Posts Tagged "News"

GSUSA Partners with Justine to launch 2011 R.E.A.L. Girl Contest

Justine Magazine, in conjunction with Girl Scouts of the USA, is launching its 2011 R.E.A.L (Remarkable. Energetic. Aspirational. Leader.) Girl contest. The R.E.A.L. Girl contest, which is open only to current Girl Scout members ages 13 to 19, will conclude in April 2011 with the winner appearing on the front cover of Justine Magazine.

This is the second year for the R.E.A.L. Girl contest. Last year’s winner, Hosanna Kabakoro from Idaho, was featured on the April/May 2010 cover and in a six-page Justine fashion spread. Also a 2009 Girl Scout National Young Woman of Distinction, Kabakoro founded 2-Way Street to Empower, aimed at enabling and encouraging refugee and at-risk immigrant youth to develop a sense of community identity in the United States.  The 2011 contest will open for entries at www.justinemagazine.com and justinespark.com on September 15, 2010, with the entry deadline in January, 2011.

“As the publisher of Justine (and a former Girl Scout), I am thrilled to once again partner with the Girl Scouts of the USA in our R.E.A.L. Girl contest.  These remarkable, energetic, aspirational leaders who give back to their communities through the Girl Scout program are to be commended and celebrated…and what better way than to make on a cover girl!” – Jana Kerr Pettey, Publisher and Editorial Director of Justine Magazine.

The launch event will take place on Wednesday, September 1 at 2:00 p.m. EST at the Girl Scout Headquarters at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. and will be attended by Girl Scouts from the greater New York City area.

This fun teen event will showcase a teen fashion show featuring Girl Scouts as models; a teen issues author panel including young-adult authors Alyssa Sheinmel and Sarah Mlynowski, Dr. Robyn Silverman and Jacqueline Wales; and a special guest appearance by 18-year-old rising country artist Katie Armiger (also a former Girl Scout).

The guests will be treated to goody bags filled with merchandise from such companies as Celebrity Pink Jeans, Kmart, Scholastic Books, ABC Family, Zapzyt, Vivendi Entertainment, Random House Books and The Academy NYC –A Paul Mitchell Partner School, among others.

About Justine Magazine
Justine, the national lifestyle magazine for teen girls, is filled with fun, positive and empowering content including affordable fashion and beauty, skills to make your high school life and path to college a breeze, role-model-worthy celebs, the Spark book club just for teens and stories about teen girls like you who are changing the world! www.justinemagazine.com & www.justinespark.com

CONTACTS:
Girl Scouts of the USA
Melanie Deck 212.852.8056
mdeck@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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Girl Scout Testifies Before Congressional Panel on Dangers of Cyberbullying

Girl Scout Dominique Napolitano testified before the U.S. House of Representatives Healthy Families and Communities Subcommittee on the issue of cyberbullying on Thursday, June 24, providing legislators a teenager’s perspective on the increasingly widespread practice.

“Cyberbullying is not just a phase or behavior in which kids will be kids,” Napolitano told the panel chaired by U.S. Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY). “Cyberbullying poses serious consequences to the health and safety of all children.”

Dominique NapolitanoDominique was among a core group of Girl Scouts who helped develop LMK, a leading online safety Web site developed by Girl Scouts in collaboration with Microsoft’s Windows division. The site is unique because it is designed to cover such topics as cyberbullying, online sexual predators and cybersecurity from the perspective of young people. Twenty-three Girl Scouts working with Internet safety expert Parry Aftab have developed the online safety tips and advice for parents and young boys and girls.

In addition to Dominique, the panel heard testimony from syndicated talk show host Dr. Phil McGraw, as well as Aftab, who contributed to the LMK Web site, and educators from around the country.

“I know from my experience that kids don’t always think that adults understand their issues or get technology,” Dominique said. “So we need to empower youth to take this problem into our own hands and find solutions that work for us. I feel that I’ve had that experience through Girl Scouts, my youth group, and in school, but far too many kids don’t get that chance.”

Her testimony drew media coverage in newspapers and television stations. A story appears in the Boston Herald, and Dominique’s testimony is available on YouTube.

You can also check out photos of Dominique at the hearing at the Wall Street Journal.

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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Girl Scouts Partnering with National Urban League on ‘I am Empowered’ Campaign

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 National Urban League and Girl Scouts have much in common,” said Kathy Cloninger, Chief Executive Office of Girl Scouts of the USA. “Both organizations are committed to empowering people—all people, young and old—to achieve their full potential and deeply value the power of community service in making the nation and the world a better place. Girl Scouts is proud to take the ‘I am Empowered’ pledge and partner with the Urban League in its centennial year.”

The “I am Empowered” campaign, launched on March 1, 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 underserved urban communities.

The Urban League is partnering with organizations across the country and intends to have millions of Americans take the “I am Empowered” pledge. The four goals of the pledge seek to focus Americans on eliminating disparities in education, jobs, housing, and heath care by 2025.

The pledge can be signed online (http://iamempowered.com), and calls for the following:

  • Every American child is ready for college, work and life.
  • Every American has access to jobs with a living wage and good benefits.
  • Every American is free from barriers to having safe, decent, affordable and energy-efficient housing, on fair terms.
  • Every American has access to quality and affordable healthcare solutions.

The National Urban League is the nation’s oldest and largest community-based movement devoted to empowering African Americans to enter the economic and social mainstream. Girl Scouts has partnered with the National Urban League in the past, and has a long history of diversity and inclusion. The first Girl Scout troop for African American girls was formed in 1917, and by the 1950s, GSUSA had begun a national effort to desegregate all Girl Scout troops. In 1956, Martin Luther King Jr. described Girl Scouts as “a force for desegregation.”

CONTACT:
Girl Scouts of the USA
Victor Inzunza, 212-852-8529
vinzunza@girlscouts.org

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