Doing a Good Turn

Reprinted with permission from LATINA Style Magazine, Vol. 9, No. 3, 2003. www.LATINAStyle.com.

	Nibia takes extra time with a student at her Danza Libre community service project.
	Young Woman of Distinction Nibia (center) meets Girl Scout Chair of the National Board of Directors Cynthia Thompson (right) and WNBA's Nikki McCray (left).

Nibia is ecstatic. The fifteen-year old dancer from Caguas, Puerto Rico, has been named a 2003 Girl Scout Gold Award Young Woman of Distinction. As part of the award, she was recently brought to Washington D.C. for a week of ceremony and fun. The award is the highest honor in Girl Scouting, and is given to only 10 Girl Scouts annually for their community service projects. Nibia, a skilled dancer, was recognized for her work with inner-city girls. A Girl Scout since the age of six, Nibia used her leadership skills to form a dance troupe called Danza Libre.

As a young girl in Puerto Rico, Nibia grew up learning traditional folkloric dances such as bomba, plena, and salsa. She thought that if other girls shared her love of dance, they would be less vulnerable to low self-esteem and peer pressure. "Through dance, she had developed her own self esteem. So she wanted to use dance to give back to her community," says Jackie Barnes, Interim CEO of Girl Scouts of the USA.

She knew of a public housing complex in her neighborhood that had a high rate of teen pregnancies, so she took it upon herself to get some eighteen of those at-risk girls—aged eight to thirteen—to dance. "I did it to help these girls improve their lives," says Nibia. "Aside from high teen pregnancy rates, there are high rates of drug abuse. I don't think it's a secure environment for young girls." She explains the source of her motivation: "I wanted to share what I had with those who didn't have as much."

Nibia was nothing if not resourceful. She got permission to rehabilitate an abandoned community center and used the space as a dance studio. She raised money for uniforms and supplies, and every weekend for six months, she gathered the girls to teach them how to dance. "I taught ballet, jazz, and introduction to flamenco," she recalls. In addition, Nibia also established workshops on modeling, art, and nutrition and brought in community volunteers to teach them.

The dance classes weren't designed for competition. Instead, they were meant to be a place where young girls could express themselves creatively and be recognized for their efforts. To that end, Nibia organized talent shows to display the hard work of her students and give their parents and others from the community a chance to applaud their work.

Danza Libre had a positive impact on the community, Nibia says, because it provided the girls with options that they never would have had otherwise. "Instead of being out in the streets on the weekends, they were with me, dancing in the workshops," she explains. Because the community center is being demolished, Nibia is no longer an official instructor. But the girls of Danza Libre continue to dance in different groups, and they are often invited to perform throughout the city.

In the future, Nibia plans to graduate from high school and attend college. "I would like to have a career where I can combine my three passions: dance, music, and the environment. More than anything, I would like to study environmental law," she muses. She says that someday she would also like to open her own dance academy. Her career is already showing signs of success. As a result of her work with Danza Libre, Nibia has been offered jobs as a choreographer to two dance groups, including one in Puerto Rico's capital, San Juan.

Girls like Nibia are at the center of Girl Scouting, says Jackie Barnes. "What Nibia has brought is herself. What she's done as a role model is tell other girls: be exactly who you are. Through who you are, you can give back and you can be happy about it. I'd say in Nibia's case, she gave her soul back." Barnes adds, "These (Young Women of Distinction awardees) in every case have gone on to show up as leaders in their colleges. There's no question in my mind that one of them is going to be president someday. They just stick out from the crowd in a wonderful way."

Nibia is the fourth Latina to win the Young Women of Distinction award, but hopefully there will be more in the near future. There are approximately 2.8 million Girl Scouts in the U.S. and Puerto Rico, and about a million adult volunteers. Of these, an estimated 230,000 are Latinas. Girl Scout membership has grown steadily in areas with large Hispanic populations. "There is no question that young Latinas want to join Girl Scouting," says Barnes. "Some of our challenges are to get some adults and volunteers to mentor those girls as we go forward."

As for Nibia, she says she'll continue to be involved with the Girl Scouts as a way of giving back to an organization that gave her so much. "It's a great place that opens doors and helps you achieve your fullest potential," she says. She credits the organization with giving her the tools to make a difference in her community. "Girl Scouting has shown me that we're instruments of change. And that was my real inspiration for this project."

Reprinted with permission from LATINA Style Magazine, Vol. 9, No. 3, 2003. www.LATINAStyle.com.