Girl Scouts and WIT: Helping Girls See Themselves in Trucking

There’s a saying that goes: “The earlier you start, the earlier you succeed.” With this in mind, WIT continues to host local events that educate young girls about exciting careers in trucking as well as safety around big trucks. In April, former WIT Driver Ambassador Kellylynn McLaughlin participated in a Girl Scouts event hosted by Cummins, Inc. and Marvin Johnson and Associates. The “Trucks are for Girls” event was hosted at the Cummins headquarters in Columbus, Ind. There, she spoke with approximately 50 young girls (Daisies, Brownies, Juniors and Cadettes) about her career as a professional female driver and conducted tours of WITney, the new WIT-branded trailer. Pilot Flying J provided the fuel for McLaughlin’s trip to Indiana. The young girls in attendance had the opportunity to use a driving simulator provided by Marvin Johnson and Associates and heard from female engineers and other associates of Cummins. While touring the tractor, one of the young Girl Scouts shared her passion for science and battery technology, and her desire to invent higher quality batteries – a potential STEM engineer in the making! “I love talking to young people and inspiring them to take all of the boundaries and boxes off of themselves and do whatever it is that they find interesting and inspiring,” says McLaughlin. “It was a wonderful event and a great way spend my Saturday afternoon giving back. Thank you to our sponsors and the Girl Scouts for inviting me to come and visit with the girls about my career as a professional female driver.” At the end of the event, the Girl Scouts earned their Transportation Patch. The purpose of the Transportation Patch is to expose young girls to careers in the supply chain. Since the very first Girl Scouts event in October 2014, more than 1,500 Girl Scouts have earned their WIT Transportation Patch. To find out more about hosting your own “Trucks are for Girls” event, contact programs@womenintrucking.org. n

“Trucks are for Girls” is the theme of WIT events that attract young girls to envision a potential career in trucking.

Young girls get behind the wheel of a simulator in WITney, the WIT-branded driver ambassador trailer, where they gained a new perspective of what it would be like to be a professional truck driver.