Girl Scouts Programs - Beyond Bars

Girl Scouts Beyond Bars and Bridge Beyond Bars

Beyond Bars and Bridge Beyond Bars	In-School	Project Anti-Violence Education	Waxter Center

Incarceration places an extraordinary emotional hardship on women, particularly women who have children. Separated from their children and forced to relinquish their role as caregiver, many incarcerated women suffer from low self-esteem and a loss of dignity. The lack of family interaction often servers to hinder successful reintegration when they are released from prison. For the children, the effects are just as damaging. Various studies indicate that children of incarcerated parents are at greater risk of depression, poor academic performance, teenage pregnancy, substance abuse and delinquency.

The Girl Scouts Beyond Bars and Bridge Beyond Bars programs seek to address these concerns. Girl Scouts of Central Maryland originated the Girl Scouts Beyond Bars program in collaboration with the National Institute of Justice in 1992. The girls meet twice monthly at the Maryland Correctional Institute for Women in Jessup (for the Beyond Bars program) or at the Baltimore PreRelease Unit for Women (for the Bridge Beyond Bars program) to hold troop meetings with their mothers. Mothers are also required to join Girl Scouts. The girls in the Girl Scouts Beyond Bars and Bridge Beyond Bars programs range from Daisy Girl Scout to Senior Girl Scout Level, ages five through seventeen. Currently in its fifteenth year, Girl Scouts of Central Maryland's award winning Beyond Bars program has been replicated in over 40 Girl Scout councils across the country.

Beyond Bars Troop Has First Sleepover at MCIW
“On August 19, 2006, the Maryland Correctional Institution for Women (MCIW) held its first-ever sleepover for the Girl Scouts Beyond Bars troop that meets there every other Saturday of the month. In a pleasant and relaxed atmosphere, moms and scouts ate together, made crafts, did one another's nails, and watched movies. The troop leaders and volunteers, including a graduated Girl Scout who is now a corrections officer, led the girls and moms through a variety of fun activities. The final part of the night was devoted to quiet time and DVD's-sleep optional.

As a mother who has been an inmate for over eight years, the opportunity to spend nearly 14 hours of quality time with my daughter was nothing short of a miracle. We had the best conversations and connections that we've had since our separation. I know that there is nothing more important to any mother than a strong bond with her daughter. I believe that every mother involved left our event with that gift.

My daughter Anna, 16, says her favorite part of the sleepover was getting to be with me where I am. It is now less mysterious and frightening now that she has experienced a night with me. Of course she had fun too. The two of us stayed up all night talking about everything and anything. We were tired in the morning but very, very satisfied.

I can't talk about this wonderful time without thanking Maryland's Secretary of Corrections, Mary Ann Saar, our Warden, Brenda Shell, and Girl Scouts' Margaret Chippendale. Without their compassion and advocacy, this miracle wouldn't have occurred."

written by Kimberly H.,
Troop 7140 Mom

Click here to view the GSUSA clip from Lisa Ling's Oxygen Network documentary Daughters Left Behind featuring GSCM's Beyond Bars Troop.

When donating to the United Way use codes 050 and 8050 to designate Girl Scouts of Central Maryland

Girl Scouts of Central Maryland • 4806 Seton Drive • Baltimore, Maryland • 21215
t: 410-358-9711 / 800-492-2521• f: 410-358-9918