Girl Scouts in the News

GIRL SCOUTS VISIT SENATORS, CONGRESSMAN, WHITE HOUSE
Girls in Nation’s Capital to Present Report from Women’s Forum

Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains were invited to join a delegation traveling to Washington, D.C. to present findings from a report from the New England Women and Girls Summit.

Four Girl Scouts and another student met with Congressman Peter Welch, Senators Patrick Leahy and Bernie Sanders of Vermont, and Senator Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire.

“I loved being where so much of my country’s history was made,” said Mary Gauthier of Westford. “I could feel the power (of) being able to speak my mind and be heard.”

“Senator Sanders talked to us about education equality and listened, and talked about getting more women involved in politics and in mathematics and the sciences,” Katie Hango of South Burlington said.

Congressman Welch discussed the report with the girls and said he was interested in seeing the results of a survey about how girls in middle and high school feel about education and career opportunities in their future. The report will be presented to Legislators this spring by Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains.

The Girl Scouts also presented the forum findings to a representative of President Obama’s Commission on Women and Girls at the White House.

Gauthier, Hango, Keighty Tallman of Essex Junction, and Amanda Greene of Franklin represented the Girl Scouts. Emma Broderick of Charlotte, Vermont also attended.

The New England Women and Girls Summit was part of Beijing + 15 – a follow-up to the first World Women’s Conference held in China 15 years ago. It was held at Phillips Exeter Academy in Exeter, New Hampshire in December 2009. The Girl Scouts went to Washington, D.C. in January.

Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains Sponsors Educator
Expert on ‘Mean Girls’ and Bullying Reaches Hundreds

Author and educator Rosalind Wiseman spoke to more than 650 people in her January appearances in New Hampshire and Vermont, sponsored by Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains and other organizations.

Wiseman spoke about cliques, “frenemies,” cyber bullying and gossip in the Internet age, and how to teach strategies for helping children navigate conflict ethically.

In Essex, Vermont, Wiseman spoke to educators at the Center for Technology. Later that evening she presented before an audience of 400 at the McCarthy Arts Center at Saint Michael’s College in Colchester. The next day she was the featured speaker at Southern New Hampshire University’s Robert Frost Hall in Manchester, New Hampshire.

Other sponsors of Wiseman’s talk on communication between girls and boys in the cyberspace age include: Center for Women and Gender at Saint Michael’s College, Regional Office on Women’s Health, Heritage United Way, YWCA, Girls Move Mountains and 4-H.

Wiseman is an internationally recognized expert on children, teens, parenting, bullying, social justice, and ethical leadership. She wrote Queen Bees and Wannabes: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends and The New Realities of Girl World, the best-seller that was the basis for the movie Mean Girls.

Additional publications include Queen Bee Moms and Kingpin Dads, and the Owning Up Curriculum, a comprehensive social justice program for grades 6-12. She also writes the monthly “Ask Rosalind” column in Family Circle magazine. For more on Wiseman, go to www.rosalindwiseman.com.

Girl Scouts Collect 495 Pounds of Trash as Part of International Coastal Cleanup

RYE, NH – Seventy-four Girl Scouts and adult volunteers surveyed and cleaned up about three-quarters of a mile of the shore on Saturday, Sept. 19, filling 27 trash bags and collecting 495 pounds of trash as part of the annual international Coastal Cleanup.

Girl Scouts have been taking part in the Coastal Cleanup – the largest one-day volunteer event in the world – for 15 years under the leadership of Neil Savage, Ph.D., who teaches Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains’ Sea Sleuth program about marine biology and environmental science. Volunteers not only collect trash, they chart and categorize it as part of the annual event to monitor the health of the Earth’s oceans. In all, 20 data cards were filled out and returned by Girl Scouts.
Categories include debris from shoreline and recreational activities, ocean/waterway activities including debris from boats, smoking-related items, medical waste, and large items that show evidence of dumping such as tires, appliances and batteries.

Of the 495 pounds of garbage, about 100 pounds were three non-repairable lobster traps. Last year Girl Scouts found a dead harbor seal, which was reported as required by law to a federal database. This year they found a headless skunk.
Girl Scouts from Berlin, Brookline, Concord, Chichester, Epsom, Exeter, Litchfield, Nashua, Northwood, Pembroke, Plymouth, and Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and Hartford and White River Junction, Vermont participated.

SISTER 2 SISTER CELEBRATION MARKS MERGER

Thetford, VT – The celebration of the merger of Girl Scouts of Swift Water Council and Girl Scout Council of Vermont as Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains drew more than 500 participants to Camp Farnsworth on May 30.

Girls sang songs, played games, tackled challenges, went on a scavenger hunt, ate a giant “quilted” cake, left their marks on another quilt, and learned about all of the regions across the Granite and Green Mountain states at hands-on activity centers. They did a service project for the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life and learned about GSUSA and Microsoft Windows’ Internet safety program, LMK.girlscouts.org.

Our new Council serves 16,000 girls, thanks to 5,500 trained and dedicated volunteers. Council headquarters are in Bedford, New Hampshire, with offices in Essex Junction and Rutland, Vermont, and in Keene and Littleton, New Hampshire.

More photos from the celebration.

February 27, 2009 GSUSA and Microsoft Windows partner to keep girls safe in cyberspace

LMK (text-speak for “let me know”) is an online safety campaign created by Girl Scouts of the USA and Microsoft Windows. The campaign includes an interactive website for girls (http://lmk.girlscouts.org) to help them stay safe online, and an e-newsletter and website for adults (http://letmeknow.girlscouts.org) to help families navigate the dangers of cyberspace.

Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains is one of 10 councils across the U.S. involved in the pilot LMK program, which is for everyone, not just Girl Scouts. Michelle I., 14, of NH was selected for the girl editorial board, and visited Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, Washington. You can see the board’s profiles on the site, which is updated regularly.

“A lot of girls don’t realize that what they post on Facebook or MySpace is permanent,” Michelle warned sister Girl Scouts attending the Women in Technology program in February.

“Even if you think they can’t, or after you’ve changed it, someone can always find it. You should never post anything you wouldn’t want your parents or grandparents to see.” Colleges and employers check social networking sites before accepting students or hiring, she added.

Beyond revealing “TMI” (too much information), teens may experience “cyber bullying” online. The LMK sites give advice on how to handle messages or activity that turns creepy or could be dangerous. The LMK program is a good place for girls and adults to examine the wonderful potential and possible perils of the worldwide web, and is a natural lead-in to the online safety pledge on page 130 of Safety-Wise. Fun features for girls are forums, Q&A, games, polls, and the first-ever downloadable patch.

Watch for our laptops at Girl Scout events. Girls and adults can sign in to the websites there. Or click on the sites at home – and tell your friends and family to check them out, too.

Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains
One Commerce Drive • Bedford, NH 03110
Mailing address:
PO Box 10832 • Bedford, NH 03110-0832
Phone: 603.627.4158 • Fax: 603.627.4169

E-mail: info@girlscoutsgwm.org

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