Teen Institute organizes Girls’ Night Out

For the first time at Revere, Teen Institute organized a girls-only event to spread awareness and information on human trafficking, self-defense and careers for women.

Teen Institute adviser Bonnie Simonelli has been working with Teen Institute for three years and commented on the beginning of this event called Girls’ Night Out.

“A couple students were talking at the beginning of the year through emails [and] kind of just got started with some topics that girls would be interested in going to, and personal safety was at the top of the list with a lot of students going off to college, going into the workforce, and leaving their homes,” Simonelli said.

Six individuals presented at the event, including personal defense and awareness spokesman Officer Scott Dressler, yoga instructor and school psychologist Jacqueline Reasor, poetry reader and social media consultant Jessica Skrzypiec, Judge Joy Malek Oldfield and human trafficking spokeswoman Jan Apisa. High school senior and Teen Institute president CJ Franklin also spoke at the event. Franklin commented on her participation.

“A lot of these girls are going so far away from home and they have never really been that far without anyone with them. So we figured that we could give them some information that will help them stay safe and feel a bit more comfortable when they go out. . . . [I gave] self-defense demonstrations, so if you get into trouble, you’ll know how to get out of it, even if you’re against someone twice your size,” Franklin said.

A lot of the topics covered at Girls’ Night Out reflect personal topics in today’s news. These topics included human trafficking, sexual harassment, issues on social media, personal safety, yoga, and mindfulness. Franklin elaborated on the subjects discussed at the event.

“We figured these topics were things that people really didn’t want to talk about, but it was much-needed information before we go off to college. . . . We just want to make sure they are prepared and that they get crucial information that they might not have known before to keep them safe,” Franklin said.

Near the end of the event, Reasor led the audience in some breathing exercises to calm one’s body down in stressful times. Reasor commented on her career in yoga.

“I have been a children’s yoga instructor for six years, and for adults just one year. I think the people that I want to impact the most are people who have experienced any trauma, or anxiety, or anything that makes them feel psychologically weaker,” Reasor said.

Thirty people attended the event, came from various grade levels, and included a few students from North Royalton High School. They all gathered in the RHS auditorium on the evening of May 2. Simonelli commented on the event’s impact on women.

“The whole purpose is to teach something that somebody maybe didn’t know. Think about keeping yourself and your girlfriends safe,” Simonelli said.

Teen Institute plans on making Girls’ Night Out an annual event and organizing a Boys’ Night Out next year. Franklin commented on the event’s future.

“We wanted to do [a boys’ night], but the guys who were involved were having a bit of an issue trying to put speakers together and get ideas for it because it’s a little different from ours. So that’s our plan for next year: to have a girls’ night and a boys’ night and to keep this going for many years to come. . . . As long as one person in that audience learns something new and how to protect herself, that’s all I could ever ask for,” Franklin said.