GIRL SCOUT COUNCIL OF THE SOUTHERN APPALACHIANS INC
1567 DOWNTOWN WEST BLVD, KNOXVILLE, TN 37919 www.girlscoutcsa.org

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Organizations Filed Purposes: TO PROVIDE DIRECT SERVICES TO THE COMMUNITY FOR THE ADVANCEMENT AND DEVELOPMENT OF GIRLS AND YOUNG WOMEN.

TO BUILD GIRLS OF COURAGE, CONFIDENCE, AND CHARACTER WHO MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE.

THE GIRL SCOUT COUNCIL OF THE SOUTHERN APPALACHIANS (GSCSA) BUILDS GIRLS OF COURAGE, CONFIDENCE AND CHARACTER, WHO MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE. WE PROVIDE LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMMING THROUGH THE GIRL SCOUT LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE AND GIRL SCOUT OUTREACH, SERVING GIRLS IN GRADES K-12 IN 46 COUNTIES IN VIRGINIA, TENNESSEE AND GEORGIA. THE COUNCIL ENDED THE 2020 MEMBERSHIP YEAR (OCT. 1, 2019 SEPT. 30, 2020) WITH 9,221 GIRL MEMBERS AND 3,833 ADULT MEMBERS. DURING THE 2020 MEMBERSHIP YEAR, 7,312 GIRLS PARTICIPATED IN 258 PROGRAMS, EITHER ORGANIZED BY GSCSA STAFF OR ONE OF OUR COMMUNITY PROGRAM PARTNERS. GIRLS DID EVERYTHING FROM STEM WORKSHOPS TO RAFTING TO HELPING OTHERS, MANY EARNING BADGES ALONG THE WAY. IN THE GIRL SCOUT LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE, GIRLS LEARN THROUGH ACTIVITIES THAT EARN THEM BADGES FOR THINGS LIKE LEADERSHIP, STEM, FINANCIAL AND BUSINESS LITERACY, HEALTHY LIVING, THE ENVIRONMENT, AND GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP.JUST AS THE GLOBAL PANDEMIC AFFECTED ALL ASPECTS OF SOCIETY, IT ALSO AFFECTED GIRL SCOUTS. MANY PROGRAMS WERE DISRUPTED OR POSTPONED, TROOP MEETINGS HAD TO BE CANCELLED, AND ENTREPRENEUR PROGRAMS WERE INTERRUPTED, BUT THROUGH ALL THE UNCERTAINLY, GIRL SCOUTS ADAPTED AND FOUND NEW WAYS TO SUPPORT GIRLS. THIS SUMMER, WE INTRODUCED VIRTUAL BADGE WORKSHOPS WHICH WERE EXTREMELY SUCCESSFUL. WE PROVIDED 55 WORKSHOPS, MANY WHICH WERE MULTI-SESSION, FOR A TOTAL OF 99 ZOOM CALLS. 766 GIRLS FROM GSCSA PARTICIPATED ALONG WITH 388 OTHER GIRL SCOUTS FROM ACROSS THE COUNTRY. ON ONE PARTICULAR CALL, THERE WERE GIRLS FROM 23 DIFFERENT STATES PARTICIPATING. AND THERE WERE MANY GIRLS FROM ACROSS THE GLOBE WHO JOINED IN FROM LOCATIONS SUCH AS INDIA, GERMANY AND PUERTO RICO.WHILE GIRLS ARE DEVELOPING LIFE SKILLS, HAVING FUN AND MAKING FRIENDS, THEY ALSO EXPERIENCE: 1) AN ALL-GIRL ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH THEY ARE MORE LIKELY TO TAKE RISKS AND STEP FORWARD TO LEAD2) A WELCOMING, SUPPORTIVE, RESPECTFUL AND INCLUSIVE CULTURE WHERE GIRLS CAN DEVELOP CONFIDENCE AND A STRONG SENSE OF SELF, HEALTHY RELATIONSHIPS, THE ABILITY TO BE RESOURCEFUL PROBLEM SOLVERS AND A CIVIC ORIENTATION TO TAKE ACTION3) A DEDICATED NETWORK OF CAREFULLY SCREENED AND WELL-SUPPORTED VOLUNTEERS WHO MENTOR GIRLS ON THEIR LEADERSHIP JOURNEYS4) A PROGRAM THAT IS CONTINUALLY UPDATED TO BE RELEVANT TO THE CHANGING ISSUES GIRLS FACEGIRLS WHO ARE GIRL SCOUTS DO BETTER IN SCHOOL AND, AS ADULTS, ARE BETTER EDUCATED, HAVE A HIGHER INCOMELEVEL, ARE MORE ACTIVE AS COMMUNITY VOLUNTEERS, AND VOTE MORE OFTEN THAN GIRLS WHO WEREN'T. GIRL SCOUTALUMNAE SAY GIRL SCOUTING PREPARED THEM TO FACE LIFE'S CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES WITH RESOURCEFULNESS, INGENUITY AND DISCIPLINE. COMPARED TO WOMEN WHO WEREN'T GIRL SCOUTS, OUR ALUMNAE FEEL MORE CAPABLE AND COMPETENT IN THEIR LIVES, HAVE MORE SUPPORTIVE SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS, AND FEEL MORE OPTIMISTIC ABOUT THEIR FUTURES. GIRL SCOUTS PROVIDES THE DIFFERENTIATING FACTORS THAT BENEFIT GIRLS. GIRLS SCOUTS ARE MORE LIKELY THAN NONGIRL SCOUTS TO: 1) PARTICIPATE IN A VARIETY OF FUN AND CHALLENGING ACTIVITIES, LIKE THOSE INVOLVING THE OUTDOORS, STEM, AND CIVIC ENGAGEMENT; 2) ENGAGE IN ACTIVITIES THAT ARE GIRL-LED, COOPERATIVE, AND HANDS-ON; AND, 3) HAVE ADULTS IN THEIR LIVES WHO HELP THEM THINK ABOUT THEIR FUTURE AND PURSUE THEIR GOALS. (GIRL SCOUT RESEARCH INSTITUTE, GIRL SCOUTING WORKS: THE ALUMNAE IMPACT STUDY, 2012 AND THE GIRL SCOUT IMPACT STUDY, 2017)GIRL SCOUTS PERFORMED NEARLY 15,000 HOURS OF COMMUNITY SERVICE HOURS IN THE COMMUNITIES ACROSS OUR COUNCIL. AN IMPRESSIVE EXAMPLE OF GIRLS GIVING BACK TO THEIR COMMUNITIES WAS DEMONSTRATED DURING OUR 4TH ANNUAL FOOD DRIVE FOR FOOD BANKS ACROSS OUR COUNCIL. THIS YEAR, 2,605 POUNDS OF FOOD WERE DONATED, WHICH HELPED THE FOOD BANKS PROVIDE MUCH NEEDED MEALS TO FAMILIES ACROSS OUR SERVICE AREA. MORE THAN 700 PATCHES WERE GIVEN TO GIRLS WHO PARTICIPATED.WE ALSO HAD TWO SUCCESSFUL PRODUCT PROGRAMS THAT HELPED FUND ALL THAT FUN: FALL PRODUCT AND THE COOKIE PROGRAM. GSCSA IS PROUD TO SAY THAT 6,090 GIRL SCOUTS SOLD 1,666,520 BOXES OF COOKIES AND GIRL AND TROOP PARTICIPATION WERE AT AN ALL-TIME HIGH FOR THE FALL PRODUCT PROGRAM. MORE THAN 50,000 BOXES OF COOKIES WERE DONATED TO FIRST RESPONDERS, ASSISTED LIVING FACILITIES AND FRIENDS OF THE TROOPS. BY SELLING COOKIES AND FALL PRODUCT, GIRLS DEVELOP FIVE ESSENTIAL SKILLS - GOAL SETTING, DECISION MAKING, MONEY MANAGEMENT, PEOPLE SKILLS, AND BUSINESS ETHICS - ALL OF WHICH HELP THEM SUCCEED TODAY AND IN THE FUTURE. THEY GROW THEIR CONFIDENCE AND PRACTICE LEADERSHIP, TOO. ACCORDING TO A RECENT STUDY CONDUCTED BY THE GIRL SCOUT RESEARCH INSTITUTE, GIRLS HAVE AN ENTREPRENEURIAL MINDSET AND WANT TO HAVE CAREERS THAT ALLOW THEM TO BE THE MAKERS AND CREATORS OF TOMORROW.WHILE SUMMER RESIDENT CAMP WAS POSTPONED IN 2020 DUE TO COVID-19, WE WERE STILL ABLE TO OFFER OUTDOOR TROOP CAMPING AT OUR BEAUTIFUL CAMPS FOR MORE THAN 1,730 ADULTS AND GIRLS. OF COURSE, ALL SAFETY AND PHYSICAL DISTANCING PROTOCOLS WERE FOLLOWED TO PROTECT EVERYONE'S HEALTH AND SAFETY. WE ARE ALREADY GEARING UP FOR THE RETURN OF CAMP IN 2021 WITH ALL SAFETY MEASURES IN PLACE IN ORDER TO PROVIDE AN UNFORGETTABLE CAMP EXPERIENCE FOR GIRLS. OUR GIRL SCOUT OUTREACH PROGRAM HAS GROWN SINCE ITS LAUNCH IN THE SUMMER OF 2018. THIS YEAR WE WERE ABLE TO SERVE 452 GIRLS THROUGH 25 OUTREACH SITES. GSCSA RECOGNIZES THAT NOT EVERY GIRL IN OUR AREA IS ABLE TO ACCESS GIRL SCOUTS BECAUSE OF LIMITATIONS DUE TO FAMILY FINANCES, TRANSPORTATION, OR FINDING VOLUNTEERS TO LEAD TROOPS IN SPECIFIC AREAS. THAT'S WHERE THE GSCSA OUTREACH PROGRAM COMES IN TO ENSURE GIRLS CAN JOIN GIRL SCOUTS AND GAIN THE SKILLS AND CONFIDENCE THAT IS SO NECESSARY TO SUCCESS. OUR OUTREACH PROGRAM IS STAFF-LED IN COMMUNITY CENTERS AND SCHOOLS FROM SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA THROUGHOUT ALL OF EASTERN TENNESSEE AND ON INTO NORTHWEST GEORGIA. THE PROGRAM IS DESIGNED TO BRING THE GIRL SCOUT LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE (GSLE) DIRECTLY TO THE GIRL IN HER COMMUNITY.GIRL SCOUTING GOES WAY BEYOND COOKIES AND BADGES AND ENCOURAGES GIRLS TO MAKE REAL, CONCRETE CHANGE FOR THE BETTER IN THEIR COMMUNITIES. ONE WAY OUR SENIOR AND AMBASSADOR LEVEL GIRLS DO THIS IS BY WORKING TO EARN A GOLD AWARD, THE HIGHEST HONOR A GIRL SCOUT CAN EARN. BY COMPLETING A GOLD AWARD PROJECT, GIRLS TACKLE ISSUES THAT ARE DEAR TO THEM AND DRIVE LASTING CHANGE IN THEIR COMMUNITIES AND BEYOND. TWENTY-FOUR AMAZING GIRLS IN OUR COUNCIL EARNED THEIR GOLD AWARD THIS YEAR, QUITE AN IMPRESSIVE ACHIEVEMENT!

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