Frequently Asked Questions
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Frequently Asked Questions *
Organization Info
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Black Girls Smile is a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting the mental health and emotional well-being of Black girls and young women. Founded in 2012, Black Girls Smile works to remove the stigma around therapy and mental health care in Black communities by:
Providing mental health literacy workshops
Offering support groups and community-based programming
Connecting participants to therapy scholarships and clinical resources
Hosting culturally responsive events centered on joy, rest, and collective care
At its core, Black Girls Smile exists to ensure that Black girls and women feel seen, supported, and safe in prioritizing their mental health — not just in crisis, but as a daily practice of wellness and self-preservation.
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In 2012, Black Girls Smile Inc. Founder and Executive Director, Lauren Carson, made a commitment to help ensure that all young black females feel supported, enlightened, and empowered to lead mentally healthy lives. To learn more about Lauren’s story and personal mental health journey, click here.
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We were incorporated in 2012 and received our 501(c)(3) tax-deductible status in 2014.
Programming Info
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Black Girls Smile unapologetically centers the needs and experiences of Black girls and young women. Due to the lack of gender-responsive and culturally affirming safe spaces for young Black femme people, our desire is to ensure we provide that nuanced support. However, we also understand that mental health literacy and awareness is important for all. Therefore, we ask that all those interested in our programming, regardless of age, gender or race enter into the space (whether virtually or in-person) understanding that our work speaks directly to the experiences of Black girls, young women and non-binary folks, and their support system.
Providers
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BGS is honored to partner with providers/therapists throughout N. America that serve and stand for the mental health and well-being of Black women and girls. To be added to BGS' Preferred Provider & Practice list we provide to our Therapy Assistance recipients and our community please complete the following form: Preferred Provider and Preferred Practice
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BGS team loves to partner with providers, community leaders, healers and so many more qualified and experience facilitators to offer diverse and relevant workshops and programming to our community. If you are interested in facilitating a workshop or program with BGS please complete this form HERE
Getting Involved
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We are always looking for dedicated and passionate individuals to help us further our work. To learn about available volunteer opportunities please fill out this form here
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BGS aims to create meaningful and impactful volunteer opportunities that can fit anyone's needs including virtual, in-person, one-time and continuous. If you are interested in getting more information about Volunteer experiences we encourage you to reach out to us directly here.
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Yes! We have various corporate volunteer experiences that can be offered both virtually and in-person for Corporate Partner and Groups. Please let our team know here if you are interested in Corporate Partnership Volunteerism or Group Volunteer experiences.
Donations
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Yes! We received our 501(c)(3) status in September 2014, allowing donations to be tax-deductible. If you would like to donate, click here.
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Yes! If you’d like to designate your gift to a specific program, please email us at giving@blackgirlssmile.org, and our team will be happy to assist you.
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Yes! When you donate through our donation platform, you can select "Give in honor/memory" to donate in honor of another.
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All donations to BGS are used for programming and general operating expenses. For our annual report feel free to email us, contact@blackgirlssmile.org.
