Girl Scouts working to be in every Oklahoma City middle school

OKLAHOMA CITY – As students head back to class, many kids in Oklahoma City will be heading to new schools under the Pathway 2 Greatness plan.

While it can be a tumultuous time, a local organization is hoping to ease children into the transition.

Girl Scouts Western Oklahoma and the Oklahoma City Public School District are working together to provide Girl Scout programming at every middle school this fall.

“Girl Scouts Western Oklahoma is already present in our schools and they represent what we look for in a partner,” said Sean McDaniel, Oklahoma City Public Schools superintendent. “Through our Pathway to Greatness plan, our 5th-grade students will now be in middle school and will need extra support, Girl Scouts has offered to do that. Their curriculum focuses on anti-bullying, science, technology, engineering and math, life skills and so much more. These are all things that will help our young ladies to develop the tools they need to succeed in school and beyond. This partnership also aligns with the launch of the EmbraceOKC initiative, which provides a tailored approach to our student and family services that are focused on mental, physical, social, and emotional health.”

Girl Scouts provide a chance for every girl to learn new things and make friends.

Through anti-bullying and friendship building activities introduced at the beginning of the school year, girls learn about healthy relationships and how to stop bullying. Later, girls will be able to work through the various STEM badges to gain skills from coding to robotics and aerospace.

“Currently, Girl Scouts serves 2,500 girls through various programs delivered in a school setting, led by our staff,” said Shannon Evers, GSWESTOK Chief Executive Officer. “We are excited to start offering this on a larger scale and help support the OKCPS curriculum. While we will be in each of the middle schools, the programs will be a bit different at each, depending on what topics the girls choose to focus on – bringing in the girl led aspect of Girl Scouts. So at one time, a group could be doing hands-on robotics while another has women in cybersecurity coming in to talk about their career and what it took to get there.”

Organizers say they are currently looking for site facilitators to lead each group for one hour per week.