Program Plan

Program Overview:
For this program, the Champaign Public Library will be showing the documentary Miss
Representation followed by a discussion session. It would be a two part program with the second
part being a session on analyzing advertisements. The intended age range for this session is for
high school students (9th-12th grade) and the program is open to both boys and girls. They
would not need any prerequisite skills for the program. The first session would be held on a
Saturday in the afternoon from 2-4. An hour and a half would be needed for the viewing of the
film, and half an hour would be a discussion group. We would provide some candy and popcorn
for the movie. The next session would take place on the next Saturday, from 2-3. This session
would involve looking at advertisements that may portray women a certain way and designing
better advertisements that did not enforce gender stereotypes. They could look at advertisements
within magazines and then use free online programs to design a different kind of advertisement
that would portray women in a different light. The Champaign Public Library already has the
space in their pavilion rooms on the first floor that also has a screen and projector. For the first
session, there would not need to be a cap on how many teens could attend the screening and
discussion. However, for the second session, they would be limited by the number of teens that
can properly fit into the librarys teen space. For the teen space, the fire code limits occupants to
fifty people. There are also a limited number of computers that the teens can use, which would
also limit the number of participants. For the space, it would probably be limited to forty
participants. Even though there are less computers than that in the teen space, they can also in the
laptops that come in the electronics cart. We could also pair up kids to work together on one
computer if necessary. In regards to cost, the popcorn and candy would cost some money.

However, if someone already had a membership to Sams Club or another bulk store, these could
be purchased in bulk and would not be as expensive per person. The library would need to
purchase the public performance rights license for the film, which is $329. This is expensive, but
the license does not expire. The license also includes a copy of the film and curriculum plans
based on the age group. If the library were to do this program as a yearly or every other year
program, the cost over time per program would be less. The session would need a staff member
as well as two or three volunteers to help out so that we could split the teens into several groups
for discussion after the movie.

Program Rationale:
Gender stereotypes are something that these teens have to live with every day. Showing
this documentary to both boys and girls will help make them aware of these stereotypes. This
brings to light how women tend to be only valued for their bodies. The documentary also shows
powerful women who have made it to the top of their field. After viewing the film, the teens
might change how they treat each other, or at least make them think about the emotional
consequences. It could also change how they see themselves and their insecurities. This
documentary sends a powerful message and could affect their everyday lives. With showing the
powerful women in government and other industries, the girls might think that they can achieve
more. This also would help with media literacy and teach the teens how to interpret those
advertisements and to look past the stereotypes.

Program Outcomes:
I would like to achieve several outcomes with this program:

1) Teens will be able to look at the media and be able to discern what stereotypes it perpetuates
2) Girls will be able to see that they can achieve great things in many different fields
3) Girls will have more self-confidence and realize that they can be valued for more than just their
body
4) Teens will gain some basic experience with online software for graphic design

Community Partners:
This program has several great options for community partners. The Womens Resource
Center at the University of Illinois would be a great partner for this event. On their website, they
talk about challenging sexism as well as building leadership skills and many other topics that
appear in the documentary. The University of Illinois also has a group called the Society of
Women in Business whose goal it is to help women succeed in business. On their website, it says
they give back to the community by being involved with service events. Champaign County also
has a womens business council. We could involve each of these different groups and ask that a
representative of each come view the film with the teens and then each lead a discussion group.

Marketing & Promotion:

Evaluation:
There are a couple of ways that I would evaluate how successful the program was. The
first method of evaluation would be adding in a few minutes of discussion before the film to see
what stereotypes they often see in the media. I would also talk to them about how truthful they
believe media to be in its portrayal of women. Then after the discussion groups after the film, I
would ask how their viewpoints have changed based on watching the film and discussing it. I
would also evaluate the program based on attendance. If the attendees came to both sessions, I
would consider that, at least in part, successful. If more teens came to the second session after
hearing about it from friends, that could be seen as successful. If the teens were more interested
in the topic of women and stereotypes and wanted more resources, I would view that as
successful. I would also be happy if more teens came up and said that they wanted books that
portrayed strong women that break the stereotypes. A short survey could be passed around as
well after the second session to gauge peoples reactions to what they learned and participated in.
Comments would be optional, and I would create just a few qualifications that they could rate the
program on just with a number from one to ten.

Tie-in Resources:
Films:
-The Mask You Live In (documentary)
-Generation Like (documentary)
Young Adult books with strong female characters or female characters that fight stereotypes:
-Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
-Graceling by Kristin Cashore
-The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
-Dealing with Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede
-Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

Websites:
http://therepresentationproject.org/
http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/ourwork/womenempowerment/overview.html
http://www.forbes.com/pictures/fgdi45edlde/the-most-powerful-businesswomen-in-the-world/
https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/20-ways-love-your-body