In mid 2014, Laura Bagnarol, a social worker from Dutchess County who worked with survivors of child sex abuse and domestic violence, began looking for a summer program for her daughter. “There weren’t a lot of choices and everything was hyper-feminine. There was only cheerleading, dance, gymnastics, soccer and T-Ball,” she says. “Then I was like, why don’t we take the most masculine sport, flip it on its head and introduce it to girls?” By summer, the Pigskin Princess Project – a football empowerment program for girls who would rather be on the field than on the sideline – began with a group of 10 5- to 7-yr-olds. By spring 2018, there were 50 girls between the ages of 3 and 10 registered. The Pigskin Princess Project gets young girls up and moving – even those who may not be that big into sports at all – by teaching them the basics of football through fun drills, challenging agility exercises and scrimmaging. It also highlights community involvement project...
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