Girl Scouts of Nassau County CEO Donna Ceravolo recently announced plans to retire after working for the organization for more than 16 years. Throughout her years, Ceravolo led more than 100,000 Girl Scouts and 80,000 adult volunteers, staying ahead of the curve with respect to the issues facing today’s girls, developing and delivering programs to help girls succeed socially and in the business world. Collectively, the Council and Ceravolo designed programs to address social issues, such as bullying and cyberbullying, years ahead of it being popular news topics, and strove to make science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fun and applicable to girls.
“I have been blessed to have the best job in the world for the past 16 years,” said Ceravolo. “None of my accomplishments are my own, they are all the result of great teamwork and collaboration among our girls, volunteers, staff and the community at large.”
Since joining the Girl Scouts of Nassau County in 2000 as CEO, Ceravolo championed several projects and initiatives that helped benefit the organization today and will help benefit the organization in the future. One in particular was the sale of an under-utilized property owned by the Girl Scouts of Nassau County, which helped to ensure the future financial stability of the Council. Ceravolo also oversaw the ongoing success of the GSNC Chorus and evolution of Girl Scout STEM and Robotics programs, establishing STEM strategic partnerships with Hofstra University, Molloy College and Vaughn College. Under her guidance, GSNC has developed additional community partnerships with Northwell Health, DHL, St. Joseph’s Hospital, Nassau County Bar Association, Adelphi University, Wells Fargo, Bethpage Federal Credit Union, ATT, Motorola and LIU Post to name a few.
During her tenure, Ceravolo served on the first National Strategic Girl Scout Cookie Task Group, working alongside a group of women to elevate both the program and business aspects of the Girl Scout Cookie Program across Councils. Ceravolo also was passionate about supporting the empowerment of women and under her guidance, GSNC hosted the 2005 National Latina Conference in conjunction with GSUSA.
Prior to her departure, Ceravolo will oversee the grand re-opening of the organization’s Service Center, located in Garden City, which is set to hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony in July. The Council’s board of directors will work alongside Girl Scouts of the USA and Evergreen Executive Source, LLC to conduct a search for a successor.
Through the years, Ceravolo’s management style has been recognized several times with awards by AARP, Non Profit Time, and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. She was named one of Long Island’s Top 50 Women by Long Island Business News.
