One of the United States’ most well known youth organizations has joined the push to get young girls involved in motorsports.
Girl Scouts of the USA added 23 new badges Thursday, many of them for science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) activities, including one for building a race car.
“Data shows Girl Scouts excel in life because of our innovative programming, so we’ve expanded our offerings to include even more engaging, fun, and impactful activities for girls of all ages — including Daisies as young as five years old,”GSUSA CEO Sylvia Acevedo said in a statement. “We’ve also simplified the process for volunteers through our online Volunteer Toolkit.”
Since Danica Patrick’s rise to prominence in NASCAR, and Susie Wolff’s in Formula One, the issue of gender diversity has gained some much-needed attention. Wolff herself even started her charity — Dare To Be Different — after she retired from racing to promote the issue.
To have Girl Scouts also work to get more girls involved in racing, though, is huge. Having female drivers to look up to is important in combating the gender divide, but with its 1.8-million members, Girl Scouts likely will introduce motorsport to more girls than any two drivers can on their own.
Thumbnail photo via Facebook/Dare To Be Different
