About This Episode

Season 7. Episode 12.

What does it really mean for girls to understand their rights, their voices, and their place in the world? In this episode of Education Insight, we speak with Ashley Steimer-King, Senior Program Director at Girls Learn International, a global nonprofit empowering girls to become informed leaders and advocates.

Together, we explore how young women make sense of concepts such as feminism, identity, and equity while navigating real pressures in their daily lives. Ashley shares how Girls Learn International creates safe, supportive spaces for girls to ask questions, build confidence, and connect with peers both in the U.S. and around the world.

This conversation also highlights the power of global awareness, showing how learning about the experiences of girls in other countries can deepen understanding, spark empathy, and inspire meaningful action. From middle school students to high school leaders, we examine what it looks like for girls to turn passion into purpose and how early exposure to these ideas can shape a lifetime of leadership.

At its core, this episode is about voice, agency, and the importance of helping young women not only imagine change, but become it.

Featured Guest

Ashley Steimer-King

Senior Program Director, Feminist Majority Foundation’s Girls Learn International

Biography

Ashley Steimer-King serves as Senior Program Director of the Feminist Majority Foundation’s Girls Learn International (GLI) program. In this role, she works alongside student leaders, faculty advisors, and program alumni to advance GLI’s mission of empowering middle and high school students of all genders to take bold action for human rights, gender equality, and access to equitable education. 

Previously, Ashley worked with several NGOs in their United Nations advocacy offices, where she trained middle and high school girls in international human rights education and advocacy. She holds an M.A. in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Roehampton and a B.F.A. from The Ohio State University. Ashley serves on The Pad Project Advisory Council and is a Regional Representative for Human Rights Educators U.SA., continuing her commitment to creating spaces where young people can drive meaningful change in their communities.