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The Archdiocese of Cincinnati has restored its long-standing partnership with the Girl Scouts of the USA after a year-long rupture over the latter’s approach to sexuality and gender.
Archbishop Robert Casey announced at a press conference that Catholic parishes may once again host Girl Scout troops, following the signing of a memorandum of understanding with the Girl Scouts of Western Ohio.
The agreement was reached after months of dialogue aimed at finding a way forward that respected the Catholic Church’s moral teaching and preserving the traditions of scouting.
Under the new terms, troops wishing to meet in parish facilities must seek the approval of their parish priest and sign an agreement to ensure their activities remain in line with Catholic teaching.
The document makes clear that the archdiocese will be the sole judge of whether any programme or material breaches Church policy. It also clarifies that the use of Catholic buildings by Girl Scouts does not imply endorsement of the organisation’s wider policies, nor does it imply that scouting endorses all Catholic teaching and practices.
The resolution represents a change in approach from that taken by Archbishop Casey’s predecessor, Archbishop Dennis Schnurr. In 2024, Archbishop Schnurr ordered the removal of all Girl Scout troops from Catholic premises, citing what he described as the organisation’s promotion of “an impoverished worldview regarding gender and sexuality”.
Among the specific concerns were scouting patches linked to LGBTQ themes and promotional material viewed by Church officials as contrary to Catholic teaching on the human person.
That decision ended more than a century of collaboration between the archdiocese and the scouting movement, prompting protests from Catholic families who valued the role of scouting in the lives of their daughters. Girl Scout leaders at the time insisted that local troops were not required to adopt any of the contested patches or resources.
The new memorandum, which runs for three years, includes provisions for ongoing communication between the Church and the Girl Scouts and a commitment to resolve disputes in good faith. It also gives the archdiocese authority to dismiss any troop or leader found to be in violation of the agreement.
Archbishop Casey said he was satisfied that the safeguards now in place would allow Catholic teaching to be upheld while ensuring that young girls continued to benefit from scouting.
Aimee Sproles, president and chief executive of the Girl Scouts of Western Ohio, welcomed the renewed partnership, saying that it would provide Catholic families with the support of their parish communities as their daughters pursued scouting activities.
The reconciliation restores one of the oldest links between the Church and the scouting movement in the United States. The Archdiocese of Cincinnati first welcomed Girl Scout troops more than a century ago, part of a wider embrace of scouting across America as a means of forming youth in character, responsibility and service.
The agreement in Cincinnati will be watched closely elsewhere in the United States, where other dioceses have also faced tensions over similar issues with other closely affiliated secular groups and organisations.
Photo: Girl Scouts of the USA kicks off National Girl Scout Cookie Weekend at Vanderbilt Hall in Grand Central Terminal in New York City, 7 February 2014. (Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Girl Scouts of the USA.)
