ROX (Ruling Our eXperiences)

05/28/2026

Since 2011, 1,073 girls across Union County have been a part of a ROX program. That's 21,460 hours of ROX programming across 15 years! This year alone, 188 Union County girls participated in ROX.

We love seeing these girls use their voices, support their peers, and own their confidence. This is ROX in action! 👏🩷

Thank you to Mental Health & Recovery Board of Union County for investing in girls and for your continued commitment to making sure ROX reaches girls across Union County!🩷

MHRBUC is proud to invest in ROX (Ruling Our eXperiences), an evidence-based curriculum helping girls in grades 5–12 build confidence, strengthen relationships, manage stress, and develop healthy coping skills.

This school year, 188 girls across Union County participated in ROX!

Last week, Creekview Intermediate School ROX girls shared healthy coping strategies and information about stress and wellbeing with their peers during the RISE Rally.

Thank you for using your voices, supporting your peers, and leading by example. Your leadership is helping build a stronger, healthier community. ✨

05/28/2026

A Story About: The impact of ROX on an entire school community
Submitted By: Ashley Kline, Assistant Principal
Key ROX Program Outcomes: Ability to defend themselves, expanded career aspirations, healthier body image
Did You Know? 3 out of 4 ROX Programs that start with philanthropy become self-sustaining due to demonstrated impact and effectiveness.

ROX has united our community.

I began with a pilot group as the only facilitator running an after school group for about 13 girls. My own daughter talking about what stuck with her from ROX motivated me to reach out and find a way to increase our footprint. We now have 8 certified ROX facilitators, offer ROX during school hours, and I have transitioned into admin. Our funding has evolved from community donations to school funding, and we strive to provide the ROX curriculum to every female by the time they graduate.

We now teach self-defense with all levels together on ROX day. On this day, community members lead the girls through career sessions as well as self-care. Older girls are paired with younger girls as mentors, and ROX alumni speak about what it means to be a ROX Girl beyond high school.

We have completed community outreach projects focused on beauty, invited role models in to share in self-defense, and extended our district's goal for place-based learning. We have established a reciprocal relationship with our community in which we value our resources, and they value our girls.

05/27/2026

Commit to having regular conversations with your girls, rather than waiting for something serious to happen.

This way, you’ll establish the foundation for healthy, open and supportive communication with your girl, so that when something bigger does happen, she’ll know she can come to you.

05/26/2026

Being a caring adult in a girl’s life means that our number one goal is to make them feel like what they have to say is valuable and that they are the most important person in our lives.

When girls know they can talk to us without judgment, they’ll feel safe to keep sharing with us in the future.

And the more they are able to share with us, and be supported in return, the better off she’ll be.

Remember: practice your communication with regular casual conversations, so that when something big happens in your life, she knows she can come to you.

Want to learn more? Visit www.rulingourexperiences.org

05/21/2026

A Story About: A middle school ROX Group from Oklahoma
Submitted By: Amanda Chandler, Licensed School Counselor (LSC), ROX Facilitator
Key ROX Program Outcomes: Gained confidence, ability to use their voice and build healthy friendships
Did You Know? After participating in ROX, 94% of girls report feeling more connected to other girls and less alone

The way my ROX Girls bonded and opened up within the group was something I never imagined was going to happen! They were girls who ran with different social groups, but within ROX they were their own. They respected each other, lifted each other up, complimented each other outside of those specific activities.

My teachers saw such a positive impact within those 10 girls, the impact even started to spread throughout the grade. My girls gained confidence in the way they thought about themselves and spoke up for themselves. I had a couple parents reach out at the end of the school year to tell me that they loved the positive change/impact they saw in their daughter.

05/20/2026

This is it! The application for our 2026-2028 Dr. Patty Fellowship closes on June 12, 2026.

The Dr. Patty Fellowship is a special way to engage with ROX.

The Dr. Patty Fellowship develops bold, community-connected ROX Facilitators who bring the full power of their experiences to their leadership.

We believe girls are best served by Facilitators who reflect the world they navigate every day. This fellowship intentionally invests in women whose lived experiences and leadership journeys reflect the vibrant communities ROX is committed to empowering.

Through cohort-based learning, mentorship and applied leadership experiences, Fellows deepen their facilitation practice, sharpen their expertise in building girls' confidence and grow as influential leaders within the ROX community. In doing so, they carry forward the legacy of Dr. Patty Cunningham - a tireless advocate for representation and transformative change.

This fellowship is designed for future-Facilitators who are ready to step more fully into their leadership and expand their impact within ROX and beyond.

To learn more and apply, visit www.rulingourexperiences.org/dr-patty-fellowship

05/19/2026

It’s important that we’re aware of our body language when talking to our girl(s). It can be the key difference in if a girl feels safe and supported in our presence, or not.

Always think about your position, body and face.

Position:
Consider sitting instead of standing, and avoid sitting behind a desk when possible. Instead, sit next to her or catty-corner, instead of directly facing one another.

Body:
Uncross your arms/legs, relax your hands in your lap, relax your shoulders. Then, lean in and look interested at what she has to say.

Face:
Be aware of your expressions! Maintain a neutral expression during your conversation. The second she senses judgement or disapproval, she will stop sharing and avoid sharing in the future.

05/18/2026

The Girls’ Index™ demands urgent action. When we saw that girls’ rates of sadness and depression tripled for 5th/6th graders and doubled for 7th/8th graders… it alarmed us.

But there is so much that we can do to change these stats and help our girls. The biggest thing? *Be the adult who cares.* As we’ve talked about all month long, having an adult who cares is key in helping girls build resiliency.

Tune in tomorrow for more strategies on how to best support your girl.

05/14/2026

A Story About: A North Carolina ROX Facilitator goes above and beyond for the girls in her school community
Submitted By: Tanisha Dumas, Licensed School Counselor (LSC), Dr. Patty Fellow and ROX Facilitator
Key ROX Program Outcomes: Enhanced communication, stress management, social media literacy
Did You Know? After participating in The ROX Program, 86% of girls have higher levels of self-esteem and self-confidence.

"We hosted a conference for girls and their caregivers on Saturday, March 21 called I Matter: Strong girls, Strong voices. We modeled this event after ROX’s I Matter conference that they hold every February in Columbus, Ohio.

We had 27 girls, along with their caregivers. The vision behind this event was twofold: I wanted to empower our girls to speak up about the challenges they encounter, while also ensuring their parents didn't leave empty-handed. By providing a specific session for guardians on how to talk to their girls, we’ve helped bridge the communication gap between school and home.

We had incredible professional presenters who led breakout sessions for the girls and their guardians. The topics included: social media/online safety, the benefits of yoga, body positivity, building social and emotional confidence, stress management and self-care, entrepreneurship, positive communication and positive parenting.

Dr. Scott, our Executive Director of Student Services, was very supportive and also used student services funds to pay for the food and supplies for the event. ROX HQ was instrumental in sending door prizes for the girls, along with donating books for the parents.

We are excited to do this again next year and look forward to growing the conference to support more girls and their caregivers. I’m grateful for the planning team that helped me bring I Matter to North Carolina!"

Read more ROX impact stories at www.rulingourexperiences.org/50States50Stories

05/13/2026

What an exciting year it's been for ROX! From celebrating 15 years of creating generation of confident girls, to hitting a MAJOR milestone of officially having a ROX presence in all 50 states - we are pinching ourselves! And to celebrate? We finally got to add the last state to our map: welcome, South Dakota! The ROX Program is run in every type of school and community across the entire country, and we couldn't be prouder.

Did you know that ROX was founded by and is still run by school counselors and educators? Did also you know that everything we do is founded in and driven by research? We don't just think the ROX Program for Girls is creating generations of confident girls in every state - we *know* it is. Our outcomes data proves it!

If you're a licensed school counselor, educator or social worker and want to get trained to facilitate a ROX Program at your school visit www.rulingourexperiences.org/roxprogramforgirls. Scholarships are available!

If you want to give and sponsor a girl's participation in the ROX Program or even sponsor an entire cohort of ROX Girls visit www.rulingourexperiences.org. No girl or family pays to participate!

05/12/2026

Being a supportive adult means creating a relationship that feels safe and judgement free. Sometimes, adults can unintentionally "close the door" when we approach conversation in a way that can make girls feel judged or criticized.

Notice the difference between these door closers and door openers. Door openers value girls’ opinions and communicate that you are a safe person who she can talk to about her thoughts, opinions and problems.

Door closer: “Don’t worry, there are more fish in the sea. You’ll meet someone great when you get to college. I didn’t like them anyway.”

Door opener: “This sounds like it’s really hard for you. Tell me how you’re dealing with this.”

Door closer: “I saw _____ on the music awards show last night. They’re so weird. I don’t get how people think they have any talent. Why do you like them?”

Door opener: “I saw _____ on the music awards show last night. What did you think about their performance?”

Door closer: “I just learned that 1 in 2 high school girls don’t believe they're smart enough for their dream career. That isn't you, is it?!”

Door opener: “I just learned that 1 in 2 high school girls don’t believe they're smart enough for their dream career. What do you think about that?”