Young Women’s Advisory Council

An extension of our prior youth programming, the YWAC is a deeply participatory program, integrating leadership development, advocacy training, and civic engagement into a year-long experience. Through spring seminars, youth learn WOCC’s frameworks and nation- and state- wide YWI history and the action plan of the previous year’s Council, developing an understanding of how local issues intersect with policy and systemic change.

An intergenerational retreat fosters relationship-building and mentorship within WOCC’s Cohort network, while the summer months focus on implementing advocacy projects shaped by participant-led priorities. In the fall, we close with a reflective intensive focused on analyzing the year’s work, surfacing key narratives, and mapping next steps for the movement.

Throughout, WOCC facilitates and models participatory governance, systems thinking, and collaborative problem-solving to help young women translate ideas into actionable projects that advance our YWAC’s core focus areas.

• Established YWAC in Nashville as part of a statewide initiative, connecting local advocacy to national frameworks.

• Equipped participants aged 17–24 with the skills and networks to engage in policy advocacy and civic leadership.

• Advanced key recommendations in YWI’s action plan through youth-led projects addressing community safety, representation, and healthcare access.

• Strengthened intergenerational connections and mentorship between emerging leaders and established advocates.

• Demonstrated WOCC’s ability to navigate and partner within complex, closed-circuit systems—aligning local operations with national scope and impact.

Women’s Foundation of Greater Memphis, Girls for Gender Equity, The New York Women’s Foundation, WOCC collaborator, and YWAC participants.