Mission: Girl scouts develops girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place.
Programs: Services: while we annually serve more than 5,000 girls ages 5-17 every year, that number only tells a portion of the story. The growing need for enrichment programs in our community and the belief that every girl deserves access to opportunity regardless of her socio-economic or "at-risk" status was the catalyst for us to change our approach over the years to a social justice model. Our social justice (sj) program serves girls in crisis, girls who live in foster care group homes, girls in detention and on the brink of incarceration, girls with incarcerated mothers and girls who live in isolated, rural and impoverished areas. Our sj program utilizes stipend college women in the absence of volunteers who work in 20 schools and social service settings a week serving over 2,000 girls a year.
Specific services delivered in calendar year 2014: in the 2014 girl scout year we served 14,391 girls ages 5-17 throughout Southern Arizona. Financial literacy is a strategic focus of girl scouts as we believe it is crucial to empower girls to take control of their financial futures. We teach girls the basics of money management and how to set and obtain financial goals. Through adelante jovencitas, girl scouts beyond bars, and foster care gssoaz serves girls whose lives have been impacted by the Arizona juvenile justice system, including girls with incarcerated mothers, girls in detention and girls who are at-risk for incarceration, and girls who live in foster care group homes.
Leadership journeys: every girl scout participates in a diverse range of 6-week leadership-focused program sessions, or journeys - each covering a specific theme that is relevant to girls' educational needs and interests. Global citizenship and girl scout highest awards: girls can earn girl scouts highest honors, the bronze, silver, and gold awards while making a lasting difference in their community and in the larger world. Science, technology, engineering and math: gssoaz engages girls in our hands-on experiential stem programs, which are designed to instill in girls a love of the sciences. Health and wellness: in girl scouts, girls learn an approach to health that empowers them in body, mind, and spirit. They get the building blocks of nutrition and exercise, along with important lessons in self-esteem, independence, and the value of caring for others. Gssoaz in on a mission to ensure that no girl is left inside (ngli) and provide opportunities for them to discover nature, high adventure and environmental education.
Youth volunteer corps: the girl scout youth volunteer corps engages, empowers, and motivates girls to take action in their communities through service projects that they develop. Volunteer led troops: volunteer led troops are the cornerstone of the girl scout movement. Dedicated volunteers mentor girls through their progression in Girl Scouts.
The staff of this organization is absolutely incredible. They are passionate, committed to the Girl Scout Mission and dedicated to providing a safe place for girls to grow into leaders.
An incredible group of leaders developing and growing our future leaders. They give of their heart, soul, time, and energy to help young girls / women realize the potential that they have been given through high quality programs, community service, leadership development, and individual and group based mentoring.
I believe in the mission of the Girl Scouts and also believe that developing girl leaders is an important mission for all of us as community leaders. The staff at the Southern AZ Council understand the challenges that girls face today and continually seek creative opportunities to develop programs and camps that help our young ladies develop into confident woman who contribute positively to their families and their communities.
Girl Scouting played an imporant role in my life and today more than ever it plays a very imporant role in our community for the girls and young women who are impacted by the many programs. Scouting seeks to mentor young women and prepare them by building self confidence and many other skills. This is extremely important with all of the social pressures placed on our society today. Scouting is certainly much more than cookies!
I have been a Girl Scout all my life. I appreciate the Southern Arizona organization and thank them for being here for our young women and girls. In a climate where young women often are often behind boys in science and technology... The Girl Scouts have programs to teach them leadership, science and technology.
