BIO Girls Awarded Nonprofit of the Year by FMWF Chamber of Commerce
Each year, the Fargo Moorhead West Fargo Chamber of Commerce presents a series of awards to organizations in the FMWF community at the ChamberChoice Awards. The award categories include Business of the Year, Small Business of the Year, Nonprofit of the Year, Inclusion Champion of the Year and People's Choice.
The award category, Nonprofit of the Year, is given to a nonprofit organization in the FMWF community that meets the following criteria:
A registered 501(c) designation, as defined by IRS standards, in the FMWF community
Shown stability or growth in services and/or number of individuals served and/or expanded programs and services
Proven contribution to enhancing the community’s overall quality of life
Demonstrated commitment to ethical business practices
Demonstrated commitment to employee support and development
Current member in good standing with The Chamber
BIO Girls was awarded the 2024 Nonprofit of the Year at the ChamberChoice Awards on May 16th, 2024:
BIO Girls, a nonprofit with a crucially important mission of increasing self-esteem in adolescent girls has taken the Midwest by storm. Impacting 3,000+ girls annually, and over 15,000 since its inception in 2013, with its proven and preventative mental wellness programming. As the only program in ND focused on prevention, BIO Girls has worked tirelessly to provide life-skills lessons in healthy relationships, mental wellness, kindness and leadership to ensure each and every girl within their program truly believes that they are ‘beautiful, inside and out’. Reaching into rural and underserved communities, BIO Girls offers a pay as you can program ensuring all families the opportunity to enroll their daughter, no matter their socioeconomic status. In 2023 alone, the organization provided $330,000 in financial assistance to participants.
It’s no secret that our adolescent girls are growing up in a completely different world than generations past. Presented with constant and debilitating pressure to strive for perfection, accomplish more, and present themselves in a certain way, our adolescent girls are facing an epidemic like no other.
6 in 10 girls battle low self-esteem leading to a 75% higher chance of destructive behaviors: anxiety, depression, eating disorders, promiscuity, self-harm, suicide.
1 in 3 state their mental health is not good and 50% have low body esteem.
1 in 8 has attempted suicide.
BIO Girls 12-week programming focuses on three evidence-based techniques for improving self-esteem, a primary indicator of mental health issues: mentorship, character-building curriculum, and physical activity. And it's working. For the past five years, 7 of 10 program participants have experienced a significant increase in self-esteem reducing their potential likelihood of destructive behaviors by 75%. In addition, 50% have experienced decreased feelings of anxiety.
The demand for preventative programming continues to rise and BIO Girls continues to meet the call, adapting their program to meet girls where they are and experiencing a 30% growth rate year over year, despite the challenges of 2020 and 2021. But the organization doesn’t do this important work alone.
Lead by their internal team of 9 FTEs, BIO Girls empowers 1,000’s of adult mentors annually to provide their research driven curriculum within their respective communities, specifically throughout North Dakota, Minnesota, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Iowa. With a 100% satisfaction rate, these dedicated volunteers are the heart and soul of BIO Girls, pouring their time, energy and love into the next generation of strong, powerful leaders. Advocates who often share the sentiment ‘I wish I would’ve had BIO Girls growing up’ proving the program's impact not only on participants, but those teaching it year after year after year.
With an army of strong advocates backing their mission, including generous community organizations, businesses, and individuals, BIO Girls has set a bold goal to reach 1 in 6 ND girls by 2025. Taking steps forward, BIO Girls anticipates reaching 3,300 program participants through 105 sites in 2024, 24 sites being in the local FMWF metro.
BIO Girls Founder & CEO, Missy Heilman, spoke joyfully on behalf of the award at the event; commending the hundreds of organizations who do wonderful mission-driven work, thanking the 1,000+ BIO Girls volunteers who bring the program to life, and expressing sincere gratitude for the communities, donors, and organizations that support the thousands of girls who participate in the BIO Girls program.