Girls find their voice and courage to lead

High school can feel like a time when many girls begin to question their own strength. The weight of social comparison, the fear of speaking up, and the pressure to fit in can quietly chip away at confidence—making leadership feel risky and belonging feel uncertain. By the time girls reach their teenage years, many have already started to doubt whether they truly belong in positions where their voices matter. The Lucella Project exists to interrupt that story.

Across Wisconsin, from Appleton to Green Bay, from Sturgeon Bay to Clintonville, The Lucella Project brings in-school workshops directly to high school girls. These aren't one-time events that fade once the session ends. Instead, the organization has built a year-round presence in schools, meeting girls where they are and offering real, practical support around the three things that matter most: building confidence, finding courage, and learning what leadership actually means for each of them.

The workshops create space for something many girls rarely experience—a room full of peers who are all working on the same challenge. In these spaces, girls discover they're not alone in their doubts. They learn from one another. They practice speaking up. They begin to see themselves differently. The annual High School Girls Leadership Conference brings together dozens of schools across the region, amplifying that sense of belonging and possibility even further.

When girls feel supported and reminded of their own strength, something shifts. Confidence takes root. Belonging becomes real. And the voices that once felt too risky to share begin to emerge. These young women carry that transformation forward into their families, their schools, and their communities—changing not just their own futures, but rippling outward in ways that matter.