Following a nationwide search, the Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta selected Jai Ferrell – a fifth generation Atlantan, former Atlanta Girl Scout and Spellman alumna – as its Chief Executive Officer.
“Jai’s extensive experience and relevant connections to the metro-Atlanta community and beyond were important factors in our decision,”Susan L. Lazaro, incoming board chair of the Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta, said. “We’re excited to see her support our mission while elevating the impact we have on the lives of girls our council serves.”
Ferrell is also the first woman of color to lead the Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta Council, which serves 23,000+ girls from 34 counties.
“For girls to be able to see themselves in leadership is important,” Ferrell said. “I’ve had girls come up to me almost crying. I didn’t realize the grandeur of the moment. I’m just so grateful.”
Ferrell comes from a long line of trailblazing women of color from District V, as she explained at the July 14 dedication of the Dr. Rosalyn Pope mural on the side of the Atlanta Daily World building.
“Without Rosalyn Pope there would not be a CEO Jai Ferrell standing here,” Ferrell shared in her July 14 remarks. “The mural represents the movement of women who were unafraid to blaze trails and shine their light in things that may seem impossible.”
Pope was a member of Atlanta’s first African American Girl Scout Troop, started in 1943. Ten years later, she was the only Black Girl Scout out of 50 when she represented Georgia at a national Girl Scout encampment. Pope credited the experience as showing her “the possibilities of an integrated society,” Ferrell shared.
While at Spellman College, Pope co-authored a 1960 manifesto, “An Appeal for Human Rights,” demanding racial justice in every aspect of life. Pope passed in January 2023, but her legacy lives on.
The crowd that gathered for the mural dedication – Pope’s family members, long-term District V volunteers like Rhonda Barrow, Girl Scouts like Gabrielle Tobin and more – also celebrated Ferrell’s new leadership.
“I honestly have no words to describe this moment because it’s a moment in the making of history,” Tobin said. “I really enjoyed meeting the new CEO..I know that the Girl Scouts are in good hands.”
Ferrell credits the Girl Scouts for giving her the skills and guidance to forge her own path.
“I’ve always had a bright light,” Ferrell said. “Girl Scouts helped me cultivate that through public speaking, networking with other troops, we even had pen pals. I never felt like I had to be anyone but myself.”
Girls today face different challenges, like social media pressures and ever-changing technology, but Ferrell believes they can still thrive in Girl Scouts whose mission is to cultivate courage, confidence and character.
“Girl Scouts is still a safe space for girls to be themselves and to have a community,” Ferrell said. “We’ve always diversified our curriculum and exposure because we want to equip the girls with the resources they need to be good citizens and future leaders with things like robotics, marketing, mentorship, entrepreneurship, camping etc.”
Even though, the Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta is already one of the top 10 in the country. Ferrell says she’s ready to “insert myself, strengthen partnerships and move the needle on the mission.”
For 100+ years, Girl Scout cookies funded its mission, starting when women couldn’t have a bank account. For the next 100 years, Ferrell wants to tell a story that “goes beyond the cookie”.
“I encourage everyone to take that voyage with us,” Ferrell said. “To understand that our girls have more to offer than cookie sales – these are the next electricians, architects, attorneys, CEOs – so how can we help them?”
Adding, “It is my goal and desire for however long I occupy this seat that every tap in the glass ceiling that I make will be the welcome mat for your daughter.”
To volunteer, reconnect or donate, visit girlscoutsatl.org.
