Girl Scouts of the USA at the United Nations

In the last several days NFCYM has received inquiries about a meeting at the United Nations with Girl Scouts of the USA and whether or not Girl Scouts of the USA distributed offensive material to girls. Our practice, as an organization, is to investigate such matters by going directly to the source involved. Therefore we contacted GSUSA and they have officially offered the statement below. Please share this with those in your diocese who have voiced any concerns with you. This is a good reminder that at times we can be quick to render judgment without fact, that not all information offered on the Internet is accurate, and that our organizational integrity is at stake when we fail to properly investigate allegations.

Statement from Girl Scouts USA

Earlier this month, Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) was honored to attend and participate in the 54th Commission on the Status of Women at the United Nations, where girls were encouraged to take action on global issues concerning women and girls. Our participation in that conference was recently the subject of numerous internet stories and blogs that are factually inaccurate and troubling. Here are the facts of that meeting:

The Girls Only Workshop was jointly hosted by Girl Scouts of the USA, UNICEF’s Working Group on Girls, Girls Learn International and The Grail. The meeting was only open to the girls and participating sponsors.
Only seven adults were in the room at the time of the meeting, each representing one of the sponsors of the event. No one from Catholic Family & Human Rights Institute was in the room to report on the event.
30-35 girls from across the world participated in this event. All teenagers.
The girls received a copy of the only document they were working on titled (“The Girls’ Statement”). No other documents were given to the girls as part of this event.
The room in question was also used to host other events over the course of the multi-day conference. Prior to our girls entering the room, we did not “sanitize’ the room to ensure that no trash or other items were left behind. We did request that those not associated with the sponsors to leave the room prior to our session.
The Girl Scouts of the USA was not contacted by Catholic Family & Human Rights Institute (C-FAM) regarding its initial story to discuss the facts of this event. Had they applied these basic journalistic standards, perhaps the true details of this event would have been reported.

Our Mission in Girl Scouting is to build girls of courage, confidence and character–who make the world a better place. We continue to be proud of our girls and look forward to showing the world what our girls can do. We thank everyone for their support of Girl Scouting.

Discounted Registrations for the Online Formation Program for Youth Ministers

The National Association of Catholic Youth Ministry Leaders (NACYML) and Ministry Training Source (MTS) have developed OnCourse, an online training program. Using online courses and retreats, OnCourse is the perfect formation program to dovetail into the busy schedules and time constraints of ministry. Additionally, OnCourse provides the opportunities for lay ministers to fulfill CEUs.

Download the informational flyer and registration form. (348 KB)
NACYML is currently offering significant discounts for the remaining two sessions, and is making available a group discount for dioceses and parishes registering either five or ten participants. Download the above brochure to take advantage of the discounted rates!

Youth Ministry Partnerships

The Alliance

NFCYM, NALM, NCCL, NPM, and NACFLM are working together on the revision of our competency based standards and on a possible national certification process for lay ecclesial ministers.

Encuentro

NFCYM, La Red, USCCB, and the Encuentro partner organizations are finalizing the strategic plan following up on Encuentro 2006.

Eye on the Horizon

The NFCYM, CCMA, NCYAMA, WTU, and NADDCM are working together on developing resources to create intentional pathways to pastoral leadership, supporting young people in their transitions from parish to campus to parish.

Virtual Symposium on Adolescent Catechesis

The Virtual Symposium on Adolescent Catechesis is now available for your use locally or regionally at MyCatholicVoice.
A complete leader's guide along with conference video of major presentations from the National Symposium held in November 2008 is available free of charge thanks to the Partnership for Adolesecnt Catechesis. (11/21/08)
View a ten-minute clip of highlights from the National Symposium on Adolescent Catechesis on YouTube prepared by Scott Miller, Archdiocese of Baltimore.