledge and experience that they can easily tap.

For that reason, we were very happy to see her recognized as Huffington Post’s Greatest Woman of The Day.

The Century Council has been a close partner of Girl Talk since 2002. We continue to beam as we watch Haley’s program grow, and are proud to support her along the way.

Century Council Blog