Girl Scouts of Greater New York

Our Mission

To build girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place.

Our Vision

A New York City in which every girl feels empowered to lead in her community, the workplace, and the world.

Never before has the community, connection, and consistency of Girl Scouts been more essential. So much has changed in all of our lives and those changes can be especially difficult to navigate for young people. Girl Scouting has always been about girls coming together to serve the community, bring joy to others, and take action to make the world a better place. And while the methods may be different this year, the mission is the same.

Here are a few highlights from the past year:

5,938 girls joined Girl Scouts for the first time in 2020, 230 by joining newly created virtual troops!

956 Girl Scouts completed an “Hour of Code” to celebrate Computer Science Week.

We launched a new online learning platform hosted by Thinkific, featuring new, original programming every week, including the G.I.R.L. Every Day My Way Challenge. Designed to ease the transition from in-person to virtual programs by re-creating the troop experience at home, the Challenge encourage girls to be leaders in their family.

Thanks to a new partnership with NYC Health + Hospitals, Girls Scouts and cookie customers donated more than 70,000 boxes of Girl Scout Cookies to area hospital break out rooms and grocery packages for their families, bringing a sense of joy to the people on the front lines of keeping us safe and supported.

Our licensed clinical social worker, usually tasked with supporting members of Troop 6000 (a troop specially designed to serve girls living in the NYC shelter system), established a series of workshops to provide support to all volunteers and parents: a series of workshops called Growing Together Through COVID-19. Topics covered included: Managing Your Nerves While Sheltering-in-Place; Coping with Economic Instability; Dealing with Isolation, Loneliness, and Depression; and Supporting Yourself and Others through the Unknown.

Our all-virtual Girl Scout Summer 2.0 program brought the magic of camp into the home and provided 262 girls of all ages with the opportunity to discover, learn and have fun, while making new friends and exploring one of four themes: outer space, the performing arts, cybersecurity, or animals and conservation.

567 Girl Scouts collected commitments from friends and family to complete the census through our Be Counted Census Patch program.

373 Girls earned their Bronze, Silver, or Gold Award! These awards represent the highest achievements in Girl Scouting and require girls to complete impactful and lasting service projects in their communities.

Through our Girl Scouting for All Abilities initiative, our council is committed to empowering parents, troop leaders, and teachers with the tools necessary to provide girls with disabilities with a customized Girl Scout experience adapted to their needs. In 2020, we provided one on one and group support to hundreds of parents and caregivers, ensuring Girl Scouts with unique abilities were able to continue their Girl Scout experience at home.

Girl Scouting only exists in NYC because of the tremendous dedication of our volunteers, who make sure that through it all, thousands of girls continue to enjoy the stability, friendship, and joy of Girl Scouts; our staff and Board of Directors whose tireless energy and passion were tested and proved again and again this year; and our partners and supporters who never faltered in their commitment to the importance of Girl Scouts. Thank you!

All of these efforts, updated for our times, engage girls in opportunities to connect socially, yet virtually in fun and exciting ways.