Posts Tagged "National Young Woman of Distinction"

Connie and Two YWOD Share Views on Leadership at Vision 2020 Conference

GSUSA National President Connie L. Lindsey participated last week in Vision 2020’s national conference, An American Conversation About Women and Leadership. The conference, held October 21–22 at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, was comprised of nationwide representatives and various experts who discussed, debated, and developed an agenda to accelerate women’s leadership and equality in the decade to come.

During a panel discussion entitled “Philanthropy, Faith & Volunteerism,” an audience member asked, “How do you address the growing concern of women who are ‘burning out’ because of their service on boards?” to which Connie responded, “When I joined Girl Scouts’ National Board five years ago, the first question I asked was what is the ask?” She continued, “The size of your love for any organization should be matched with an impactful contribution to that organization. … It’s also important to have the courage, capacity, and the cash when thinking about which board you commit yourself to serve on.”

A gifted orator, Connie responded to a question about how one remains grounded as she/he moves up the ladder of success by asking audience members to raise their hands if they’d ever been a Girl Scout. (Dozens of hands rose.) Connie then smiled and said, “As you can see, one must have a clear foundation and a clear understanding of who one is. … We don’t all have to strive to be CEOs, and we must understand that our self-worth is not based on our net-worth.”

Along with Connie, who represented her hometown in Illinois, two Girl Scout National Girl Consultants, Morgan (2009 National Young Woman of Distinction honoree) and Natalia (2008 National Young Woman of Distinction honoree), participated in the event as national delegates, representing Georgia and Wisconsin, respectively. Connie, Morgan, and Natalia were selected from more than a thousand people who registered to nominate or become Vision 2020 national delegates. The search for delegates focused on finding women who have demonstrated a commitment to helping women and girls. These delegates were willing to mobilize resources to bring about positive change and implement elements of the decade-long Vision 2020 agenda, signing on for a minimum three-year term following the conference.

View the archived Webcast of Vision 2020’s: An American Conversation About Women and Leadership.

CONTACTS:
Girl Scouts of the USA
Shonda Prince, 212-852-8534
sprince@girlscouts.org

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Girl Scouts Unveils New National Brand Initiative

Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA), one of the most well known and well loved organizations in the nation, is revitalizing and reenergizing its brand to reach a new generation of girls.

After extensive research and development, Girl Scouts debuted today a long-term, multichannel brand campaign that is designed to reacquaint the country with the iconic organization and communicate the power girls have to change the world through Girl Scouting. The campaign is also keyed to boosting the number of girls and adult volunteers who participate in Girl Scouting annually after a period of declining membership.

“A revitalized and energized brand is absolutely essential for us and our future growth,” said Kathy Cloninger, Chief Executive Officer of GSUSA. “About one out of every 10 girls participates in Girl Scouting and that’s a tremendous number when you think about it. But that also means that we have a great opportunity to grow even after almost 100 years. We have literally revamped our entire organization to appeal to that 90 percent of girls who aren’t benefiting from the Girl Scout leadership experience. And with our new brand work, we think we have the right message at the right time.”

The branding, in the works as part of the organization’s comprehensive transformation that began in 2004, is composed of a striking new visual identity, which includes a distinctive trefoil mark, revised color palette, and refreshed logo that was originally created in the 1970s by the legendary designer Saul Bass. In addition, the initiative also includes plans for a 360 degree marketing program that taps the online, place-based and traditional media.

As part of the new campaign, Girl Scouts also has developed Spanish-language advertising to target the Hispanic market, one of the few girl populations in the country that is growing. GSUSA already has secured more than $10 million in donated exposure in Spanish-language media ranging from Telemundo to People en Español. In its general market campaign, Girl Scouts is working to secure $30 million in pro bono placements from national online and in-mall and airport outlets, as well as traditional broadcast and print media.

“What we’re doing with this initiative is repositioning Girl Scouts with a message that is relevant to girls and the lives they lead today,” said Laurel Richie, Chief Marketing Officer and Senior Vice President at GSUSA. “To some degree, our brand had faded and our research revealed that while many girls and parents knew about us, they had a very limited view of us. While we are proud of our $700 million cookie business run by girls, we offer so much more than that, and this new work is designed to let people know about all the new and exciting things girls do every day as Girl Scouts.

“Our brand promise is that Girl Scouts gives every girl access to life-changing experiences that inspire her to do something big. That’s a promise we keep every day, and you don’t have to look much further than our National Young Women of Distinction and Gold Award earners to see evidence of that.”

Girl Scouts has already implemented major changes in recent years as part of its Core Business Strategy, which was developed under Cloninger’s leadership to turn around the organization amid changing demographics and a gradual decline in membership. In just the past few years, the organization has realigned its federated system of 312 councils to 112. Those councils now operate with bigger budgets and are able to draw on economies of scale. And in 2008, the organization rolled out the Girl Scout Leadership Experience, a program that every Girl Scout will engage in from the youngest Girl Scout Daisy to the eldest Girl Scout Ambassador.

The Girl Scout Leadership Experience also features a series of 15 outcomes, or benefits, that for the first time in the organization’s history will allow Girl Scouts to gauge how well its program is working in terms of developing key leadership skills in girls.

Richie said that Girl Scouting is launching its rebranding from a position of strength because it can draw upon strong name recognition and a long legacy of leadership development. With this new campaign and the projected growth in overall girl population in the United States, Girls Scouts expects to see its membership begin to increase over the next few years. The campaign will also pave the way, Richie said, for a major effort to gain exposure during the organization’s national centennial celebration in 2012.

CONTACTS:
Girl Scouts of the USA
Josh Ackley 212.852.8038
jackley@girlscouts.org

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Connie L. Lindsey and Two Girl Consultants Join National Initiative to Advance Women’s Leadership

GSUSA National President Connie L. Lindsey has been chosen as a delegate from Illinois to Vision 2020’s national conference in October that will feature representatives from across the nation as well as other experts to discuss, debate, and develop an agenda that will accelerate women’s leadership and equality over the next decade.

In addition, two Girl Scout National Girl Consultants, Morgan (2009 National Young Woman of Distinction honoree) and Natalia (2008 National Young Woman of Distinction honoree), have also been selected as national delegates, representing Georgia and Wisconsin, respectively.

Connie, Morgan, and Natalia were selected from more than a thousand people who registered to nominate or become Vision 2020 national delegates. Vision 2020 is a national initiative of the Institute for Women’s Health and Leadership at Drexel University College of Medicine focused on advancing gender equality by energizing the dialogue about women and leadership.

The first public event of the initiative will be Vision 2020: An American Conversation about Women and Leadership at which the delegates, representing all 50 states and the District of Columbia, will meet at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia to launch an action agenda to move America toward equality by 2020, the centennial celebration of the 19th Amendment.

“I salute Connie, Morgan, and Natalia for joining this significant conversation to advance the leadership of girls and women throughout the United States,” said Kathy Cloninger, Chief Executive Officer of GSUSA. “Their voices will bring tremendous value to this national dialogue on women and gender equality.”

The national search for delegates focused on finding women who have demonstrated a commitment to helping women and girls. These delegates are willing to mobilize resources to bring about positive change and implement elements of the decade-long Vision 2020 agenda, signing on for a minimum three-year term following the conference.

CONTACTS:
Girl Scouts of the USA
Michelle Tompkins, 212-852-5074
mtompkins@girlscouts.org

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