Girl Scout Camp Builds Character

By Amanda Block and Anne Gore

When you were a kid, did you go to camp?  If so, you probably remember having lots of fun, making new friends, sleeping in a tent or cabin, swimming or canoeing, performing silly skits, singing songs, and telling stories around a campfire at night.  

There's no question, camp is fun.   

But, for girls who attend Girl Scout camp in Alaska, there's also important work happening – the work of character development. 

Although program activities like canoeing, conquering the climbing wall, and learning to build a fire certainly contribute to a camper’s confidence and growth, often it is the small, seemingly insignificant events that can most impact a child's development.  

Through free play and daily chores for example, girls build character of the type that is vital to future success.  
 
Christopher Peterson, a psychology professor at the University of Michigan, identified seven critical character traits that children need to develop into successful adults. 

·      A sense of wonder/curiosity about the world:  Our natural, inborn fascination with the world that makes us want to explore, learn and discover all we can about it; The delight we take in seeing the wonders of the world revealed to us.

·      Social intelligence: The ability to read other people’s emotions and connect with them in meaningful ways; Our awareness of others; Knowing when and how to negotiate, collaborate and compromise with others. 

·      Zest/love of life: An exuberance or upbeat feeling about life and the opportunity to witness the wonders of the world; Zest is key to a positive outlook on life.

·      Optimism:  The ability to see the positive opportunity in situations; Optimism is key to self-confidence and a positive outlook on life. 

·      Grit:  The ability to hang in there, to tough it out, persevere and recover from a setback.

·      Self-control:  The ability to regulate feelings and impulses; to recognize and manage them, edit them, and not be run by them.

·     Gratitude:  An essential feeling of recognizing and being appreciative of what we have been given; Gratitude is key to a positive outlook on life. 

At Girl Scout camp, counselors are specially trained to help girls develop and recognize these traits.  
For example, when girls live together at resident camp or spend all day together at day camp, character issues are bound to arise.  How girls handle these situations (with the support of their counselors), is how character is built.

Counselors not only point out when girls express one of the seven traits but also consciously spend time reflecting on them. Imagine the grit it takes a camper to face a 35-foot-tall climbing tower for a first time. Picture the self-control a camper develops when trying to light a fire in the rain. Consider the zest/love of life a camper experiences when she canoes across the lake and witnesses a loon with babies riding on its back. Then, imagine each girl reflecting on these experiences at the end of the day, and expressing what she was most grateful for during that day.

Here are some examples of how campers have expressed their character growth on their end-of-camp evaluations:

“I learned that I can stay strong even when times are hard.”  A 7^th grader expressing grit.

“Never juje [judge] somwon [someone].”  A 4^th grader expressing self-control and social intelligence.

“I think when our group was the happiest was rock clim[b]ing because we all were cheering each other on and encouraging [each] other to climb higher” A 5^th grader expressing social intelligence and gratitude.

The mission of Girl Scouts is to build girls of courage, confidence, and character who make the world a better place.  At Girl Scout camp, we are committed not only to the highest levels of excellence in safety, programming, leadership development, and fun, and work hard to ensure that girls experience opportunities for the kind of character development that is essential for children.
  

To register your daughter for Girl Scout camp go to www.girlscoutsalaska.org/programs/camps to view the camp catalog and register online.  

Amanda Block, Girl Scouts of Alaska Camp Director, is an American Camp Association certified camp director with fifteen years experience working with American Camp Association camps, mostly Girl Scout camps.  Amanda recently completed her Master’s Degree in Camp Administration.  Anne Gore is Communications Director at Girl Scouts of Alaska.  Anne experienced grit when she attended her first sleep away camp and learned to overcome homesickness.  

Girl Scout Cookies Through the Years

Girl Scout Cookies are an icon of American culture. For nearly 100 years, Girl Scouts, with the enthusiastic support of their families, have sold cookies to earn money for troop and community service activities, in the process having fun and developing valuable life skills.

On National Girl Scout Cookie Day, as we celebrate the incredible success of what has become the world's largest girl-led enterprise with $790 million in annual sales, here's a look back on how it all began.

Early Years

Girl Scout Cookies had their earliest beginnings in the kitchens and ovens of our girl members, with moms volunteering as technical advisers. 

The sale of cookies as a way to finance troop activities began as early as 1917—just five years after Juliette Gordon Low started Girl Scouting in the United States—when the Mistletoe Troop in Muskogee, Oklahoma, baked cookies and sold them in its high school cafeteria as a service project.

In July 1922, The American Girl magazine, published by Girl Scout national headquarters, featured an article by Florence E. Neil, a local director in Chicago, Illinois. Miss Neil provided a cookie recipe that had been given to her council's 2,000 Girl Scouts. She estimated the approximate cost of ingredients for six- to seven-dozen cookies to be 26 to 36 cents. The cookies, she suggested, could be sold by troops for 25 or 30 cents per dozen.

Cookie recipe published in American Girl magazine, 1922.

In the 1920s and 1930s, Girl Scouts in different parts of the country continued to bake their own simple sugar cookies with their mothers. These cookies were packaged in wax paper bags, sealed with a sticker, and sold door to door for 25 to 35 cents per dozen.

First Lady Mrs. Coolidge eating a Girl Scout cookie in 1923.                 Source: Georgia Historical Society.

1930s

In 1933, Girl Scouts of Greater Philadelphia council baked cookies and sold them in the city's gas and electric company windows. The cost was just 23 cents per box of 44 cookies, or six boxes for $1.24. Through this new effort, the girls developed their marketing and business skills and raised funds for their local Girl Scout council. A year later, Greater Philadelphia took cookie sales to the next level, becoming the first council to sell commercially baked cookies.

In 1935, the Girl Scout Federation of Greater New York raised money through the sale of commercial cookies. Buying its own die in the shape of a trefoil, the group used the words “Girl Scout Cookies” on the box. In 1936, the national Girl Scout organization began the process of licensing the first commercial baker to produce cookies that would be sold nationwide by girls in Girl Scout councils.

1940s

Girl Scout Cookies were sold by local councils around the country until World War II, when sugar, flour, and butter shortages led Girl Scouts to begin selling calendars to raise money for activities.

After the war, cookie sales resumed, with the national organization licensing local bakers to produce and package cookies. By 1948, a total of 29 bakers were licensed to bake Girl Scout Cookies.

1950s

In 1951, with the growth of the suburbs, Girl Scouts began selling cookies at tables in shopping malls.

Girl Scouts sold four basic types of cookies: a vanilla-based filled cookie, a chocolate-based filled one, a shortbread one, and a chocolate mint. 

Girl Scout poster, circa 1960s.  Image from here.

1960s

During the 1960s, when Baby Boomers expanded Girl Scout membership, cookie sales increased significantly. Fourteen licensed bakers were mixing batter for thousands upon thousands of Girl Scout Cookies annually. 

By 1966, a number of varieties were available. Among the best sellers were Chocolate Mint (now known as Thin Mints), Shortbread, and Peanut Butter Sandwich cookies.

Girl Scouts show off the Peanut Butter Sandwich cookies circa 1973 - 1980.
Photo from here. 

1970s

In 1978, the number of bakers was streamlined to four to ensure lower prices and uniform quality, packaging, and distribution. For the first time in history, all cookie boxes—regardless of the baker—featured the same designs and depicted scenes of Girl Scouts in action, enjoying activities such as hiking and canoeing. 

Photo from here

The cookie boxes also began promoting the benefits of Girl Scouting.

1980s

In 1982, four bakers still produced a maximum of seven varieties of cookies—three mandatory (Thin Mint®, Peanut Butter Sandwich/Do-si-dos®, and Shortbread/Trefoils®) and four optional. Cookie boxes depicted scenes of Girl Scouts in action.

Photo courtesy of Girl Scouts of the USA

1990s

In the early 1990s, two licensed bakers supplied local Girl Scout councils with cookies for girls to sell, and by 1998, this number had grown again to three. Eight cookie varieties were available, including low-fat and sugar-free selections that never sold well enough to continue producing.

GSUSA also introduced official age-appropriate awards for Girl Scout Brownies, Juniors, Cadettes, and Seniors, including the Cookie Activity Pin, which was awarded for participating in cookie activities.

2000s

Photo courtesy of
Little Brownie Bakers

New cookie box designs, introduced in fall of 2000, were bold and bright, capturing the spirit of Girl Scouting. Two licensed bakers produced a maximum of eight varieties, including three that were mandatory (Thin Mints®, Peanut Butter Sandwich/Do-si-dos®, and Shortbread/Trefoils®). All cookies were kosher. And, even our youngest Girl Scouts -- Daisies -- were now able to sell cookies.


Today

As of 2013, all boxes of Girl Scout Cookies have a new look and a new purpose: to elevate the significance of the Girl Scout Cookie Program. 

The new Girl Scout Cookie package showcases the five financial literacy and entrepreneurship skills that the Girl Scout Cookie Program teaches girls, skills that will last them a lifetime: goal setting, decision making, money management, people skills, and business ethics.

The decision to update the package came about in 2010 as part of an overall brand refresh in advance of the organization's 100th anniversary on March 12, 2012. The package needed to be more contemporary to reflect the new brand identity and to embody the spirit of Girl Scouting, while showing customers how their cookie purchase is making a difference in girls' lives.


Where to Find Cookies

In Alaska, public sales of Girl Scout cookies will begin March 1 and continue through March 30.  You can find out where girls will be selling by visiting www.girlscoutcookies.org and typing in your zip code to see a list of times, dates and locations.

If you can't find cookies being sold in your area, call the Girl Scouts of Alaska office and we'll do our best to make sure you get some!  You can reach us during business hours at 907-248-2250 or 800-478-7448. 


For some great tips on how to buy cookies, check out this video.

Hard Work is Paying Off for Naknek Girl Scouts

For the second year in a row, a Girl Scout troop in Naknek received the honor of “top-selling troop” for Girl Scouts of Alaska’s nut and candy sale.  The troop is trying to raise enough money to attend a Girl Scout camp in the Mat-Su Valley, including the price of airfare to Anchorage, so has worked hard to sell these mixed nuts and candies for the past two pre-Holiday seasons.

Members of Naknek Girl Scout Troop #5 getting ready to
deliver the shipment of nuts and candy they sold in 2011.

 

If you didn’t know that Girl Scouts sell nuts and candy, in addition to their world-famous cookies, it’s probably because the program was newly implemented in 2011.  Also, the nut and candy sale is considered a “friends and family” sale, which means that girls do not sell in public places, but rather take direct orders from family and friends. 

 

Last year, the Naknek Troop sold 465 units of the mixed nut, fruit, and chocolate assortments.  They nearly doubled that result this year, selling 860 units and earning $1 per unit for their troop. 

 

Troop leader Karen Pulice credits the support of the Naknek and King Salmon communities for helping the girls achieve their sales goals.  “We have a great community, and with Christmas right around the corner many people are buying gifts or stocking stuffers, “ Pulice said.  She also noted that many customers have commented on the high quality of the product. 

Girl Scouts in Naknek, Alaska are excited to drive across the frozen Naknek River
to deliver nuts and candy purchased by their neighbors in King Salmon.

 

Like Girl Scout cookie sales, nut and candy sales are not just about selling a high quality product.  Proceeds from these sales help girls pay for camp, educational and travel programs, and community service projects and scholarships that allow them to help other girls or give to charitable causes.

 

When Girl Scouts sell products, they also learn important business and life skills, such as goal-setting, financial planning, money management, and customer service. Product sales are a core component of Girl Scouts’ research-backed leadership development program, which teaches girls courage, confidence, character and the decision-making skills they’ll need to be leaders in their own communities and the larger world. 

 

When asked what the Naknek girls enjoy about Girl Scouting, Pulice responded, “I can only speak for my child, who loves working on earning badges, selling to raise money, and being part of something good.”

She added, “None of our girls has been to Girl Scout camp and they all want to go someday.  With the high price of airfare it may take a few more sale programs to reach our goal.” 

 

But, their hard work and determination is already paying off, and with the continued support of their community, friends, and family, we have no doubt they will achieve their goal, and learn some valuable lessons along the way.

 

Congratulations to Troop #5, and to every girl and troop that is working hard to sell nuts, candy, and cookies to reach their goals this year! 

 

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A Note From Sue Perles, GSAK's New CEO

This is my second week on the job as Girl Scouts of Alaska’s new Chief Executive Officer. I’m excited about the coming year and looking forward to meeting as many of you as possible.

I’m making arrangements to visit many of the communities Girl Scouts of Alaska serves. It’s important that I meet and talk with as many of you as possible about what’s working and what you might like to see improve, so that we can best support you in delivering the Girl Scout Leadership Experience. Stay tuned for more details about where I’ll be visiting and when.

Juliette Gordon Low speaks with some of Girl Scouts' 

earliest adult volunteers. Photo from here.

In the meantime, I thought I’d share with you a little bit about myself and why I wanted to be CEO of Girl Scouts of Alaska.

My family called Fairbanks home when I was a teenager. I spent summers working on the first all-women’s fire-fighting crew for the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), interning for Alaska’s congressman, and working on a research project for the Alaska Native Corporations at the University of Alaska’s Institute for Social and Economic Research.

During the academic year I earned a degree in economics at Princeton. Following graduation, I worked in Washington at the Congressional Budget Office and then headed to Harvard Business School where I earned a Masters in Business Administration. While I was in business school, the Rhodes Scholarship opened applications to women. I attended Oxford as Alaska’s first female Rhodes Scholar where I earned a doctorate in economics, writing my thesis about bidding theory and oil and gas lease auctions.

Since then, I have focused on business, working for a management consulting firm, a large bank, and a small mergers and acquisitions firm. Throughout those years, I always volunteered to help children’s after-school programs -- mostly children’s sports and recreation programs -- grow and flourish. 

Juliette Gordon Low understood the value of girls 

participating in sports and recreation.  With the help of 

volunteer Edith Johnston, Girl Scouting's first basketball 

tournament took place in Savannah, Georgia in 1912. 

Photo from here.

I understand what it is to be a volunteer and what it takes to offer successful after-school programs to children. Our girls deserve the very best we can offer and I look forward to working with you to bring an outstanding range of experiences to Alaska’s girls.

Collectively, volunteers contribute thousands of 
service hours to Girl Scouts. Photo from here.

I feel privileged to have this opportunity to work with you to make a difference for girls in Alaska. As you know, the programs and services delivered by Girl Scouts wouldn’t be possible without our 1,500 volunteers to serve as mentors, role models, chaperones, and friends to girls. 

Just as we always ask the girls what they want in order to keep our programs relevant and interesting to girls, I want to keep an open dialogue with our volunteers, to ensure that you, too, are engaged and have the resources to support the incredible experience of sharing your knowledge and wisdom with girls.

I’m interested in hearing from you. In the coming weeks and months, start looking for my Facebook posts on the Girl Scouts of Alaska Facebook page, and on this blog. Feel free to comment and respond directly to me. I’ll do my best to answer your questions and I always welcome your input and ideas.

I look forward to sharing this exciting journey with you!

Sue Perles
CEO
Girl Scouts of Alaska

Girl Scouts Announces New CEO Dr. Suzanne Perles

Girl Scouts of Alaska is pleased to announce that our board of directors has selected Suzanne R. "Sue" Perles as our new Chief Executive Officer.  Her first day on the job will be October 1, 2012.  

Ms. Perles brings a wealth of relevant experience to her new role, having served in high-level management roles for both the private and non-profit sectors, and founded and directed a successful volunteer-based youth speed skating program in California.

“Sue has the management skills to guide Girl Scouts to a new level of youth leadership development in Alaska,” said Girl Scouts of Alaska board chair Jane Angvik. “She has a great deal of experience leading teams of people to achieve goals, challenging all participants to stretch their expectations and results.”
 
“Girl Scouts of Alaska is building an exciting future for the state of Alaska by investing in many of our most promising young leaders," said Perles.  "I am excited to be a part of this organization that understands the valuable contribution of girls and women to our society and supports them to achieve their greatest potential.”

Ms. Perles lived in Fairbanks as a teenager, received a degree in economics from Princeton University, earned an MBA from Harvard, and was the first female Rhodes Scholar from Alaska, earning her doctorate from Oxford University in economics.

During summer breaks she served as an intern for Congressman Don Young, was a member of the Bureau of Land Management's first women's forest fighting crew, and worked at the University of Alaska's Institute of Social and Economic Research developing tools to assist with the implementation of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act.
Since 1983, Ms. Perles has worked in the private sector managing corporate mergers, acquisitions, and valuations of consumer products and retail companies. She has been a partner in her own firm since 1990 and has participated in the start-up of several businesses.

She has also been very involved in youth programs, having founded, raised funds for and managed volunteers for the Southern California Children’s Speed Skating School, an after-school program giving local children from diverse backgrounds the opportunity to learn an Olympic sport. Ms. Perles was a national ranked speed skater and has been a volunteer coach and referee.

Sue Perles presenting an award to a young speed skater. 

 Photo from here, by Jerry Search, SCSSA copyright 1999.
 

“The members of the board of Girl Scouts of Alaska consider Sue Perles to be an inspiring leader, excellent communicator and superb manager," added Jane Angvik.  "She is very able to oversee the human and financial assets of Girl Scouts, to expand community investment in Girl Scout programs.  Sue wants to use her talents to champion opportunities for girls and to give back to Alaska. We welcome her to Girl Scouts of Alaska.”

Vital Connections

When my daughters were little, the popular understanding of brain development was that the most important time was ages 0-5. While it's true that 90% of architecture in the brain is formed by age 6, new science now tells us that the wiring of the brain as well as the remaining 10% or architecture happens between 12 and 25 years of age (http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/10/teenage-brains/dobbs-text).

My response as a parent is, "Woo hoo, I get a second chance." When I was young and broke and overwhelmed, I loved being a parent, but there's a lot going on for a sleep deprived full-time working mom. In my young parent mind, if you hadn't done everything perfectly before junior high, you missed your chance. And, of course, none of us did it perfectly, which leads to mommy guilt.

Fast forward, my girls are now 12 and 14, and their brains are undergoing critical development at a micro level, which new technology tells us I still have the opportunity to nurture and influence. Imagine my relief, especially when a career in non-profit leadership, family disease impact, and divorce have happened in the meantime.

Turns out that the pre-frontal cortex is not completely developed until age 25. The pre-frontal cortex is known as the CEO of the brain, which oversees risk and reward, impulse control, and decisionmaking.

Equally important in terms of nurturing brain development, synapse pruning is the bulk of what's happening in our brains during the teen years. Synapse pruning is the natural process of weeding out the unused brain connections and strengthening and protecting the well used ones, much like thinning out seedlings in the garden.

The opportunity to influence that pruning is prime for my girls right now. Use it or lose it. Which is why I'm delighted to be rearranging my life to be more available to guide that process. It's also why I will be a lifelong supporter of Girl Scouts. In Girl Scouting, we expose girls to new experiences and new people they wouldn't get just from home and school. We strengthen their areas of interest and nurture skill building in new and practiced areas. Moreover, Girl Scouts guides girls in leadership, which focuses on self-knowledge, self-control, decisionmaking, responsibility, and working with and serving others.

We already knew that supportive adult relationships, meaningful activities, and volunteerism are protective factors for reducing risky behavior in youth. We now know much more depth about what is happening in older girls' brains. We also know that girls in Alaska want new experiences, adventure, and the opportunity to work with supportive adults and make a difference in the world.

Girl Scouts is perhaps most critical to girls 12-18, which is why we have to keep working to bring girls into Girl Scouting throughout the teen years. We can't, however lead our Senior Girl Scouts the same way we did when they were Brownies or Juniors. We have to play a supporting and guiding role to their leadership, or frankly they won't stick around. Girls need and want what we do in Girl Scouting, so let's make it work for them all the way through high school graduation, and perhaps even beyond.

Marge Stoneking has served as the first CEO of Girl Scouts of Alaska, from 2009-2012. Today marks her last day as a staff member, and she will now become a volunteer with Senior Girl Scouts.

It's true...Girl Scouting works! All of us in the Girl Scout family are already well aware of the value and benefits we've received as girls, and as adults, in Girl Scouting. Now we have proof for everyone else.

According to the latest Girl Scout Research Institute report Girl Scouting Works: The Alumnae Impact Study, women who were Girl Scouts as youth volunteer more, vote more, have a higher education level, rate their satisfaction with life higher, and even get paid more than those who weren't Girl Scouts.

Almost one-quarter of the United States population has been directly touched by Girl Scouts. Approximately one in every two adult women (49%) in the U.S. has at some point been a member of Girl Scouts, with the average length of time spent in Girl Scouts four years.

There are currently an estimated 59 million Girl Scout alumnae living in the U.S. If we apply the 49% Girl Scout alumnae rate to Alaska, there could be as many as 167,046 Alaskan women who have gained the benefits of a Girl Scout experience.

Girl Scouts makes our country stronger, and we make Alaska stronger, by building girls of courage, confidence, and character who make the world a better place...who grow up to be women who make a difference.

How long a girl is in Girl Scouts does have an effect on life outcomes. But even women who were only Girl Scouts 1-2 years have higher volunteer and community engagement rates than non-alumnae. That's great news, since taking action to make the world a better place is central to the mission of Girl Scouting, which is predicated on valuing oneself and others.

Women who are longer-term alumnae display a stronger sense of self: 71 percent consider themselves capable and competent, compared to 55 percent of shorter-term alumnae. In addition, 62 percent of longer-term Girl Scout alumnae think of themselves as leaders while 52 percent of short-term alumnae think of themselves as leaders.

We already know that more than two-thirds of women business owners and CEO's, and U.S. senators and congresswomen, were Girl Scouts.

But two-thirds of too few is not enough, which is why in its 100th anniversary year, Girl Scouts of the USA has affirmed its unwavering commitment to girls’ leadership with the launch of ToGetHer There. This multi-year effort will seek to create balanced leadership—the equal representation of women and men in leadership positions in all sectors and levels of society—within one generation.

Girl Scouts is uniquely positioned to help millions of highly qualified young women launch and sustain careers, overcome barriers that confront them, enter the ranks of senior leadership, and thrive there. Our goal is for Girl Scouts to be the catalyst for the gender-balanced leadership that this country needs.

One kind of support we know girls need is role models—successful older women they can learn from and emulate. There is no group of women better suited to do that than our Girl Scout alumnae.

Are you a Girl Scout alumnae? Would you be willing to talk to girls who want to be leaders but may not be sure how to go about it?  If so, there are many ways you can help.  Become a Girl Scout leader, volunteer to present at a Women of Science event, or just give a one-time talk about the work you do and how you got where you are. Please join our alumnae association, and contact our office to let us know how you might like to help.  http://alumnae.girlscouts.org/

You know Girl Scouting works. Won’t you help us spread the word?”