Central Kitsap High School continues to develop in its remote model as it introduces new clubs for students to participate and connect in. One of the new clubs introduced this year was Building Female Leaders Northwest, led by CKHS seniors Mollie Mckee and Hanna Inoue.

“Once school was out for summer, we decided to get together and start a database for college students and provide information on college applications and readiness,”  Inoue recounted on the beginnings of the club. “Mollie was like, ‘hey, do you want to start like a new nonprofit organization for girlsI it’s going to be a scholarship organization’ and I went to say ‘yeah sure, why not.’”

Building Female Leaders Northwest, or BFLNW, stands for guiding and supporting young women as they look toward college and careers. Especially in the dark time of COVID, the organization encourages young women to connect with their “community and beyond,” as described by both Inoue and Mckee.

The organization connects members with individual mentors across the nation for supplemental guidance and encouragement. Mckee recalled that finding mentors was difficult in the beginning, but with the help and support of CKHS teacher, Mrs. Fisher, the club is now up to “55 mentors…and around 25 students.”

Mckee refers to the pandemic as a “springboard to start it all.” While COVID has introduced a plethora of obstacles, Mckee and Inoue saw opportunity in the ability to connect students with mentors virtually. 

Despite the leaders being seniors, both Inoue and Mckee believe that the club will continue beyond their exit from CKHS. The support and guidance supplemented by the club is something to be valued by all grades and ages.

BFLNW connects with their members via their website, Google Classroom (jbn5dhz) and Google Meets at 1:15 p.m. every Wednesday. Those interested are asked to submit the form found on the website to show interest.