[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 11]
[Senate]
[Page 15994]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




         TRIBUTE TO KATHY CLONINGER, CEO OF GIRL SCOUTS U.S.A.

 Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, Senator Corker and I wish to 
recognize Kathy Cloninger for her outstanding service as the chief 
executive officer of Girl Scouts of the USA for the past 8 years and 
her 28 years of service to the Girl Scouts movement.
  Kathy is a shining example of American leadership and service. She 
has devoted her life to girls and to one of America's most treasured 
institutions. We honor her today for a career that has been dedicated 
to building girls of courage, confidence, and character who make the 
world a better place.
  Kathy's journey with Girl Scouts began in 1983 and spanned more than 
two decades of service as the head of Girl Scout councils in Tennessee, 
Texas, and Colorado. During her tenure as CEO of the Girl Scouts of 
Cumberland, TN, Girl Scout membership in our region rose to more than 
25,000 girls--an increase of nearly 40 percent. She was also 
responsible for creating an outreach program that tripled the number of 
African-American Girl Scouts, increased the participation of Hispanic 
girls, and brought more than 1,000 girls in public housing into the 
program.
  Since assuming her role as CEO of Girl Scouts of the USA in 2004, 
Kathy has transformed the Girl Scout movement. Under her guidance, the 
Girl Scouts accomplished the remarkable task of successfully merging 
315 councils down to 112 high-performance councils nationwide. Kathy 
has unified the Girl Scout movement around a common mission and 
business strategy, laying a sound foundation for success as the 
organization looks towards its 100th anniversary and beyond.
  Kathy's service goes well beyond Girl Scouts. She has received 
numerous awards for her work on behalf of youth empowerment and the 
nonprofit community, including Nonprofit CEO of the Year 2000 from the 
Center for Nonprofit Management. In 2010, Kathy was named one of the 
``21 Leaders for the 21st Century'' by Women's eNews.
  Mr. President, we ask our colleagues to join us in thanking Kathy 
Cloninger for nearly 30 years of service to the Girl Scouts and our 
country. Kathy leaves Girl Scouts on the eve of its 100th anniversary, 
with a mission and program that is as critically important today as it 
was 100 years ago. We wish her the best in all of her continuing work 
for girls nationwide, and we welcome her back home to 
Tennessee.

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