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.

Today we carry out our mission in several ways

Programming and services through local YWCA associations

Special initiatives and signature events

Advocacy and lobbying for policies that eliminate racism and empower women

Our Mission in Action

YWCA’s strategic framework is the culmination of consultation and exploration with YWCAs across the country and reflects our legacy as a pioneering organization that squarely confronts social justice issues to make lasting, meaningful change. The focus areas below guide our organization’s collective efforts at the national and local levels, with each YWCA association tailoring its approach to meet their community’s needs.

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

  • Racial Justice & Civil Rights

    Increasing equal protection and equal opportunity for people of color

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  • Health & Safety

    Improving the health and safety of women and girls of color

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  • Empowerment & Economic Advancement

    Increasing economic opportunities for women and girls of color

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  • YWCA Child Care Services and Programming Serving

    Serving over 200,000 kids annually through childcare, Head Start, and Pre-K programs

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  • Domestic and Sexual Violence Services

    Providing safe and secure housing, crisis hotlines, counseling, court assistance, and other community and safety programs to more than 535,000 women

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YWCA and Racial Justice

YWCA’s commitment to racial justice and civil rights runs deep.

Since the 1800s, Black and Native women have been providing leadership in YWCA’s movement and, because of the leadership of women of color, in 1946 YWCA began working for integration throughout the organization, adopting an “interracial charter” that established that “wherever there is injustice on the basis of race, whether in the community, the nation, or the world, our protest must be clear and our labor for its removal, vigorous, and steady.” That work culminated in the creation of YWCA’s One Imperative in 1970: To thrust our collective power towards the elimination of racism, wherever it exists, by any means necessary.

Today, we remain committed to ensuring that everyone is afforded equal protection under the law, and our intersectional mission to eliminate racism and empower women demands that we show up to advocate against the oppression that many groups and individuals endure, including through recognizing the interconnected experiences of discrimination and disadvantage that women face from their overlapping identities. Too often, stereotypes, biases, and racial power dynamics are embedded in our laws and public policies. They are also reflected in the use of racial profiling, heightened surveillance tactics, targeted enforcement strategies, and other practices that increase policing of certain racial and ethnic communities (but not others) that lead to criminalization and often the death of people of color.

At YWCA, we demand a world of equity and human decency.  We envision a world of opportunity. We commit ourselves to the work of racial justice. We will get up and continue to do the work until injustice is rooted out, until institutions are transformed, until the world sees women, girls, and people of color the way we do: Equal. Powerful. Unstoppable.

  • Take Advocacy Action

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  • Racial Justice & Civil Rights

    Learn about our racial justice and civil rights policy priorities.

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  • Stand Against Racism

    Stand Against Racism provides the opportunity for communities across the United States to find an issue or cause that inspires them to take a stand.

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  • Racial Profiling Education Checklist

    Oppose racial profiling in education with the Racial Profiling Education System Checklist.

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  • Racial Profiling Community Checklist

    Oppose racial profiling in education with the Racial Profiling Education System Checklist.

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  • National Tele-Town Hall

    Watch our national tele-town hall, where we discussed why voting rights, census participation, and civic engagement are essential to racial justice.

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  • We Still Deserve Safety

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Resources

Organize Your Butterflies Podcast

Launched in July 2019, our Organize Your Butterflies podcast discusses the ways women are working to organize, strategize, and mobilize around issues like equal pay, domestic violence, entrepreneurship, and more.

Improving the health and safety of women and girls of color

YWCA has long advocated for the health and safety of women and girls.

As the largest network of domestic violence service providers in the country, we remain committed to supporting survivors and reducing violence against women and girls. Annually, more than 900,000 women and families participate in YWCA health and safety programs and services — from domestic violence and sexual assault services to aquatics and fitness programs, health resources and referrals.

YWCA seeks to improve the lives of women and girls by providing high-quality health and wellness programs that are too often not available to communities of color. We serve 400,000 women, girls and their families with health screening programs, fitness classes and other programs and services that address health inequities.

In addition to our direct services, for over 20 years YWCA has hosted the annual Week Without Violence campaign, which mobilizes people in communities across the United States to take action against all forms of violence, wherever it may occur. Through rich and complex dialogues on violence, workshops, community service opportunities and public awareness events, Week Without Violence places the pervasive nature of violence and its impact on the communities we serve at the forefront of the conversation.

Nationally, YWCA continues to advocate for increased access to health care, reduction of racial health disparities, and protections for victims of gender-based violence, and we support public policies that would benefit the women, girls and families we serve every day.

Empowerment & Economic Advancement

YWCA supports women’s empowerment and economic advancement, with a particular focus on the reality the way race impacts women’s economic opportunities. We serve more than 122,000 women annually with economic empowerment programs, such as job training, financial literacy, salary negotiation, and leadership development. In addition, our housing and childcare programs are strong foundations on which woman and families can build their financial futures.

  • YWCA Policy Priorities

    Learn about our empowerment and economic advancement policy priorities.

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  • Take Advocacy Action

    Take a stand for girls’ and women’s empowerment and economic advancement.

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  • Find your Local YWCA

    Learn about the services we offer, and volunteer or provide support.

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  • YW Women’s Empowerment 360°

    Putting women and women of color entrepreneurs, who are fearless leaders and innovative shakers, on the path to starting & growing successful business.

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  • Young Women Choosing Action

    Enable young women to practice skills and dispositions, which can lead to new habits of decision making rooted in an active choice rather than a react.

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  • Economic Empowerment Checklist

    Promote gender equality for women and girls in the workplace, community, and business with the YWCA Economic Empowerment Checklist.

    Learn More →

YWCA Child Care Services
And Programming

YWCA reaches 2.3 million women, girls and their families through more than 200 local associations in 45 states and the District of Columbia.

Since 1868, YWCA has provided early childcare programs, and today we are proud to serve over 200,000 kids annually through childcare, Head Start, and Pre-K programs.

These programs promote child development and school readiness, while enabling parents to obtain and retain employment. 

“Nicky faces many obstacles throughout his 4 years of life thus far. He is a twin and twins are typically developmentally delayed a little bit. On top of that challenge, Nicky also faces physical problems including epilepsy, kidney issues, GI tract issues, and more. This doesn’t hold Nicky back from smiling, laughing, and being the best brother to his two sisters.…Every parent wants their child to succeed and grow despite whatever developmental challenges might be present. Over just a few months, Nicky did just that at YWCA Tri-County Area’s (YW3CA) EEC…We took him to the same doctor, months later, and she was shocked about how much he had improved. She claimed his improvements were miraculous.”

— from YWCA Tri County Area, PA

Providing safe and affordable care for children is crucial for working women.

Further, it is proven that strong programs build resilience in children. We believe that a parent should never have to choose between getting help due to a Domestic Violence situation and caring for their child. We are intentional with our wrap around services because it what our clients deserve.

We believe that all families regardless of income should have access to systems of early care and education. We work with early childhood educators and families directly to ensure that this happens. Additionally, we offer services to assist care providers in their knowledge of best-practices. Our Provider Services staff offers assistance and educational opportunities to those (licensed or license-exempt) who provide child care and early education.

Additionally, our associations provide programs that serve young people of all-ages though after-school, summer camp, and enrichment activities for children, teenagers, and young-adults.

A Snapshot of Our Programs

As part of our commitment to providing safe and reliable care for all children and their families, we recognize that this starts with our youngest clients.

YWCA Early Learning Academies at YWCA El Paso

YWCA Early Learning Academies are on a mission to provide excellent early childhood education in a fun, enriching environment. Their goal is to bolster positive social, emotional, and academic development while promoting school-readiness. With more than 40 years of experience in early childhood education, YWCA is the best choice for childcare in El Paso. They offer eight daycare locations around town and convenient hours for working parents.

YWCA Silicon Valley Childcare Centers

YWCA Silicon Valley Child Care strives to create a safe and socially just child-centered environment where children learn to understand, value, and create a society where all people are treated equally. Each child’s individual needs, personality, cultural background, and families are valued and supported. Children’s learning is fostered through S.T.R.E.A.M (Science, Technology, Recreation, Engineering, Art & Math) activities through daily opportunities for hands-on, active exploration and discovery in a variety of learning and constructive play activities.

YWCA TriCounty Area

The Early Education Centers offer children the opportunity to learn and grow in a creative and nurturing space, preparing preschool children for success in kindergarten and beyond, and enriching school-age children through after-school programming and summer camp. Classrooms for children 6 weeks through pre-kindergarten include infant/toddler, preschool, Early Head Start, and Pre-K Counts. Technology is also utilized in the classroom with iPads that allow teachers to record each child’s achievements in real time and share them electronically with parents. Classrooms have also added Hatch interactive educational software, which provides children with lessons in literacy and math through challenging games.

YWCA recognizes that learning doesn’t end at school which is why we’re proud to offer dynamic and diverse programs to enrich the lives of the children and youth that we serve.

YouthLeads (national initiative)

Launched in 2018, Youth LEADS (Leverage, Energize, and Define Solutions) is an initiative to combat gender-based violence among youth by providing young leaders with the platforms, network, and organizational support they need to create change. Youth LEADS looks to young people to drive the solutions that will change the culture and end violence in their communities. 

TechGYRLS (multiple locations)

This youth empowerment program has been crafted to raise girls’ interest and confidence in the critical areas of science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM). The TechGYRLS Program helps young girls develop 21st Century skills like creativity, collaboration, communication, and critical thinking/problem-solving skills. The program offers students a safe, supportive, girls-only environment for exploration and learning using hands-on inquiry-based curriculum.

The staff was warm and caring enough to enable me to feel safe leaving a child when I knew how badly she needed a parent. Almost four years have passed since then. The ability to keep my career and support my family, in reality, is a fraction of what the Magic Circle has given us.

— Parent of a child in the child care
program at YWCA Ulster County

Thank you so much for helping my daughter learn and grow and gain respect for herself…and others…as well as an all-encompassing sense of curioristy about herself and the world around her…I don’t know how we could have gotten through these years without…all the wonderful teachers at the Early Learning Center!

— Parent of a child in the child care
program at YWCA Northeast Kansas

We have had such a great experience growing at YWCA Ulster County…With their attentive staff, our daughter has become very well adjusted to her new environment. Our daughter transitioned into the toddler room…and, our son started in the infant room at 2 months old. We hope to have both kids graduate from the YWCA. It’s a shared experience none of us will forget.

— Parent of a child in the child care
program at YWCA Ulster County

Domestic and Sexual
Violence Services

YWCA reaches 2.3 million women, girls and their families through more than 200 local associations in 45 states and the District of Columbia. We provide critical programs, including domestic and sexual violence services, through 12,500 staff members and 52,000 volunteers.

We are the largest network of domestic and sexual violence service providers in the nation. More than 150 YWCAs across 44 states provide gender-based violence services. Every year, in communities big and small, YWCAs get up and do the work of providing safe and secure housing, crisis hotlines, counseling, court assistance, and other community and safety programs to more than 535,000 women, children and families.

“You have given me security. That is something I haven’t had much of in my life. My entire life has been full of tears and confusion. Every scar I carry, I wear as a badge. It gives me something to look at and tells me I can get through whatever comes my way. It is my strength! Every ounce of power and energy I gave to my husband I am now taking it all back! I can’t say thank you enough for the gifts you have given me. Don’t ever think you don’t make a difference in the lives of people that walk through your doors each day!”

—Survivor Statement from YWCA Pierce County, WA

Services

YWCA is creating a safer, more just world, by offering emergency, transitional, and long-term housing, crisis hotlines, medical and legal advocacy, and other services to survivors of domestic and sexual violence so survivors can regain stability and as they rebuild their lives.

  • Housing

    YWCA is creating a safer, more just world by offering safe and secure emergency shelter, transitional housing, and long-term housing to victims and survivors of gender-based violence so they can avoid homelessness and rebuild their lives. In many communities, YWCA is the only provider of housing for domestic violence survivors. The fact that 1 in 4 women is homeless because of violence commited against her, and more than 92% of homeless mothers have experienced severe physical and/or sexual abuse during their lifetime makes YWCAs services even more crucial.

  • Crisis Hotlines

    YWCA crisis hotlines and chat lines are vital resources for survivors of sexual and domestic violence. They provide assistance through crisis intervention and support by helping to identify problems, priorities, options, and possible solutions, including helping to make plans for safety and action; information about resources on healthy relationships, domestic violence, and sexual assault; and referrals to domestic violence shelters and programs, social service agencies, legal assistance agencies, and other relevant services.

  • Medical and Legal Advocacy

    YWCA advocates provide emotional support and information during the medical and criminal justice procedures to domestic and sexual violence survivors. Legal advocates can assist clients with domestic violence petitions, accompany clients to court for hearings for protective orders, criminal hearings, and other civil hearings; and attend police and prosecutor follow-up interviews with victims if requested. Medical advocates provide 24-hour support to survivors at hospitals, as well as local clinics and doctor’s offices.

  • Counseling

    Counseling helps survivors to address the traumatic impact that violence has had on their families, as well as to secure long-term therapeutic interventions. YWCAs around the country offer adult and child counseling, helping to break the cycle of violence through the provision of trauma-informed services.

  • Community and Prevention Education

    Around the country, YWCAs offer prevention education to schools, agencies, companies, organizations, and professionals. Prevention education helps to prepare students, teachers, parents, professionals, and community members to recognize and prevent abusive behaviors. YWCAs also provide information and training on the dynamics of domestic violence and how to provide support if an incident of violence occurs.

  • Supervised Visitation / Safe Exchange

    For survivors with children in common with their abuser, shared custody or visitation arrangements can be frightening, or even dangerous. Many YWCAs around the country provide a safe, secure, child-friendly, and culturally-accessible environment for parents to visit or exchange their children when domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse, or stalking has occurred within the family.

  • Financial Literacy Skills

    Financial education and coaching helps survivors help survivors obtain greater financial stability by learning about budgeting, credit and debt issues, and developing the skills and resources needed to work towards independent financial futures. With the support of one of our partners, the Allstate Foundation, in 2010 every YWCA in the country was provided a financial literacy curriculum: “The Allstate Moving Ahead through Financial Management Curriculum.” The curriculum includes tools and information designed to empower victims of domestic violence and people of all incomes to be self-sufficient with their finances.

  • Job/Work Skills Training

    A significant barrier for many individuals wanting to leave a violent home is having inadequate financial resources. YWCAs help survivors secure stable employment by providing support through job readiness skills training, job training and placement, resume development, application assistance, and interview preparation.

  • Case Management/Referral

    Survivors of sexual and domestic violence are often in need of multiple community resources. YWCA case management services help to identify, plan, and facilitate access to resources that meet the needs of survivors and their families.

  • Family Justice Centers

    Several YWCAs also provide services in conjunction with Family Justice Centers, which provide all of the services that victims, survivors, and their families need, all in one place – including crisis lines, counseling and case management, legal and court advocacy, shelter, legal assistance, law enforcement, prosecutors’ offices, victim witness units, victims’ compensation, safety planning, information and referral to resources, financial assistance, and other community services.

Week Without Violence

At YWCA, we are eliminating racism and empowering women. Since 1995, YWCAs across the country and their supporters assemble the third week of October for a Week Without Violence, a global movement in partnership with WorldYWCA to end violence against women and girls.

Events range from engaging complex dialogues to workshops, community service opportunities, and public awareness exercises. All activities tackle a central theme, which is the pervasive and intersectional nature of gender-based violence and its impact on our communities.

Additionally, because some gender-based violence goes unacknowledged, under reported or does not receive the same sense of urgency, sensitive subjects such as intimate partner violence, sexual assault, trafficking, and harassment are addressed as well. Every year we ask suvivors, partners and allies to Mmobilize with us during our Week Without Violence, as we raise our voices as a force for change

Policy & Advocacy

Women and girls of all ages, income levels, racial and ethnic communities, sexual orientations, gender identities, and religious affiliations continue to experience violence in the form of domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, stalking, and trafficking.

As the largest network of domestic violence service providers in the United States, YWCA works for practical legislative and policy solutions to protect survivors, hold perpetrators accountable, and eradicate all forms of gender-based violence.

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Key YWCAs in DV/SA

  • YWCA Cass Clay, in the Fargo-Moorehead area, where affordable housing for large families is hard to come by, has grown the number of apartments offered under the YWCA umbrella by over 270% during the past 4 years. For example, in August of 2019, they opened a new permanent supportive residence called Grace Garden, which is fully furnished and provides secure housing, case management, and services to approximately 75 survivors of domestic violence and homelessness. The housing is offered without time limits, allowing residents to gain stability as they rebuild their lives.

  • YWCA Pueblo’s Teresa’s Place: Visitation and Safe Exchange Program provides a safe and secure place for parents to visit or exchange their children when domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse or stalking has occurred within the family. This unique setup is designed to assure that children affected by an abusive relationship can have safe contact with the absent parent without having to be put in the middle of their parents’ conflicts or problems. This allows children to maintain a relationship with both of their parents—an important factor in having a positive adjustment during family dissolution.

  • At YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee, Re-New offers survivors of domestic violence who leave their Weaver Domestic Violence Center a fresh start. Because most survivors leave shelter and transitional housing with nothing, it can be months before they can furnish a new home. Re-New solves this problem. Armed with furniture donations, a team of volunteers redecorates the survivor’s new home, complete with a pantry full of food and a fully-stocked refrigerator, prior to the move-in date at each Re-New apartment.

  • The Legal Services team at YWCA Pierce County provides free civil legal advocacy, representation, and referrals to domestic violence survivors with civil legal issues, increasing their chances of permanently and safely ending their violent relationships and establishing lives free of violence. The legal program is able to help survivors with legal issues related to divorce/legal separate, child custody/parenting plans, child support, spousal maintenance, modifications, contempt, paternity, and address confidentiality, and protection orders.

  • Since 1985, YWCA Lower Cape Fear’s New Choices program has supported domestic violence survivors in the Cape Fear area who are taking steps toward financial independence and self-sufficiency. The program uses Allstates’s Moving Ahead Through Financial Empowerment curriculum to empower survivors to recognize financial abuse, build and use or repair credit, create a budget, make informed financial decisions, effectively manage personal finances, and prepares them for opportunities for financial growth through microenterprise solutions.

  • The Immigrant Survivors of Partner Violence (ISPV) program at YWCA Cincinnati offers community outreach, technical assistance, expertise training on immigrant issues, cultural sensitivity, language access, and the ability to provide direct service and case consultation to immigrant survivors of partner violence. ISPV has over 20 partner agencies that work to develop prevention and intervention programming and to coordinate services for immigrant or Limited English Proficiency (LEP) victims in the community to ensure they have access to necessary resources.

  • Several of our programs focus on engaging men and boys to end the culture of violence against women. For example, YWCA Knoxville and the Tennessee Valley, Gamechangers is a mentoring program that teaches boys and young men about healthy and unhealthy relationships, violence in relationships, skills for speaking out when they witness violence against women, and more. AMEND Together at YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee dedicated to ending violence against women and girls by engaging men and boys to be a part of the solution. It seeks to seek to challenge the culture that supports violence by cultivating healthy masculinity.

Our GBV Work in the News

YWCA In Your Community

YWCA is proud to have more than 200 local associations across the United States. Our programs serve over 2 million individuals in the U.S., and we serve 25 million worldwide. YWCA services vary depending on location. Each local YWCA offers their own programming to meet the needs within their own communities and advance YWCA’s mission of eliminating racism, empowering women, and promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all.

Learn more about the variety of services provided by our local associations, below.

Find your local YWCA across the United States.

Learn more about our Local Associations: Programs and Services in the YWCA network.

  • Gender-Based Violence

    YWCA is the largest provider of domestic violence services in the U.S. Across the country, we serve over 500,000 women and children every year with programs ranging from emergency shelters and resources to support groups and crisis hotlines

  • Women’s Health Programs

    Since 1906, YWCA has provided health and wellness programs to promote and protect women’s health. Local associations provide access to quality, affordable health care via community health centers and clinics as well as fitness and wellness centers.

  • Racial Justice

    YWCA defied accepted societal opinions on race in the 1800s. Today, we are committed to eliminating racism. We know that gender, race and economic justice are interconnected. We advocate and offer programming locally and nationally on these issues.

  • Job Training and Empowerment

    Each year over 100,000 women enroll in YWCA job training and empowerment programs at local associations around the country. With our support, women are able to overcome barriers and find gainful employment, economic security and opportunity.

  • Financial Literacy

    YWCA serves 100,000 women annually with financial literacy courses that includes tools—from budgeting to retirement planning—designed to empower domestic violence victims and people of all incomes to gain independence and self-sufficiency.

  • Early Child Development

    YWCA has provided early childhood programs since 1868, and we now serve over 200,000 kids annually through childcare, Head Start and pre-K programs. These promote child development and school readiness, and help parents obtain and retain employment.

  • Girls in STEM

    YWCA has worked to close the significant gap for girls in STEM since the development of our TechGYRLS program in 1997. We continue this important work today in local associations across the country.

  • Young Women’s Scholarships

    Every year, YWCA serves approximately 20,000 young women through leadership development programs and scholarships as they further YWCA’s goals of eliminating racism and empowering women.

Family Planning Chat/Text Program

Need Help? Chat Now!

Chat online or text “PPNOW” to 774636 (PPINFO)* to get answers to your questions about pregnancy, birth control, emergency contraception, STDs, and abortion.

The Chat/Text program enables adolescents and young people to contact Planned Parenthood health educators through text or instant messaging to ask questions about birth control, emergency contraception, STD testing, pregnancy testing, or abortion. Planned Parenthood health educators answer any question related to these topics, and provide medically accurate responses using behavioral theory and communication science to encourage positive health behaviors.

Chat/Text health educators are trained to answer questions like the following, and more:

  • How do I know if I’m pregnant?

  • I forgot to take my birth control pill, what do I do?

  • What do I do if I forgot to use a condom?

  • How does the abortion pill work?

  • How do I treat a UTI?

  • How do I know if I have an STD?

Chat is available:

Monday-Thursday 9 AM-11:30 PM (ET)
Friday 9 AM-10 PM (ET)
Saturday 9 AM-5 PM (ET)
Sunday 12 PM-11:30 PM (ET)

Click the button below to begin your chat.