Kathy Cloninger is Chief Executive Officer of Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA), the premier leadership development organization for girls. She is a recognized expert on, and advocate for, girls' and women’s issues.

Cloninger's more than two decades in Girl Scouting include service as a CEO with Girl Scout councils in Tennessee, Texas, and Colorado; as national management consultant for GSUSA; and as a participant in groundbreaking task groups strategizing on girls' well-being. She was also an executive grant-maker at the W. K. Kellogg Foundation, CEO of two YWCA branches in Texas, and a career development consultant.

Cloninger serves as secretary of the board of directors of the National Assembly of Human Services, on the national boards of American Humanics and the National Council for Research on Women, and on advisory boards for America's Promise, See Jane, and the National Association of Corporate Boards. She is a founder of Tennessee's Association of Nonprofit Executives. She has received numerous awards, including Nonprofit CEO of the Year 2000 from the Center for Nonprofit Management and the NCCJ Human Relations Award. A native of Dallas, Texas, Cloninger got her start as a Girl Scout in her mother's troop. She earned an M.S. in counseling and business management from East Texas State University.