Hawaii-based Girl Scouts organization intends to expand operations on the Big Island
The Girl Scouts of Hawaiʻi (GSH) has announced a new statewide initiative aimed at increasing accessibility for low-income and rural girls by establishing a troop on every public elementary school campus in the state. This ambitious plan includes Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Lānaʻi, Molokaʻi, Maui, and Hawaiʻi Island.
The key elements of this initiative include hiring 12 full-time staff members to serve as trained facilitators who will lead multiple troops within close geographic regions. Each staff member will support about 10 troops and 150 girls, addressing the shortage of volunteers and the inability to start new troops due to leadership gaps.
While some volunteer roles like cookie manager and treasurer will continue, their time commitment will be reduced, making it easier for families and communities to participate without heavy volunteer burdens. GSH is committed to ensuring that any public elementary school that agrees to host a troop will have one, effectively removing barriers related to access and availability of local troops.
The new initiative will provide girls with diverse experiences including coding workshops, environmental stewardship, financial literacy through the Girl Scout Cookie Program, cultural education grounded in Hawaiian values, and outdoor adventures. These opportunities are designed to broaden the horizons of girls regardless of their economic background or geography.
This effort builds on an existing model used in 25 Title I schools, where professional facilitators support volunteers. The new hires, funded by grants and donations to GSH, will have a July 28 start date.
The Girl Scouts of Hawaiʻi currently has 28 troops on the Big Island in Kona, Waimea, Hilo, Ka'u, and Puna, providing access to Girl Scouts for 358 girls. With the addition of these new hires, GSH aims to be in every school on Big Island, potentially doubling the number of participants.
Local troop leader Nikki Premo, who grew up as a Girl Scout in Southern California, is eagerly waiting to start leading troops for her daughter, who will turn 5. Each new employee will be in charge of 10 troops comprised of 150 Girl Scouts, adding 120 new troops statewide.
The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a significant drop in the number of Girl Scouts throughout the state due to school closures eliminating many primary troop gathering places. However, the Girl Scouts of Hawaiʻi is actively working to remove obstacles for girls in low-income and rural areas to join the organization.
The Girl Scouts of Hawaiʻi's troop activities follow the four "pillars" of outdoors, entrepreneurship, life skills, and STEM, which have guided the Hawaii branch since its founding in 1917. The entrepreneurship skills girls learn through cookie sales help fund the troops, allowing them to do "destination" trips like the one Premo organized for her girls to Alaska.
In summary, the Girl Scouts of Hawaiʻi are using a hybrid model of professional staff leading troops combined with minimal volunteer support to expand membership statewide into all public elementary schools, specifically targeting increased participation of low-income and rural girls by overcoming traditional barriers tied to volunteer availability and geographic isolation.
- The new statewide initiative by Girl Scouts of Hawaiʻi will incorporate various learning opportunities like coding workshops, financial literacy, environmental stewardship, cultural education, and outdoor adventures, fostering personal growth and education-and-self-development for girls across communities.
- In line with their commitment to inclusivity, the Girl Scouts of Hawaiʻi aims to establish troops in every public elementary school, addressing geographic isolation faced by low-income and rural girls, thereby increasing accessibility and fostering community involvement in personal-growth and learning experiences.
