CHICAGO -- The is launching an initiative aimed at boosting educational opportunities for girls around the world.

Former first lady Michelle Obama on Thursday announced the launch of the Global Girls Alliance that will work with organizations worldwide to increase public awareness and action.

Obama says the alliance aims to lifting up grassroots leaders all over the world who want to clear away the hurdles that many girls face when trying to get an education.

The Chicago-based foundation says more than 98 million adolescent girls worldwide don't go to school. The alliance's website highlights programs around the world and offers ways for the public to support those programs.

The Obama Foundation was started in 2014 with the aim of continuing "the great, unfinished project of renewal and global progress."