Peyton McGriff has been named a 2024 CNN Hero. She has changed the lives of thousands of girls and plans to change the lives of many more in the future.
BOISE, ID — An Idaho woman has been named a 2024 CNN Hero for her philanthropy in Africa.
Peyton McGriff, a University of Idaho graduate, is the founder and CEO of Style Her Empowered (SHE), a nonprofit organization that sponsors girls’ education in Togo.
What started as Peyton’s college project has now grown into a nonprofit organization that sponsors the education costs of 2,000 girls in Africa.
This program provides critical resources to help girls in Togo overcome economic barriers to education.
Specifically, SHE pays for students’ school supplies, tuition, uniforms, tutoring, and even hygiene products.
“Particularly in Togo, where 69% of the rural population lives on less than $1.90 a day, which means that the average level of education for girls is only two to three years. It’s become a privilege. Our goal is to make it accessible to every girl and every student," Peyton said.
SHE boasts a 99.1% pass rate for students who pass their classes and national exams.
One of the program’s standout initiatives is “Growing Up Uniforms.” This is a design that allows you to grow your uniform dress by 6 sizes and add an additional 12 inches of length. The dress also went viral on social media and can be seen here.
Ideally, the growing uniform will fit the girl for many years and then be passed on to future girls who sponsor her.
There is no waste as scraps of uniform fabric are recycled into reusable sanitary napkins for the girls.
The uniforms are made by local seamstresses employed by SHE, providing more jobs for women from low-income families.
Women are paid 75% more than Togo’s minimum wage.
The seamstresses receive benefits such as paid maternity leave, unlimited sick leave, and free childcare to combat barriers unique to women in Togo that have traditionally prevented women from pursuing education and employment.
The SHE employment program includes a “paid learning” model. This allows women without formal education to receive an education while working and earning a living.
Although Peyton runs SHE in Idaho, SHE is primarily led by local Togolese women who know and understand the needs of their communities.
Some girls have graduated from high school through SHE’s sponsorship program and are now employed by SHE.
Payton said 31 former SHE students are currently attending university for higher education.
“Many of our students dream of becoming doctors and nurses and really helping the communities they come from. I think that’s always our goal. It’s about being able to be a person who makes a difference in society,” Peyton told KTVB.
Peyton said her mission is to create lasting change in Togo by ensuring the program continues to be led by local women for generations to come.
Peyton hopes to expand to more communities across Africa. She expressed gratitude for being named a 2024 CNN Hero for her impact on SHE.
This enabled SHE to sponsor an additional 500 girls and partner with new business partners.
Peyton said this exposure will greatly help SHE’s mission to expand into new communities.
Peyton shared that a single $50 donation can fund an entire school year for one girl in Togo.
To contribute to SHE’s mission, please visit our donation page here.
CNN has also set up a Go Fund Me for SHE.