Girls Scouts of Orange County
The mission of Girl Scouts of Orange County (GSOC) is to build girls of courage, confidence, and character who make the world a better place. GSOC's vision is to create the best leadership development experiences for ALL girls in Orange County as they participate in programs in five pillars of STEM, Entrepreneurship, Life Skills, Outdoors, and Arts.
Launched in 2015, the GSOC STEM Consortium is the first collaboration of its kind in Orange County to bring leading local STEM companies together to support diverse and enriching STEM programs and experiences for girls. Through STEM Consortium supported programming, nearly 5,000 girls from throughout Orange County tackle ambitious challenges and earn skill-building badges in high-demand fields such as cybersecurity, computer programming, engineering, and construction.
About the Program
The STEM Consortium encourages girls’ interest in STEM subjects, builds their self-confidence and gives them a much needed edge in a rapidly changing workforce to help propel them into the future.
- Introduction to STEM Concepts - Girls participate in activities such as interactive games, simple science experiments, engineering challenges using everyday materials, and visits to local STEM corporations to ignite curiosity about STEM careers.
- STEM Skills Development – Girl Scouts engage in problem solving, metacognition, and critical thinking through STEM activities, fostering valuable skills essential for future academic and professional success.
- Technical Skills Training – Girls Scouts have opportunities to learn diverse technical skills like woodworking, welding, coding, biology, environmental engineering, and computer sciences, equipping them with practical knowledge that can lead to skills in STEM.
- Career Preparation & Professional Development – Girl Scouts receive guidance on educational paths and career planning through resume building, interview preparation, and networking activities.
- Mentorship & Role Models – By providing female instructors and mentors who are successful in STEM careers, the aim is to empower Girl Scouts to confidently pursue STEM fields. Connecting girls with successful female STEM professions provides insight into what is possible for them and what steps they need to take on their STEM career journeys.
In partnership with STEM Consortium members, GSOC offers more than 85 STEM badges to earn and learn from annually. This type of year-round programming provides hands-on, experiential out-of-classroom learning opportunities that complement national and state science standards, while connecting the dots from classroom textbooks to the real world. The annual STEM Expo showcases STEM, robots, innovation, creativity and resourcefulness to 400 girls in grades 4 through 8 and is made possible by STEM Consortium support.
GSOC’s STEM events are often led by local female STEM professionals, providing the role models and mentorship girls need so they know and understand that they do have a place in STEM. To further illustrate that women can, should be, and are leaders in STEM, the Argyros Girl Scout Leadership Center in Newport Beach serves as Orange County’s STEM hub for Girl Scouts and houses the INSPIRE program, GSOC's signature interactive-multimedia program through which girls virtually meet extraordinary women spanning diverse careers and learn the vital role STEM plays in what they do. This allows girls the unique space to thrive, succeed, and sometimes fail to gain resiliency, in a safe environment among their peers. Programming is offered for free or at low-cost fees with financial assistance always available.
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About Girl Scouts of Orange County
The mission of Girl Scouts of Orange County (GSOC) is to build girls of courage, confidence, and character who make the world a better place. Ultimately, our vision is to create the best leadership development experiences for ALL girls in Orange County as they participate in programs in our five pillars of STEM, Entrepreneurship, Life Skills, Outdoors, and Arts.
Girl Scouts offers the best leadership development experience for girls in the world, designed with, by, and for girls. Based on time tested methods and research backed programming, the Girl Scout Leadership Experience helps girls take the lead in their own lives and the world. GSOC is a California nonprofit organization established in 1968 that now works in partnership with nearly 10,000 volunteers and adult members to provide more than 15,000 girls from every zip code in Orange County with opportunities to develop their leadership potential through programs and activities that enable them to develop a strong sense of self, display positive values, seek challenges and learn from setbacks, form and maintain healthy relationships, and identify and solve problems in their community and beyond. GSOC is here for all girls, so every girl, regardless of age, background, or ability can experience the life-changing benefits Girl Scouts provides her to live her best life. Each year, Girl Scouts contribute more than 500,000 hours of community service in Orange County.
