You're doing something amazing by volunteering as part of the Troop Leadership Team with Girl Scouts.

Throughout the year, you'll introduce Girl Scouts to new experiences and watch their confidence and skills grow! We've compiled resources to help new volunteers get started and timely reminders for returning volunteers. 

Getting Started

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Welcome to Girl Scouts! We’re so excited to have you join the Girl Scout Movement.

As a new volunteer, you will receive continued support from dedicated staff members to guide you through your first year.

Follow the 3 steps below to make your role official and get started with the fun!

Become an adult member of Girl Scouts by registering online.  Select a volunteer role such as “Troop Support Volunteer” to spark a background check request from our vendor, Sterling Volunteers. Sterling Volunteers is a third party company who partners with GSNCA to provide background check clearance for our volunteers.
Once you finish registering, check to see if you have received an email from theadvocates@sterlingvolunteers.com. The link that Sterling sends to you is only active for 72 hours and is sometimes filtered into a junk or spam folder, so please check for it to make sure you don’t miss it!  You can find more details about Volunteer eligibility and expectations in our Volunteer Policies.
Once GSNCA receives eligible results from your background check, a council staff member will reach out with next steps to guide you through the orientation process.

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GSNCA offers a vibrant Volunteer Training program to ensure that our leaders are positioned for success. Once you are a registered leader, you’ll automatically receive your personalized training plan with links via e-mail. Missed the e-mail? Drop us a note.

Welcome New Leader Training

This quick 30-minute session provides an overview of what it means to be a Troop Leader, ways to volunteer, how to get started as a Troop Leader, and live Q&A.

Leader Effectiveness Training (Online)

The introductory training sets the stage for your effectiveness as a leader. Beginning with a new leader orientation, this training will explore what girl scouts do, how to engage families, holding the first troop meeting, our online volunteer tool, and troop interpersonal leadership skills.

New Leader Cohort (Online)

In addition to the training, we invite all new leaders to join a cohort of others beginning the troop leadership journey at the same time. This group investigates the topics introduced in the online training more deeply as they come up during the troop year. This allows leaders just-in-time training on topics of value.

Specialty Training (Online and In person)

GSNCA periodically offers specialized training opportunities for our volunteers including, First Aid, CPR, Archery, Boating, Youth Mental Health First Aid, and other topics as desired.

Direct Mentoring (In person)

Feeling a little out of your depth? GSNCA can offer to provide direct mentoring for your first three meetings. Using this model, we will lead a meeting for you, plan and lead the second meeting with you, and then support you as you lead the final meeting.

JumpStart Resource (In person)

Feel like you’ve got it covered and don’t require direct mentoring? To jump right into volunteering, GSNCA is happy to provide a “Meeting-in-a-Bag” for your first four meetings.

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Volunteer Essentials, is designed to support busy troop volunteers on the go. You can easily find what you need to get started on your Girl Scout journey and search for answers throughout the troop year.

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The Volunteer Toolkit (VTK) is a customizable planning tool where you can find suggested meeting plans for most badges, access activity guides and badge requirements, track your Girl Scouts’ achievements, and so much more. It’s the digital planning assistant that will help you power a fun-filled—and organized—Girl Scout year.

You’ll find the Volunteer Toolkit via the left menu bar of MyGS in My Account. It’s accessible on any desktop, tablet, or mobile device.

The Volunteer Toolkit isn’t just for the Troop Leadership Team!
Caregivers of girls in troops can view the troop's schedule, annual financial summary, and access resources to stay up-to-date on the great things Girl Scouts are doing throughout the year.

Caregivers of Individually Registered Members can access the Volunteer Toolkit to guide their Individually Registered Girl Scout through her awards and badge journey, and track her achievement!

Ready to learn more?
There are Volunteer Toolkit training courses available in gsLearn. If you would like to request a training for the VTK to be assigned to you, please reach out to customercare@girlscoutsnca.org.

gsLearn

gsLearn is full of essential volunteer trainings and courses, like how to lead activities the Girl Scout way, safety procedures, and advice for guiding Girl Scouts at every grade level.

You’ll find gsLearn via the left menu bar of MyGS in My Account. It’s accessible on any desktop, tablet, or mobile device, and it will be populated with any trainings currently assigned to you.

If you would like to request a training to be assigned to you, please reach out to customercare@girlscoutsnca.org.

Troop Activities

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Kick off a fun-filled troop year with the help of the  Troop Year Plans. This resource is perfect for first-time troop leaders who are ready to start their troop activities right away. From meeting guides and badge resources to tips for connecting with families, you’ll find just what you need for a great year.

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The Volunteer Toolkit (VTK), accessed through MyGS, is your official source for delivering easy, fun troop meetings year-round! This fully customizable digital planning tool is accessible on any computer, tablet, or mobile device and provides you with ready-to-go meeting plans and the resources you need to run your troop.

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Troops may set up a bank account to collect dues, pay for troop supplies and activities, and collect product sales revenue. Before a Troop bank account can be opened, at least two adult volunteers in the Troop will need to be: registered, background checked and have completed New Leader Orientation. Once completed, you can request a bank letter here.

Additional resources are available in Volunteer Essentials > Troop Finances

Troop Meeting Plans

Hello, Troop Leaders! We are so excited to welcome you to the 2023-2024 Girl Scouting year. To make your year as seamless as possible, we are creating a troop meeting plan for you to use each month. Feel free to use and share these plans freely. This plan is by no means a requirement, just a tool you are welcome to use!

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Coming soon!

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Daisies

Brownies

Juniors

Multi-Level

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