To The Editor:
In reference to July 30 story “Girl Scouts’ CEO Breaking the Mold,” while I appreciate an article about Girl Scouts appearing in your business journal, and particularly on the front page, I am disappointed by some of the stated inaccuracies about my vision and the reasons for the realignment that is taking place. I would like to clarify the strategy for the creation of Girl Scouts of Connecticut and my strategy and vision for our future. Let me emphatically say, Girl Scouts of Connecticut is not poised to become a corporation, we are, and will always be, a girl-centered, volunteer driven organization.
In June 2004, Girl Scouts of the USA enlisted the services of Willie Pietersen, a professor of the practice of management at Columbia Business School, to help them develop a strategy to ensure future success and growth. After identifying Girls Scouts’ strengths, challenges, and imperatives for success, they zeroed in on five strategic priorities that now represent the organization’s focus.
It is this strategy that best articulates why Girl Scouts of Connecticut is being created and it is this strategy that is the foundation for my work as the new CEO in Connecticut.
Girl Scouts of Connecticut, as of Oct. 1 will be the largest organization in the state serving girls, with 55,000 girl members and 21,000 adult volunteers from across the state. We have 17 camps for girls, a combination of residential and day camps.
The realignment of the five existing Girl Scout Councils (Housatonic, Northwest, Southwest, Trails and Valley) into one state-wide council is a growth strategy. The number of professional staff who will be available to support and facilitate the work of our volunteers will be larger than the current census of the five councils combined. With the resources of five councils melded into one state-wide council, Girl Scouts of Connecticut will be equal to and greater than the sum of our parts.
My vision for Girl Scouts of Connecticut is based on our mission of building “girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place” and grounded in our Girl Scout Promise and Law.
Jennifer Smith Turner
CEO
Girl Scouts of Connecticut
