4th Annual Young Women’s Conference Held
On November 28th, over 150 Middlesex County high school students and their teachers came to the Crowne Plaza in Monroe for the fourth annual Young Women’s Conference.
Titled “My Journey, My Voice: Empowering Young Women”, the conference provided the young attendees with various interactive and educational activities and helped them gain invaluable knowledge and resources to support them throughout their lifetimes.
The event was arranged by the Middlesex County Substance Abuse Coalition, together with the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (NCADD) of Middlesex County, Inc. Coalition members representing community organizations from across the county worked together to make this event a success. The Middlesex County Municipal Alliance Network demonstrated enormous support of the event by assisting local alliances to insure that their students could attend the conference. Financial assistance from several Municipal Alliances allowed dozens of students to participate who would not have been able to otherwise.
Several workshops were held including:
- Being a Girl - a seminar intended to teach young adults coping skills
- Healthy Choices - providing ingredients to making healthy choices
- Power and Control - exploring healthy vs. unhealthy relationships
- Real Rap Parents - a discussion about relationships with parents
Separate informative workshops for faculty attending the conference were presented and the event featured a special dynamic performance of “Voices” by the NCADD Acts of Prevention theater troupe. “Voices” debuted at the First Annual Young Women’s Conference in 2003 and has since presented to thousands of students and professionals across the state.
Several area organizations and companies helped support the event through donations. NCADD would like to thank these supporters including:
- Applebee’s
- Central NJ Maternal/Child Health Consortium
- Johnson & Johnson
- L’Oreal, USA
- Middlesex County Health Department
- Middlesex County Clerk
- New Hope Foundation’s Open Door
- State of New Jersey