Girl Scouts Introduces Becoming Me Program in Collaboration with Penguin Random House and Former First Lady Michelle Obama

Girl Scouts’ new Becoming Me program aims to help Girl Scouts become their best selves, inspired by themes from Michelle Obama’s Becoming: Adapted for Young Readers. 

Northern Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula—March 12, 2021— Girl Scouts is excited to announce the Becoming Me program, a special collaboration with Penguin Random House and Former First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama. The program follows the recent publication of Mrs. Obama’s book, Becoming: Adapted for Young Readers, and offers a unique opportunity for Girl Scouts to embark on their journeys to become their best selves. The program, which includes a virtual event with Mrs. Obama, will also walk girls through earning three badges at each Girl Scout level.  

“Mrs. Obama is a cultural leader and a champion for girls and women,” said GSUSA Interim CEO Judith Batty. “Her journey described in Becoming closely aligns with our mission of building girls of courage, confidence, and character. It is a story of sharing joys and triumphs, as well as the bumps and bruises along the way. Our Becoming Me program will challenge participants to look inside themselves to define who they are and who they want to become, just as Mrs. Obama does in Becoming.”

“I am so pleased to be working with Girl Scouts of the USA on the Becoming Me program,” says Mrs. Obama.  “It is a joy and privilege to support young girls along their journeys of becoming, working together to unlock the unique and profound power that lies within each of our own stories.”   

The Girl Scouts’ Becoming Me virtual program will be available at no cost to any interested Girl Scout enrolled for the 2021–22 membership year. Additionally, program materials will be available for GSNWGL volunteers, drawing on Girl Scouts’ programming—which includes over 300 skill-building badges—we’re thrilled to release the curated Becoming Me program series, built on 18 badges that explore key themes in Becoming: Adapted for Young Readers.

The program includes:  

• Admission to a virtual event featuring a conversation between Girl Scouts and Mrs. Obama during which she’ll explore the themes in Becoming: Adapted for Young Readers and how they relate to Girl Scouts’ and young people’s experiences today. 
• A six- to eight-week experience centered around core themes from Mrs. Obama’s Becoming: Adapted for Young Readers that align with the Girl Scout mission, such as knowing and telling your story, maintaining mental health and wellness, and supporting and nurturing girls on their own journeys. 
• A journal activity through which participants reflect on their personal experiences as they answer the question “Who are you, and who do you want to become?” 
• A facilitator guide to help volunteers steer Girl Scouts through their journeys, as well as free digital downloads, such as modified Becoming journal content and an excerpt from Becoming: Adapted for Young Readers.
•  An exclusive Becoming Me patch for optional purchase. 
• The Becoming Me program will launch in early May 2021. Learn more by visiting girlscouts.org/BecomingMe.