More than cookies and camp

Girl Scouts of Southeastern New England CEO works to raise awareness, expand opportunities

Kelcy Dolan
Posted 1/22/15

Neil M. Stamps, CEO of the Girl Scouts of Southeastern New England, wants everyone to know that the organization is about much more than just cookies and camping.

During his first year in the …

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More than cookies and camp

Girl Scouts of Southeastern New England CEO works to raise awareness, expand opportunities

Posted

Neil M. Stamps, CEO of the Girl Scouts of Southeastern New England, wants everyone to know that the organization is about much more than just cookies and camping.

During his first year in the position, Stamps has made it his focus to increase awareness of the Girl Scouts’ mission and all the good the program has done and will continue to do for young girls.

The first Girl Scout troop in Rhode Island began in 1914 with troop leader Elizabeth Ann Bury. The name of the organization’s local chapter was recently changed to the Girl Scouts of Southeastern New England to reflect the troops from southern Massachusetts and Connecticut that are members.

In 2013, the local chapter included 8,600 young girls and 2,600 volunteers.

In between jobs in September 2013, Stamps heard about an interim position as CEO of the Girl Scouts. His own daughter had been a part of the program, and living in Rhode Island, he knew a lot of people involved in the organization. He jumped at the chance and didn’t look back.

“I have been in business my whole life, where I was always earning money for some company. I was ready to dig my heels into something meaningful,” Stamps said. “I am so passionate in what I do here. It is the best job I have ever had. I am excited to come into work each day.”

In April 2014, the organization’s Board of Directors offered Stamps the permanent position.

“At end of the day I approached the interim CEO position as permanent,” Stamps said. “I think the board and the staff here appreciated that and that’s why I was offered the permanent position.”

In addition to the name change, another area of focus for Stamps has been increasing the organization’s perception in terms of customer service. He says he works with an open-door policy and tries to be as available as possible for not only his staff, but for the thousands of volunteers that help the organization.

“Coming in I had heard there were some problems with customer service and I made that my priority,” he said. “I went to every event I could, met with as many people as possible. I wanted to be accepting and receptive to our volunteers and what they were asking for. I wanted to recognize our volunteers as the leaders they are.”

Similarly, Stamps wants to help the girls in the organization take advantage of all the opportunities and possibilities before them. The organization recently held an “In Her Shoes” panel alongside Rhode Island College’s STEM Center, with women leading the way in their own fields taking questions from the young girls.

The plan is to hold more such event in the Girl Scout Leadership Center. This room is in the basement of the Girl Scout offices in Warwick. Stamps wants to fully equip the room with Smart Boards, tablets and laptops.

“We want to help girls be well rounded,” he said. “With the new Girl Scout Leadership Center, we want our girls to connect with other troops not only across the country, but also all over the world. That’s just such an opportunity that’s cool and different.”

As Stamps has been trying to help the girls and volunteers of the Girl Scouts, he believes that working for the organization has been life changing.

He noted one instance, visiting one of the numerous camps held by the organization, where the girls had to spend the day learning about somewhere in the world and then give a presentation on it by the end of the day.

“There were so many eloquent and articulate girls. At that age I would never have been able to do what I saw them do. It was such a display of leadership,” Stamps said. “Leadership can mean a lot of different things. It’s not just leading people, but being able to stand up for yourself when you need to with the confidence to do so.”

The Girl Scouts of Southeastern New England recently began Troop 5,000. This troop allows girls who may not be able to participate in a traditional troop due to transportation issues or time constraints to get involved. They receive all the emails and a list of events happening and can attend what they can.

“Girls are allowed to do so much more than they were 40, even 30 years ago. They are in sports, music, and so many other things that we have to compete with, but girls shouldn’t have to make a choice between. This is a pick-and-choose troop,” Stamps said.

Also, Stamps is working on several new marketing campaigns to educate the public about the Girl Scouts in an effort to raise awareness and hopefully membership.

“Once people learn more and see the breadth of exposure a girl can get with the Girl Scouts and all the things they will learn that they wouldn’t in school, they are going to want their daughter in part of the program,” he said.

For more information on the Girl Scouts, visit their website at www.gssne.org.

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