About Us
Girl Scouting is Girl Focused and Girl Driven
 Girl
Scouting exists to serve girls. Girls have unique needs and
interests that are best met in a program designed especially
for them, delivered in an all girl setting. Girl Scouting
provides opportunities to develop a sense of values and self-worth
in a setting that provides girl/adult partnerships, leadership
positions, progressive learning experiences and a safe and
caring environment.
Leadership Development for Girls
In Girl Scouts, girls develop courage, character and self-esteem.
We provide girls with an array of age-appropriate learning
opportunities that help them recognize and use their leadership
skills and develop personal mastery. Girls are active partners
with adults in choosing and leading programs, a critical
path to leadership development. We strongly support efforts
that help girls become leaders with a lasting sense of responsibility
and accountability to their communities — local, national
and global.
Through Girl Scouting, girls become leaders by:
- Discovering- Understanding themselves
and their values, and using their knowledge and skills
to explore the world.
- Connecting- Caring about, inspiring
and teaming with others locally and globally.
- Taking Action- Acting to make
the world a better place.
For over 90 years, the Girl Scout Promise and Law have served
as a moral compass, guiding girls to personal success.
The motivating force in Girl Scouting is spiritual. Girl
Scouts respect the spiritual values and beliefs of each member
and leave the interpretation of spirituality to each member
and their family. See religious
recognitions for further information.
Developing the Full Potential of Girls In Mind, Body
and Spirit
Healthy Living
Girl Scouts teaches and encourages physical and mental
well-being for girls. We believe all girls are entitled to
knowledge that will help them make informed decisions regarding
their healthy development. And we strive to empower girls
to have a strong self-image, both physically and mentally,
to understand the importance of balance in diet and exercise,
healthy habits, the impact of positive choices, and the consequences
of negative behaviors such as eating disorders, substance
abuse and tobacco use.
Safety for Girls
Girl Scouts believes all girls have a right to a life free
from violence, whether in their relationships, homes, schools
or communities. This includes safety for girls in their interactions
on the Internet and through other technologies. Girl Scouts
has developed and implemented strong violence prevention
initiatives for girls. As violence against and by girls continues
to rise, our ultimate goal is to help decrease the number
of girls who are affected by, or are perpetrators of, violence.
Girl Scouts is one of the few organizations in the nation
that works exclusively with girls on this important issue.
Global Understanding
Girl Scouts is committed to ensuring that girls learn about
other cultures and join with others to make the world a better
place. Through Girl Scouting, girls learn to see their part
in, and contribute to, the world around them. Girls are empowered
to see the global community through the multiple perspectives
of diverse people and are encouraged to become global citizens
who respect, understand and contribute to their dynamic world.
Respect of self and others is an integral part of the Girl
Scout program. We welcome girls and adults from all racial,
ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds. Girls learn to respect
one another and the differences that define individuals and
cultures.
The Girl Scouts value diversity and inclusiveness and,
therefore, do not discriminate on any basis. We have a long
history of adapting activities for girls who have special
needs, including those who have physical or mental disabilities
and those who are chronically ill. Girl Scouting gives the
highest priority to inclusion of all girls.
 Community
Service and Action
The Girl Scout program emphasizes citizenship, community
service and making the world a better place. Girl Scouts
is a community partner and believes service to others is
a core human virtue. For almost a million adult volunteers
who partner with girls, Girl Scouting upholds the highest
standards for volunteer recruitment and development. The
Girl Scout experience empowers girls and women to find their
voices, take action and make their communities and the world
a better place.
Conservation
and the Environment
Girl Scouts has a long-standing commitment to treasuring
the natural resources of our environment. We teach girls
to value and to be responsible custodians of our natural
resources and wildlife and encourage them to become involved
in environmental issues, through conservation and environmental
education, outdoor skills development and volunteer service.
We empower youth to respect our nation’s natural resources.
Girl Scouting is a Membership Organization
Girl Scouting Is For Every Girl, Everywhere
Girl Scouting is open to girls 5-17 years old, and to women
and men over 18, who make the Girl Scout Promise, accept
the Girl Scout Law and pay annual membership dues. These
are the only membership requirements.
Girl Scouts actively reaches out to girls in urban, rural,
low-income and public housing communities, to girls whose
mothers are in prison or who are themselves living in correctional
facilities, homeless shelters, foster care and domestic violence
shelters. In addition, we have a long history of adapting
activities for girls who have disabilities, special needs,
or have other chronic illnesses.
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