All Girls Advantage
Why All Girls?
We are so proud that Josephinum Academy is the longest standing independent all-girls high school in the city. At The Jo, the valedictorian, the most athletic, the funniest, and the star of the school play are all girls. Why is this so important? We believe, and research confirms, that an all-girls environment creates a culture of achievement in which academic progress and individual development are valued and celebrated. In an all-girls classroom, the dynamics shift—girls are more likely to participate, more likely to try new things and to share their ideas. They are more likely to get involved in sports and other extra-curricular activities. Without the typical distractions and social pressures of a co-ed environment, girls are free to immerse themselves in learning and to give themselves the opportunity to thrive.
Today more than ever it is critically important for young women, particularly those from under-represented communities, to have their voices heard and to have the confidence to raise them. For them to feel empowered and armed with the knowledge and communications skills needed to drive change in their communities and ultimately in their professional fields.
We are so proud of our Girls Without Limits and know there is nothing they can not do!
Research Supports It!
All-girls school graduates:
- Have stronger academic skill
- Are more academically engaged
- Demonstrate higher science self-confidence
- Display higher levels of cultural competency
- Express stronger community involvement
- Exhibit increased political engagement
—National Coalition of Girls’ Schools
93% of girls’ school grads say they were offered greater leadership opportunities than peers at coed schools and 80% have held leadership positions since graduating from high school.
Girls’ school grads are 6 times more likely to consider majoring in math, science, and technology compared to girls who attended coed schools.
—Goodman Research Group, The Girls’ School Experience: A Survey of Young Alumnae of Single-Sex Schools
Girls’ school students are more likely than their female peers at coed schools to experience an environment that welcomes an open and safe exchange of ideas. Nearly 87% of girls’ school students feel their opinions are respected at their school (compared to 58% of girls at coed schools).
—Dr. Richard A. Holmgren, Allegheny College, Steeped in Learning: The Student Experience at All-Girls Schools
Single-sex programs…create an institutional and classroom climate in which female students can express themselves freely and frequently, and develop higher order thinking skills.
—Dr. Rosemary C. Salomone, Columbia University’s Teacher College Record
The majority – 60% – of girls’ school grads report higher self-confidence over their coed peers (54%).
Compared to coed peers, girls’ school grads are 3 times more likely to consider engineering careers.
—Dr. Linda Sax, UCLA, Women Graduates of Single-Sex and Coeducational High Schools: Differences in their Characteristics and the Transition to College
An estimated less than 1% of girls in the United States attend girls’ schools, yet an impressive 20% of the women currently serving in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives graduated from an all-girls school. While only 23% of the current U.S. Senators serving are female, 13% of those women graduated from girls’ schools. Even fewer women—only 19%—currently make up the U.S. House of Representatives, yet an overwhelming 22% graduated from girls’ schools.
—National Coalition of Girls’ Schools