Meet The Homegirl: Founder of 'Black is Gold'
Amber Nicole Anderson is a trailblazer on a mission to inspire and empower young women throughout the city of Chicago. She is recognized by influential leaders and peers alike for her role model qualities, high potential, daring spirit, and commitment to excellence. Amber is only seventeen.
She is the executive director and co-founder of the Black is Gold Organization, a non-profit peer mentoring group for teen girls. She is also the founder and president of ANA's mentoring group, a program for middle school girls. Amber is an aspiring sports journalist with plans to major in journalism/broadcasting with a concentration in sports while in college.
Because both of her parents are educators, it was natural for Amber to want to give back to her community. During her sophomore year of high school Amber decided to take an African- American history class because she was never really educated about black culture. This phenomenal class opened her eyes to the beauty of her skin! Exploring her interest in creative directing, Amber reached out to Lailah Webster (later, the co-founder of Black is Gold) about having a photo shoot and filming a video to highlight the beauty of black women.
This video received an immense amount of positive feedback. Due to the success of the video, Amber Anderson and her co-founders decided to create an organization in their community to continue what they had started! Now, Amber is the executive director and co-founder of the Black is Gold Organization.
Amber is a very active member in and out of her high school, Kenwood Academy. She is a member of the Common Ground Foundation, the ASCEND Program, the F.O.C.U.S Club, and a member of her school’s student council. She is a writer for On the Money Magazine, a magazine run by teens for teens! A restless visionary, Amber has also created her own blog, Sippin’ Tea with A, that covers local Chicago news, with lifestyle and business tips.
Despite this, Amber does not consider her passion a job, because she knows the power of mentorship for Black youth. Her goal is to reach the mind of young teenagers in order to remind them that they can accomplish absolutely anything they put their mind to. In this regard, she is just getting started. Next month, her team plans on adding a new branch called Social Sisters Chicago: a safe space for the young women of Chicago to network and build a sisterhood with each other. Their first step will be to host movie nights and a cupcake social for young women interested in joining their organization.
