The organization, which has been around for more than 100 years, has recently added a batch of new accomplishments recognized by their merit badge program. So what kind of badges are they adding? Oh, nothing too special, just 23 badges that focus on promoting girls in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The need for this kind of promotion is more than obvious. While women overall hold a 47 percent stake in the labor force, they only hold 24.7 percent of computer and mathematical occupations and just 15.1 percent of architecture and engineering jobs. To make matters worse, women have earned more than 57 percent of all bachelor’s degrees in the last 10 years, but the proportion of women earning STEM degrees has fallen and hovers below 20 percent. But with a little hands-on experience, even at a young age, the Girl Scouts could put a serious dent in those unequal statistics. This will be one of the largest additions to the Girl Scouts’ collection since their founding in 1912. They created these new STEM badges in partnership with Code.org, SciStarter, GoldieBlox and the Society of Women Engineers. The badges will serve as a major push in the right direction for serving the 1.8 million Girl Scouts across the country.
