Making Sure That We "Let Girls Learn"

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This afternoon, President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama announced that the White House is ramping up its efforts to Let Girls Learn with a new initiative focused on supporting girls’ education around the world.

The Obama administration has partnered with the Peace Corps to take on the challenge of keeping girls in school.  Even in 2015, more than 62 million girls across the globe are not receiving an education, and even more are fighting to stay there. In many countries around the world, a girl risks dangerous walks to school, pressure to give up her education, and a lack of support for the resources she needs in her schooling.

"I’m convinced that a world in which girls are educated is a safer, more stable, more prosperous place."

— First Lady Michelle Obama

By educating more girls, we are empowering them to help build healthier families, stronger communities, and brighter futures. It is beyond time to let all girls around the world get the education that they deserve.

70 percent of the 1 billion people living in extreme poverty are women and girls, but helping more girls stay in school has the power to change that. We know that a girl with an education can shape her own destiny and help her family.

The Let Girls Learn initiative is going to support hundreds of new community projects, all with an emphasis on keeping girls in school - anything from building new libraries to providing resources so that girls have an easier time getting there. Both President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama will be championing efforts to help girls around the world through this initiative, by supporting and encouraging community-led solutions to reduce barriers that prevent girls from completing their education. 

"Every girl on this planet deserves to be treated with dignity and equality. And that includes the chance to develop her mind."

— President Obama

President Barack Obama, with First Lady Michelle Obama, delivers remarks about expanding efforts to help adolescent girls worldwide attend and stay in school, during a "Let Girls Learn" initiative education event in the East Room of the White House, March 3, 2015. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

Here's why the White House is partnering with the Peace Corps:

The Peace Corps is a highly successful organization that has been championing education for more than fifty years, and is already on the ground in many of the countries where we are trying to Let Girls Learn. The Peace Corps will work with the First Lady's Office to train thousands of volunteers and community leaders in the places we are trying to impact, and will collaborate with local leaders to identify tailored-to-fit solutions.

In conjunction with the First Lady, the Peace Corps is going to use its already existing volunteer base in 11 countries – Albania, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Georgia, Ghana, Moldova, Mongolia, Mozambique, Togo, and Uganda – to start making an impact right now, with more countries to follow.

Find more information about the Peace Corps' plan to empower girls' education here. 

Jenna Brayton is an Associate Director of Content in the White House Office of Digital Strategy.