Little Black Dress Initiative

March 6 - 10, 2023

Junior League of DeKalb County Participates in

7th Annual Little Black Dress Initiative

Georgia has one of the highest poverty rates for children in the United States at around 25%. In DeKalb County, that number is even higher than the state average with around 28% of DeKalb County children living in poverty. Research has shown that children from low-income families are at a higher risk of entering school with poor language skills compared to more privileged students and on average, they score two years behind on standardized language development tests. Furthermore, children living in poverty have more difficulty understanding abstract language and possess lower reading and writing skills, which increases the odds that the child will drop out of school in the future.

The Junior League of DeKalb County will participate in the 7th annual Little Black Dress Initiative (LBDI). By leveraging the iconic "Little Black Dress" and participants' social media channels, we will shine a spotlight on the issues surrounding poverty and the limits poverty can place on access to books, early reading and language development, and long-term academic achievement of the children in DeKalb County. The campaign will run from March 6-10, 2023 and we are asking members and community partners to wear the same black dress for the entire week with a pin that says, "Ask Me About My Dress," to spark conversation and spread awareness of the initiative and its objectives.

Due to the on-going pandemic, we will be conducting this year’s LBDI Campaign virtually. LBDI Advocates will each have their own virtual fundraising page and be able to share their LBDI journey through social media, email and through other virtual activities.

Become a Little Black Dress Initiative Advocate

If you are interested in becoming a JLD LBDI Advocate, please click the link below to sign up as a 2023 LBDI Advocate. Click here: SIGN UP NOW

Little Black Dress Initiative FAQs

If you have any other questions or need more information, please contact our Fundraising Events Committee at fundraising@jldekalb.org.