Girls who play become women who lead.
Compared with local, regional and national data, BAWSI Girls Alumni:
participated in high school sports at higher rates.
had lower rates of tobacco and recreational drugs, and graduated high school at higher rates.
BAWSI Girls Alumni report:
Higher rates of daily physical activity than national averages.
High rates of self-efficacy, self-esteem and body image.
Strong leadership qualities.
Where are they now?
BAWSI Girls Alumni are leading in their communities in business, government, law, medicine, and non-profits.
Former BAWSI High School Lead, MD/PhD Scholar University of California, Davis
During a gap year between undergraduate and her MD/PhD, Dalila returned to BAWSI playgrounds, now as the amazing coach BAWSI Girls look up to; and leading BAWSI’s Youth Participatory Research to inform our high school programming. Today, Dalila is a first-year medical student in the MD/PhD program at University of California, Davis, passionate about women’s health, health disparities, and the marriage between medicine and data science. Her research experience includes developing machine learning approaches to harness the power of wearable device personal health data – perhaps, inspired by that very first BAWSI pedometer on the Rod Kelley playground.
Former BAWSI Community Specialist, Future Lawyer
In her freshman year at Scripps College, Michelle and a friend designed and implemented a program to help 1st generation high school students successfully apply and prepare for the challenges of college life. Michelle also joined the Rugby team and was named Rookie of the Year. After graduating Summa Cum Laude, Michelle joined BAWSI Staff as a Community Specialist, leading the build-out of middle school and high school programming as well as engaging in grassroots research and collaboration in the community where she grew up. Michelle’s leadership, empowering the next generation of leaders from her community, exemplifies the leadership pipeline BAWSI strives to achieve through our programs. Michelle recently left BAWSI to pursue her journey towards law school with a focus on legal aid and goal to make the law field more accessible for all communities.
Clinical Neuropsychologist, Doctoral Fellow
Raised in a family with limited financial means, but determined to play soccer, her desire to play fueled her success at each step. Being a BAWSI Girl gave her a sense of belonging as part of her first team, and the feeling that her own dreams were attainable. She found caring adults along her path who believed in her dreams and helped her accomplish her goals of attending college and playing soccer. Gema shares that while many of her classmates succumbed to the risks of the environment —early pregnancy, gang involvement, and substance abuse —BAWSI lit a fire inside of her, to chase down her dreams relentlessly and lead her own life. 
Chief of Staff for San José City Councilmember Peter Ortiz, BAWSI Board Member
"Growing up in a disadvantaged community, as a child of immigrant parents, my mother knew that in order to get ahead in life, she had to seize every opportunity for her children. When BAWSI came to my school, my mom saw how beneficial it would be for me. As a rambunctious, extroverted elementary school girl who could not sit still, BAWSI was an outlet for me to be my true self. In class, I would be seen as too talkative, too eccentric, and overall too much. However, when I was in BAWSI, I could be myself; I was taught core values along with my peers, that I would hold and cherish for the rest of my life. The purple BAWSI shirt made me feel I was a part of something big. It gave me strength knowing that I had a support system with the girls who I played with and the coaches who taught us."
Annual Impact Report
We hope you are inspired learning about BAWSI’s significant impact in our BAWSI 2023-2024 Annual Impact Report.Long-term Impact Study
As we began building our Leadership Accelerator for girls in grades 2 through 12, we sought to understand the Long-Term Impact of BAWSI Girls programming on our earliest participants.We have been honored by:
International Olympic Committee
San Jose City Council
The Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness
California Senator Aisha Wahab
Congresswoman Anna Eshoo
Santa Clara County Department of Education
YMCA
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