Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas

The COVID-19 pandemic worsened stress, anxiety and depression for young people—especially young girls. Those are things the Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas have addressed through their mental health patch, called Okay to Say. It’s one part of a wider prevention effort to mitigate worse health outcomes for young people as they grow up.

A recent report from Children’s Health in Dallas identified the need for more mental health care in North Texas. Both the hospital system and community partners are tackling this issue through training, education and expanded telehealth options.

The key has been giving girls a space for girls, built by them, especially when girls already have to participate in many mixed-gender spaces to begin with.

The Irving-based Boy Scouts of America recently launched an effort in some area schools, helping to teach classes and introduce more kids to scouting…