kwality

Correction to my last post - girls 15 - 17 find the materials to be childish, Not 5 - 17. (Ha Ha, my face is red...) Also, for some reason the snip from nikitee's post got dropped out. The reference was to the blend of traditional and S2B/BGFG. Kwality

nikitee posted: I'm glad you are having success with a girl run troop! So are we - and we have been doing this for almost 6 years, since our girls became Cadettes, as we were trained to do under the "Traditional" program. (There was NO S2B at that time.) Please understand that girl-run troops for older girls (now known as BGFG)is not some NEW great thing that only happened due to S2B. Many years ago when I was trained as a leader, the progresssion model for troop responsibilities was that at the Cadette level girls should be 75% or more in charge of the troop, and Seniors 95%. (The 5% was the finance and legal stuff the girls can't do.) I have a feeling that even without S2B, your girls would have the same great troop experience, because you are letting them control the agenda, as it should be. Well done! The problem for troops and girls who don't like S2B has nothing to do with the operation of the troop by girls. It is the identity and recognition of girl scouts, and the meaning of recognitions and awards. Your girls may love thier charm bracelets, but I'm sure the average citizen on the street of your town would not identify charm bacelets as indicators of GS achievement. Your girls may adore their black and pink tees and pink tie dye socks, but would the local VFW ask them to lay a ceremonial wreath at the cemetery on Memorial day, wearing them? Or would they ask the boy scouts, in their more appropriate serious uniforms? Think about it... GS is about Fun, and Service, and for the oldest girls (young women), earning Respect. Respect is not about wearing what you think is cool. Respect is what you communicate to others, and what they confer back upon you, based on your actions and your image. Like it or not, image matters. Our older Girl Scouts in Senior High School want their actions and image to be taken seriously, as mature adults. Sorry, but our young women see nothing serious about charms, set your own achievment level awards, and spagetti-strap uniforms. All the great actions they do (service projects and achievement) could easily get overwhelmed by the frivolous image. Your girls may change their opinions on their uniform appearance as they mature. I can tell you as a female professional in a male-dominated technical field, it's a tough enough job to be taken seriously when you are wearing the professional work clothes and have all the credentials on display. You wouldn't even get the chance to have the job if you chose to wear the latest NY fashions and displayed your diplomas and certificates in a pretty scrapbook instead of in nice, boring, busniesslike frames! Comments below are not directed toward anyone in particular, just a general rant... There are some good things in S2B, but does GSUSA need to throw away our community respect to do this? Why can't they keep the option of inexpensive patches and a serious uniform? Have the women of the last 2 generations worked so hard to gain equality and respect that we can afford to throw it away? is the appeal to 6-8th grade girls so important that we should alienate the high school young women in our program? And while I'm asking all these questions, why should the new program materials be so overpriced? Why are so many of these materials so self-centered, without any emphasis on service? Why weren't they well-edited and reviewed to ensure they did not recommend such things as watching R-Rated movies? Why do our 5-17 year old members think these materials are so childish? Obviously, there is a lot of corrective actions needed here... Kwality

I know that in our GS council all leaders are screened with a background check. There are policies to protect girls from sex offenders. There are policies for male leader actions, to avoid even the possibility of improper behavior. (For example, they must always have a second adult, preferrably female, present.) Whenever practical, all leaders (male and female) stay in separate tents or cabins when camping. When I was trained, we were told, "There is no place in Girl Scouts for sexual activity, of any type. Discussions relating to controversial or sexual topics (including discussions about personal safety - rape prevention, teen pregnancy, or abstinence) require special parental notification and approval." That doesn't sound like promotion of any sexual agenda to me! However, Girl Scouts, unlike Boy Scouts, does not pre-emptively ask leaders (or scouts) about their sexual orientation. If the policy is that sexual activity has no place in Girl Scouting, period, it would be hard to justify asking this question. If some people see this as endorsing an alternative lifestyle,there isn't much you can do to convince them otherwise. I wish I could. For example, I can ask you, as a cub leader, do the boy scouts ask about, and eliminate from leadership, any man who has ever cheated on his wife? What about a single guy who is a "player"? If they do not, this does not mean that they promote/support a promiscuous lifestyle, does it? I don't think so! (I have 2 brothers who are Eagle scouts, this is not a slam against the Boy Scouts.) I just get depressed when people insinuate support from a lack of inquiry. And let's not even get into what people do on their taxes, or if they use the office copier for scout forms, etc. If leaders must be PERFECTLY VIRTUOUS, we would have no leaders at all. No, we only promise to TRY to live by the GS law, keep the promise, follow safety wise, take training, attend SU meetings, fill out all paperwork, get first aid and CPR renewed, balance the troop checkbook, pay for our cookies on time, and try to make it all fun for the girls as they learn to be better people. Who has time for sex after all that anyway? (Don't ask my husband that one...) Carla

I see it's been a while since anyone posted to this thread. But if you are still looking for a movie with a group of girls working together, try Bend It Like Beckham. It's a British film about two teen girls who play soccer, and how they handle their families support for their sport(or lack.) One girl is British,the other British-(Asian)Indian. The film is very funny and very engaging, the acting is great, the characters are very realistic. I think it was rated PG-13, and I would not show it to younger girls, as there are some more mature themes - cultural clashes, deceiving parents, conflicts over boyfriends, sexual orientation for one male character, a small amount of bad language etc. There is nothing sexually explicit (I think one or two boy-girl kisses). But you may want to preview it for your group first. The other drawback is some of the accents are hard for our American ears to understand! I feel the positives far outweigh the negatives for this film. In fact, our pastor at church showed this in his monthly movie activity for the church (see the movie, discuss it afterward) and everyone was very positive about it. It would be very good for Cadettes and Seniors.

I just found this forum and am glad to see so many others have the same concerns as our Cadette-Senior troop. Even the two most trendy girls in the troop called the charms "lame". I am wondering, several writers have pointed out that, "the girls need to respond to national with their opinions." OK, where should they send their input? Two girls from our troop who are about to start their gold projects (to complete them before the studio 2B requirements are mandatory) finally decided to write. They are totally turned off by the entire concept and how it is being presented to girls and the public. They checked out the studio 2B web site, and sent an email to the "contact us" link. Their letter was thoughtful and factual, and analyzed the program presentation well. (They are both in AP English and the entire course is on analysis of rhetorical techniques in non-fiction. Trust me, the letter was intelligent and insightful, not simply name calling.) That was almost 3 weeks ago. The girl who sent the email told me last weekend that she was upset because they have not had any response yet. Has national set up any person or office to review and respond to the feedback? Or does this need to be sent elsewhere? How will they know someone cares, or is listening? I will share the conclusion of their letter with forum readers: "These changes in the Girl Scout program concern us; we would like Girl Scouts to continue as a respected organization known for helping girls achieve their best and contribute to the community. We feel the Studio 2B program does not support those goals, aiming more for quantity of members than quality. While realizing that we do not speak for all girls currently in scouts, or even all the girls in our troop, we would not put our own daughters in this program if it still existed in the future. Overall, we feel that the Studio 2B program reveals a troubling change in the Girl Scout program from what Juleitte Low intended it to be - an organization in which girls could grow into confident women who make valuable contributions to society."