COBB COUNTY, Ga. — Some local Boy Scouts are getting used to their new uniforms. The scouts are a first in their school because they are girls.
Hayden Black and Katie Timko, both 10 years old, are some of the first members of the brand-new Cub Scout den in Cobb County for girls – Pack 700.
"I've always wanted to do it ever since first grade, ever since I heard about it because I heard about all this cool stuff," Katie told Channel 2 Action News.
Late last year, the Boy Scouts of America cleared the way for girls to join.
But a group that teaches leadership and independence for girls already calls the whole thing a disappointment.
Stouffer contacted the Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta CEO, who said girls will do better in their girl-led, girl-focused curriculum.
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Hayden's dad is an Eagle Scout and her parents say the Boy Scout den at the Walker School and their activities are just the best fit for their family.
“Girl Scouts or Boy Scouts, it’s an amazing program. In this day and age, I think any child involved in scouting is a great thing for everybody, so the more people in scouting, the better,” father Doug Black said.
“I hope she’ll gain leadership skills and outdoor skills,” Samantha Black said.
Pack 700 advisor Wayne Marcinko said the local response is overwhelmingly supportive.
“I want to welcome the girls, and we want them to participate right alongside and just have a great time,” Marcinko told Channel 2's Linda Stouffer.
“It just sounds overall fun, like the camping and that kind of stuff,” Hayden said.
Pack 700 is part of a wave of 3,000 girls signing up as Cub Scouts this year. Next year, girls will have the option to start earning even the highest rank, Eagle Scout.
The Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta responded to this story saying they're disappointed about the decision for Boy Scouts to admit girls. However, they said it should not have a major impact on their membership.
Here is the Girl Scouts' full statement:
"Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta is disappointed by the decision of the Boy Scouts to admit girls as members, as we do not believe this is in the long-term best interest of girls or boys. Girls and boys have unique developmental needs, and there is substantial academic research that demonstrates that single-gender environments allow children a safe space to tap into their leadership potential. This is particularly important for girls, who often do not seek out leadership opportunities in a co-ed environment. While Boy Scouts is marketing its new program as a convenience to families, we believe that leadership development for girls should be based on more than just convenience.
"The Girl Scout Leadership Experience is one-of-a-kind leadership development program with more than a century of proven results. More than half of all female members of Congress were Girl Scouts, along with every female secretary of state, nearly every female astronaut who has flown in space and Fortune 500 CEOs Virginia Rometty (IBM), Gina Drosos (Proctor & Gamble) and Susan Wojcicki (YouTube). From coding to camping, everything we do in Girl Scouts is girl-led and girl-focused, and our curriculum is designed to address how girls learn best.
"Our understanding is that only about 3,000 girls nationally have chosen to join Cub Scouts, compared to the more than 1.8 million girls who are Girl Scouts. We do not expect the Boy Scouts’ decision to have a measurable impact on our membership.
“At a time when fewer women are CEOs of Fortune 500 companies than men named James, we don’t believe that a leadership development program designed and run by men for boys is the best choice to develop the leadership potential of girl,” said Amy Dosik, Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta CEO. “Girl Scouts program offerings – from high adventure in the great outdoors to design thinking and engineering badges that represent the careers of tomorrow – are unmatched, and we believe that when parents compare the two programs side-by-side they will continue to choose Girl Scouts for their daughters."
Anyone interested in having their child join the Cub Scouts, can call 770-989-8820.
Cox Media Group
