What We Do

YWCA is on a mission to eliminate racism and empower women.

We’ve been at the forefront of the biggest issues of the day for over 160 years, working to improve the lives of women, girls, and communities of color through advocacy, local programming, and services.

We carry out our mission in several ways

Programming and services through local YWCA Local Associations

YWCA is proud to have 194 local associations across the United States. Our programs serve over 1 million individuals in the U.S., and we serve 25 million worldwide. YWCA services vary depending on location and the needs within the communities.

Special initiatives and national campaigns

YWCA is on a mission to eliminate racism and empower women, and our annual national campaigns are crucial to realizing our mission by creating awareness around racial and gender justice issues and engaging our YWCA network and partners in this work. Annually, we hold the following campaigns:

Advocacy and lobbying for policies that eliminate racism and empower women

We’ve been at the forefront of the biggest issues of the day for 165 years: from voting rights to civil rights, from affordable housing to pay equity and from violence prevention to health care reform. We carry on this long tradition of social action and advocacy to advance our mission — and you are a crucial part of this work.

Our Mission in Acton

YWCA focuses its mission-driven work on these areas to improve the lives of girls and women:

Racial Justice and Civil Rights

To increase the equal protections and equal opportunities of people of color

Empowerment and Economic Advancement of Women and Girls

To increase economic opportunities for women and girls of color

  • Girl Empowerment

  • Women Empowerment

Health and Safety of Women and Girls

To improve the health and safety of women and girls of color

Our Impact

YWCA is a strong nationwide network.

In 2022, 135 of our local associations served 996,651 people in 859 Programs. 71% of the people served are people of color and 59% were women and children.