The Boy Scouts of America will now allow girls to join the organization, the group announced Wednesday.
The organization’s board of directors unanimously voted to let girls into the Cub Scout program and create a program for older girls to allow them to become Eagle Scouts, their highest rank, the group said in a release.
Girls will be allowed to join the Cub Scouts in 2018, and the program for Eagle Scouts is projected to begin in 2019, according to the release. Cub Scout dens will each remain single-gender, either all-girls or all-boys.
{mosads}“The values of Scouting — trustworthy, loyal, helpful, kind, brave and reverent, for example — are important for both young men and women,” Michael Surbaugh, the Boy Scouts’ chief scout executive, said in a release.
“We believe it is critical to evolve how our programs meet the needs of families interested in positive and lifelong experiences for their children. We strive to bring what our organization does best — developing character and leadership for young people — to as many families and youth as possible as we help shape the next generation of leaders.”
At least one woman in Congress, Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), was quick to applaud the change on Twitter:
The scouts had repeatedly received requests over the years to allow girls into its ranks.
The organization announced in January that it would allow transgender boys to join. The Boy Scouts had faced scrutiny for initially requiring children to provide a birth certificate showing their sex to be enrolled.