Grants & Scholarships
Finding Ikigai at Sophia Academy
Ikigai. It’s the newest vocabulary word for the eighth grade Gender and Justice Seminar students at Sophia Academy.
Captivating the thirteen young women just beginning to explore their own sense of purpose, the Japanese term, translating to "reason for being," offers Sophia’s students a unique way to examine their aspirations and values. As soothing music plays in the background, they sit with paper in hand, contemplating their personal ikigai—connecting their passions and talents with their potential contributions to the world during a moment of quiet introspection.
Sophia Academy, which turns 25 in 2026, knows its ikigai.
“Sophia Academy engages girls from low-income families on a joyful quest for self‐discovery and opportunity through a middle school education grounded in social justice,” reads the independent school’s mission statement. Marie D. Myers, Sophia’s third Head of School and its first Black one, explains, “The viewpoint we would love our donors to take is not one of saving students, but one of supporting students who are trapped at the intersection of the various components of their identities. We are helping them to move away from the negative impact of being in that space.”
The school, located in the Elmwood Avenue neighborhood of Providence, sustains itself with donations that grow its endowment fund stewarded by the Rhode Island Foundation. This partnership ensures consistent support for Sophia's core activities and unique projects—from Farm School to a Civil Rights trip—while providing professional development for teachers, graduate support, and deeper engagement with students' families.
“Being able to recognize that each student who attends has a story. They are not coming here to start their story. They are coming here to continue their story, to continue their dream. They have a lived experience, and recognizing that is key, and helping them recognize that is key…you don’t come here to gain wisdom; we’re going to help you find it within.”
- Melissa Moniz, Assistant Head of School, Sophia Academy
As the Gender and Justice Seminar illustrates, social justice is modeled throughout the school and embedded in the curriculum. All eighth graders enrolled in the seminar pick a topic or cause to research further and actively engage with. The seventh graders participate in a Girls Coalition class that helps students discover more about their identity.
For the past four years, Sophia Academy has also hosted its annual Women of Wisdom (WOW) celebration and symposium. During this event, students and women of diverse backgrounds and professions come together to participate in small group discussions and workshops that "show by example that they, too, have the inherent talent and wisdom to follow any pathway they choose."
Thirty-six women, including a nurse, a non-profit leader, a senior finance officer, a veterinarian, and a gas construction supervisor, participated in the most recent WOW celebration. Some attended as “Community Champions” to help eighth graders with their Gender and Justice seminar projects, addressing issues such as sex trafficking, hair discrimination, mental health, pink tax, abortion, and women’s rights.
“I am a firm believer in sharing, and that vulnerability is not a negative, so I tell people I am ‘flawsome’ - I have flaws, but still awesome,” Alisha Pina, Community Champion and keynote speaker, explains. Pina, an entrepreneur, poet, and singer, whose struggles with body image began in middle school, continues, “I think that type of sharing helps others realize it is okay to be different, and it’s okay to have problems and make mistakes as long as you are trying to be a better person each day. And then I try to compliment people beyond their beauty.”
Pina, Meredyth Whitty, Communications Director for the General Assembly, and others also attended the ikigai-focused Gender and Justice Seminar before the symposium. Reflects Whitty, whose message amplified RI Representative Edith H. Ajello’s pink tax legislation that eliminated tax on feminine hygiene products, “I like that you are teaching kids to think here.”
Prior to choosing their ikigai and social justice study topics, Sophia’s students are asked to think about what they love, what they are good at, and what the world needs. Karoll chose body shaming as her social justice project because, “When I went to public school, before I went here, I would see kids getting bullied, and I would be one of those kids. So, I really wanted to help.” Mariah, an aspiring cosmetologist, wants to better understand body shaming to help families navigate traditional values and religious beliefs about weight and appearance that can sometimes harm a person's wellbeing.
When asked what makes Sophia Academy special, Melissa Moniz, Assistant Head of School for 22 years, captures the essence of the school’s ikigai: “Being able to recognize that each student who attends has a story. They are not coming here to start their story. They are coming here to continue their story, to continue their dream. They have a lived experience, and recognizing that is key, and helping them recognize that is key…you don’t come here to gain wisdom; we’re going to help you find it within.”
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