Diversity, Hair, Entrepreneurship and S.T.E.A.M. education in U.S. Middle schools and South Africa

As a recent college graduate and woman of color working in a corporate setting, my hair influenced my work, my confidence and self esteem.

More over, even when I began to take pride and embrace my natural hair texture, it was the reaction of others to my big natural hair that influenced me most. It became a common theme at work. Every day, I had to talk about it. It made me uncomfortable and became a distraction despite my performance so I opted to shrink my hair and subsequently myself...

After 10+ years of creating professional development workshops, working in various capacities in the aerospace industry, managing a corporate scholarship program, facilitating dialogue around race and difference in many institutions and organizations and attending and facilitating Dale Carnegie training, I went to graduate school at the University of Southern California (USC) Annenberg School of Communication to do Diversity Training in the workplace. I saw a need for a more inclusive workplace where people from all backgrounds could thrive, feel safe and truly valued for their experiences and diverse perspectives.

Furthermore, I witnessed the personal growth and professional progression of many women, including myself, as they opted to become their full selves in the workplace after finding a product that allowed them to grow out their hair and feel confident. Therefore, I knew that providing confidence via hair care products and communicating a message of self acceptance to a younger age group would propel them towards personal and academic success.

Women today are more bold and unapologetically themselves as they understand their value, seek to be compensated according and dismantle male dominated norms in the workplace. 

Therefore, after creating an avocado based hair product in 2014, having people send me money for this product before I even had containers and with guidance from my professors at USC, I opted to take my business seriously and focus on creating a social enterprise, MVG Naturals.

While this entrepreneurial journey has had it challenges and triumphs, embracing entrepreneurship and launching my startup, MVG Naturals has challenged me to grow in many ways. It has forced me to show up as my full self; after years of splitting my life between working in the aerospace industry and simultaneously operating in a creative capacity via a side business; hair styling services and creating effective avocado based personal care beauty products. My graduate program, this process and interning in Cape town, South Africa for Startupbootcamp AfriTech, an accelerator program that supports and scales innovative businesses from all around the continent, has been instrumental to my growth professionally and personally.

More about MVG Naturals...

MVG (Motivate Vibe Grow) is a social enterprise that provides confidence via hair care products, apparel and Crownworkshops. "Crownworkshop" is an engaging experience designed to equip little girls with the tools to re-examine their relationship with their hair and self to propel them forward towards personal and academic success.

Benefits of the Crownworkshop

• entrepreneurial training
• leadership training
• self empowerment
• self advocacy
• emotional awareness
• hair care tips
• hair styling

I just launched the Crownworkshop workshop for middle school girls in the US and South Africa to feel confident and empowered through hair, S.T.E.A.M, entrepreneurship, and professional development training. Due to my 15 years of experience in hairstyling and product making coupled with corporate experience, I am uniquely qualified to do this work around the world.

I am overwhelmed by the positive feedback I have received from principals around the country. As I am currently doing work in South Africa, I wanted to share this news because through my relationship with my hair and entrepreneurial journey, I have grown to embrace all facets of my personality, purpose and personal mission.

I know little girls around the world will benefit from learning to embrace themselves early on and learn basic hair care knowledge to combat the implicit bias and judgement they may face in a world that still elevates European standards of beauty.

Therefore, my company, MVG Naturals is committed to this work and has pledged to have 1,000,000 girls around the world go through the Crownworkshop by 2025!

To support the MVG Crownworkship crowdfunding campaign and learn more about the MVG Naturals mission and Crownworkshop, visit our campaign site via Ifundwomen.

Specifically, this campaign is to support a "MVG Crownworkshop" on November 29, 2019. This workshop will be conducted in South Africa, in the township, Langa in collaboration with Side by Side tours and Earth Child Project.

Learn more about each organization using the link below, 

https://www.sbstownshipdevelopment.co.za/

https://earthchildproject.org/

To learn more about the Crownworkshop and book a workshop to your school or organization in 2020, please email [email protected]

Share with a friend and I appreciate your time reading this article.

Thank you,

Megan V. Green