Girl Scouts is for every girl.
At Girl Scouts Western Pennsylvania, girls come as they are and be who they are with the unwavering support of council staff, volunteers, families, and communities.
Girl Scouts is a single-gender, girl-centered youth program. We welcome and advocate for girls of all abilities and backgrounds.
If a child is recognized by the family and her community as a girl and lives culturally as a girl, then Girl Scouts is an organization that can serve her in a setting that is both emotionally and physically safe.
This is made possible through a partnership and clear expectations between Girl Scouts Western Pennsylvania, volunteer(s), and the child and their family. Girl Scouts Western Pennsylvania’s trained staff will work directly with volunteers and families to ensure the best outcome for the child.
A message from our CEO
At Girl Scouts Western Pennsylvania, we believe in the power and
potential of every girl and see in them the character and passion that
will truly make this world a better place. We all have a role in
ensuring a bright future for girls, and we must work together to help
shape a world that they deserve—one in which every person has
equitable opportunities to thrive.
Patricia A. Burkart
Chief Executive Officer
Girl Scouts
Western Pennsylvania
Our Commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusivity, and Belonging
At Girl Scouts Western Pennsylvania, we are committed to creating a safe and welcoming environment for all through a shared responsibility of every member.
We strive to create a culture where everyone feels valued and believes that our processes and outcomes are fair.
We will make reasonable accommodations when possible to support a girl’s physical and emotional well-being while she’s participating in council activities.
We welcome adult volunteers who can be positive role models to girls and have developed appropriate safeguards regarding roles and responsibilities to ensure that girls receive proper supervision and support.
Nurturing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
To ensure that we best serve every girl, our strategic plan includes a priority to elevate diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) work at our council. As part of this plan so far, we have:
- Created a staff pledge to be an A.I.D.E., which stands for Ally for Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity. Through this pledge, council employees reaffirm their commitment to serving and advocating for every girl.
- Empowered staff teams to evaluate functional areas—from human resources policies to our girl programs—to make recommendations for improvement.
- We formed five staff working groups who worked for eight months to identify opportunities, gaps, and next steps for our council in five areas of focus—accountability, measurement and decision making, members and volunteers, programs and services, and staff demographics.
- The council leadership team is reviewing the recommendations to determine the implementation timeline and to identify tactics that need more research and discussion.
Updates on our DEI strategies will be shared at Town Hall meetings and the Annual Meeting.
