FAYETTEVILLE—Simone Cowan, a senior at Our Lady of Mercy High School, in Fayetteville, was selected by the United Nation Foundation as a teen advisor for the Girl Up Campaign, one of 20 girls from across the country chosen.

Simone Cowan

The mission of Girl Up is to raise awareness and funds for United Nations programs that help some of the world’s hardest-to-reach adolescent girls. Its mission, stated on its website said, “Girl Up envisions a world where all girls, no matter where they live, have the opportunity to become educated, healthy, safe, counted and positioned to be the next generation of leaders.”

Simone became aware of Girl Up while visiting New York City, where the U.N. is headquartered, and came back to OLM lobbying for a Girl Up club to be formed at the high school. In its inaugural year, 30 girls signed up for the club. She is involved in many parts of school life but especially volleyball and the National Honor Society. Last spring, they organized “The Shoebox Project” and collected hundreds of toiletries for homeless women and children. This summer as the school year began, 20 new girls expressed interest in the club.

Cowan was chosen as a teen advisor from among the 250 girls who were nominated nationally. She will travel around the country to raise awareness about the Girl Up mission at press conferences and events and be an advocate for girls in need in developing countries.