Each year, we develop a federal legislative agenda to advance key issues and promote leadership opportunities for girls. The agenda is informed by our extensive research and program experience in working with girls for over 100 years.
The Girl Scout 2020 Legislative Agenda (PDF) supports polices that foster leadership and educational opportunities for girls and nonprofit organizations serving youth. Specifically, Girl Scouts' public policy priorities are:
Increasing Girls’ Involvement in STEM
We want every
girl to have opportunities to explore and build an interest in
science, technology, engineering, and math. We strongly support
policy efforts that invest in STEM education programs and develop
career pipelines that inspire and enable girls in grades K to 12 and
those in underrepresented minorities to enter the STEM workforce.
Strengthening Girls’ Entrepreneurial and Financial Literacy Skills
Ninety percent of girls say it’s important to learn how to
manage money, but only 12 percent of girls today currently feel very
confident making financial decisions. We want to change that. For over
a century, financial literacy has been an integral part of our
programming and policy agenda.
Foster Healthy Relationships Among Girls
According to
the Girl Scout Research Institute, about 30 percent of girls have
experienced some form of bullying or relational aggression. We support
policies that invest in educational and training programs for youth to
reduce relational aggression, bullying, and adolescent violence.
Expanding Access to Outdoor Adventures
For over a century, outdoor activities have been a cornerstone
of the Girl Scout experience, and we remain committed to ensuring that
girls have the opportunity to take part in everything our camps and
our nation’s natural resources have to offer. We support policy
efforts to help girls get outdoors regularly and in varied ways.
Fostering Global Citizenship and a Global Voice for Girls
We are dedicated to ensuring that girls have opportunities to
develop an increased awareness of the larger world—even if they don't
travel beyond their own community—so they can grow into responsible
global citizens.
Upholding a Strong Nonprofit Community
We support
policies and activities that help us achieve our mission—and that help
nonprofits incentivize charitable giving, as well as recruit and
retain staff and volunteers.
