Girl Scouts rolls out the largest programming enhancement in almost a decade, providing girls with opportunities to breakdown gender barriers when it comes to STEM and the outdoors.
The voters have spoken and according to the Girl Scout Research Institute, 81% of American voters believe preparing girls for leadership should be a national priority and 82% believe America’s future depends on significantly preparing girls in careers of business, science, finance, and other careers traditionally dominated by men. Girl Scouts – North Carolina Coastal Pines has risen to the challenge by providing non-traditional programming for girls to help break the mold as our future leaders.
For the first time in almost a decade, Girl Scouts has rolled out 23 new Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) and outdoor badges to help enrich its programming for girls. The badges will also debut on Girl Scouts first digital platform for volunteers, making it more accessible than ever to ignite the power of every G.I.R.L. (Go-getter, Innovator, Risk-taker, and Leader) ™. The online platform, referred to as the Volunteer Toolkit, will provide activity plans, material lists, customizable meetings, and track troop finances all in one place.
As the preeminent organization of girls, Girl Scouts understands the vital connection between young girls’ development and their future success, and offers a leadership experience like no other. Girl Scouts gives girls opportunities to take the lead in the world of STEM and the outdoor through hands-on “learning by doing” in a girl-focused, girl-led environment.
Girl Scouts – North Carolina Coastal Pines serves over 26,000 girls with over 1,500 troop across our 41-county footprint in central and eastern North Carolina. The new programming will build girls’ skills and encourage their interest in STEM and environmental conservation from an early age, increasing their confidence in these areas in an all-girl environment where they feel comfortable trying new things, taking appropriate risks, and learning from failure.
The new badges will prepare girls K-12 (yes, even girls as young as five years old) to begin exploring their interest in STEM and the outdoors. This programming will allow girls to tackle 21st century jobs by discovering their interests in outdoors, robotics, engineering, computer science, Outdoor STEM, and more. Some highlights include:
- Engineering: Robotics: Girls will design their own robots after learning how they’re built and programmed.
- Computer Science: Think Like a Programmer: Girls participate in interactive computational-thinking activities to learn how programmers solve problems. Girls also complete a Take Action project.
- Outdoor: This new Journey will deepen girls’ outdoor skills through badges that lead to a Take Action project and inspire girls to take an interest in environmental stewardship.
“As a pre-med student at the University of Miami, I’m taking the everyday leadership and STEM skills I learned in Girl Scouts and applying them towards my future,” said local Girl Scout and National Young Woman of Distinction Sadhana Anantha. “With Girl Scouts, I learned to be curious, fearless, and dedicated in the pursue of my passions. I also learned that there are so many opportunities to pursue STEM, experiences that I never knew existed until I became a Girl Scout.”
To create more female leaders, we need to start young and make sure today’s girls are acquiring the courage, confidence, character, and other skills they need to take the reins of leadership in the 21st century. Girl Scouts understands this vital connection between youth and future success and offers programming specifically designed with girls in mind.
Through Girl Scouting, girls learn to face challenges head-on, embrace failure as a learning opportunity, create lasting relationships, and find dynamic solutions to social issues—all while building the skills and courage they need to take the lead every day and empower themselves for life. To join or volunteer, visit www.nccoastalpines.org.
We’re Girl Scouts of the USA
We’re 2.6 million strong—1.8 million girls and 800,000 adults who believe in the power of every G.I.R.L. (Go-getter, Innovator, Risk-taker, Leader) ™ to change the world. Our extraordinary journey began more than 100 years ago with the original G.I.R.L., Juliette Gordon “Daisy” Low. On March 12, 1912, in Savannah, Georgia, she organized the very first Girl Scout troop, and every year since, we’ve honored her vision and legacy, building girls of courage, confidence, and character who make the world a better place. We’re the preeminent leadership development organization for girls. And with programs from coast to coast and across the globe, Girl Scouts offers every girl a chance to practice a lifetime of leadership, adventure, and success. To volunteer, reconnect, donate, or join, visit www.girlscouts.org.
About Girl Scouts – North Carolina Coastal Pines
Girl Scouts – North Carolina Coastal Pines is largest girl-led leadership development program in central and eastern North Carolina, reaching over 26,000 girls and 9,000 adult volunteer across 41 central and eastern North Carolina counties. Girl Scouts helps develop leaders of tomorrow by empowering girls to take on bold challenges, discover their passions and strengths, and explore programming like STEM,entrepreneurship, environmental leadership, take-action projects, and global citizenship. Today’s Girl Scouts learn to lead with courage, confidence, and character to make their communities and the world a better place. The council’s administrative headquarters is located in Raleigh, with additional program and service centers located in Goldsboro, Fayetteville, and Wilmington. To volunteer, reconnect, donate, or join, visit www.nccoastalpines.org or call (800) 284-4475.
