CEO Blog
Transforming Girl Scouts Highest Award
I would like to seriously consider submitting a proposal to GSUSA to change the term “Gold Award” to something more on par with the Eagle Scout. I believe that earning that achievement becomes a part of who the girl is, rather than being an award that is received.
Memories of Summer Camp
This summer, I traveled to a variety of our summer camps. I had the opportunity to talk to girls, summer camp staff and a few parents who shared their experiences of 2010 as well as memories of past camp adventures. Our participation at resident camp this year was up 11% over the previous year.
What if Girls Ran the World?
A look at recent headlines highlighting Pittsburgh’s North Side paint a grim picture of this city neighborhood. Most recently, a street fight among several teenage girls resulted in six injuries and five arrests. The news and print media offer a bleak glimpse into North Side streets being over-run with troubled youth. Unfortunately, what we don’t often hear about are the girls in the North Side who are taught how to peacefully and effectively resolve conflict – without violence. Girl Scouts Western Pennsylvania (GSWPA) strives to give girls the opportunity to explore healthy relationships through programs available in the North Side as well as suburban and rural communities where our children’s lives can be impacted by violence.
Girl Scouts Western Pennsylvania / Annual Meeting Minutes – April 17,2010
The Annual Meeting of Girl Scouts Western Pennsylvania was held at 104 Frick Fine Arts Building, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260.
“I am Empowered”
Girl Scouts of the USA is joining the National Urban League's "I am Empowered" campaign, a yearlong public service initiative designed to rally millions of Americans around education, employment, housing and healthcare. The "I am Empowered" campaign is part of the Urban League's celebration of 100 years of advocating for economic empowerment in order to elevate the standard of people living in historically under served urban communities.
Be a Voice for Girls!
The Girl Scout Research Institute’s latest survey, Girls and Body Image 2010, revealed alarming statistics about teen girls’ relationships with the media and fashion industry. Nearly 90 percent of girls surveyed say the media places a lot of pressure on girls to be thin and 60 percent of girls compare themselves to models. Body dissatisfaction can result from this comparison and leads to serious health problems, such as unhealthy eating and dieting habits. More than half of girls (55 percent) admit they diet to lose weight and 31 percent admit to starving themselves or refusing to eat as a strategy to lose weight.
Town Hall Meeting Q & A
Making Difficult Decisions
The greatest lesson I can share today with girls is that “leadership” isn’t always easy. Sometimes it’s about standing up for what you believe, even if that isn’t the most popular thing to do. Sometimes leadership is about making tough choices. As a leader, you may also be called upon to make a difficult decision; and that is what our board of directors has done today.
Being Girl-Led
Girl Scouts gives every girl access to life-changing experiences that inspire her to do something big. We are unique in that it is our girls who contribute to our messaging, our programming and help us the direction of Girl Scouting. By facilitating youth-adult partnerships, Girl Scouting provides leadership opportunities to help young women to influence decision-making processes in Girl Scouting at the council and national level.
Girl Scouts Advocate for Truth
Unfortunately, it has recently come to our attention that Girl Scouting has been incorrectly portrayed in local media and in internet sites and blogs. While Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) puts forth its best efforts to counter these messages and attempt to communicate that not all information offered on the Internet or in the press is accurate, local councils rely upon our members and volunteers to help us communicate the truth -- holding firm to our Girl Scout value of honesty.
