HomeWorks Trenton

HomeWorks inspires and equips young women from marginalized communities to achieve their potential and positively transform the world around them by providing a supportive and educational residential environment. HomeWorks aims to work alongside our scholars to disrupt the narrative that Black and Latinx girls’ lives are defined by the cyclical effects of systemic injustice. We accomplish this by providing a space to explore and reclaim power over their experiences, cultures and identities. Our vision is to see communities of young women around the world breaking down educational and gender barriers to social justice. HomeWorks was started by Natalie Tung and the Trenton community in 2016. Since then, HomeWorks has built a diverse team of 5 full-time and 2 part-time staff, 6 board members, and over 20 volunteers. Together, they have run five programs, raised over $1.2 million in cash and in-kind donations, and built a HomeWorks community. The HomeWorks team has been honored to be recognized by Princeton University, McKinsey & Company, Echoing Green, Comcast, Hollister, TRESemmé, Vital Voices and more.

HomeWorks Trenton runs a free, community-based, after school residential program for Black and Brown high school girls in Trenton, New Jersey, where Black and Brown girls can authentically express themselves while receiving academic and social-emotional tools to thrive despite living in a systemically unjust society. Our scholars live in the HomeWorks house from Sunday evenings to Friday mornings and are transported to and from their Trenton Public Schools every day to ensure timeliness. After school, scholars engage in daily activities focused on academics, cultural life skills, women empowerment, and civic engagement, eat a family-style meal, and stay overnight in our dorm with two full-time staff members. Our HomeWorks model decreases chronic absenteeism; improves scholars’ academic performance and social-emotional skills; and celebrates the power of Black and Brown sisterhood. By providing a space to explore and define their experiences, cultures, and identities, HomeWorks offers our scholars a chance to see that their ideas, visions, and presence deserve a place in this world.