OUR MISSION:
TO HELP BLACK girls uniquely and freely define, discover and become who they are.
In 2009, Shaleah Laché Sutton created UNIQUELY YOU SUMMIT, INC. (UYS), the organization, and launched the UNIQUELY YOU SUMMIT for Girls, a one-of-a-kind annual forum in the greater Philadelphia region where hundreds of Black girls, ages 11 to 18 years old, engage in discussion and dialogue to address the complexities of being young, Black, and female in America. Since its inception more than 10 years ago, UYS has impacted thousands of Black girls through the work of its annual Summit and other programs.
In 2020, UYS became a national organization, reaching its intended demographic of Black girls in 30 states, including California, Texas, Minnesota, Iowa, Oklahoma and Maine. In the same year, the organization, for the first-time, held its flagship program virtually for participants on November 13-15, 2020. Amid a global pandemic, the 2020 & 2021 UNIQUELY YOU SUMMIT celebrated, re-educated and loved on more than 450 Black girls while teaching them how to unpack racial oppression and patriarchy.
FOR THE LOVE OF BLACK GIRLS™
UYS was created to deepen the efforts of social change in the communities where Black girls live and go to school by aiding them in their understanding of their worth and of their specific, unique and individual purposes. Starting first with self-love and self-care. Then, with the intention of making their families, schools, communities, and the world better.