Volunteer Essentials (in both English and Spanish) is a resource written for volunteers serving in any pathway and can also be used by volunteers who do not work directly with girls. 

                    This resource:    

• offers information about Girl Scouts as a movement and a tradition,
• asks volunteers to assess their own skills and competencies,
• discusses the Girl Scout Leadership Experience and Journeys,
• highlights other program offerings,
• shares information about healthy development in girls,
• instructs volunteers in how to keep girls safe,
• gives information on taking trips and hosting events, and
• tells volunteers how to help girls manage group finances, including details on Girl Scout Cookie sales.

        PDF download

                        

The Troop Module is an add-on to Volunteer Essentials, designed especially for volunteers in the troop pathway.

It includes topics such as how to form a troop committee, how to hold a parent/guardian first meeting, and how to plan and hold troop meetings. Troop volunteers should be given both portions of the packet, reading Volunteer Essentials first, and then turning to the Troop Module. Volunteers in other pathways do not need to receive the Troop Module.

     PDF download

Additional modules for the travel, series, camp, and virtual pathways will be rolled out over the next few years.

Volunteer Essentials FAQs

Why was a new resource for volunteers necessary in the first place? 
Volunteer Essentials exists for two reasons: 

• The Journey adult guides, which are exceptional companions to the Journey books, do not include certain operational information that volunteers need to work effectively. The Volunteer Essentials, which was created in conjunction with Program, Organizational Learning & Development, and the GRSI, gives volunteers this much-needed supplemental/operational information.
• One component of the core business strategy is to make life easier for our volunteers. To this end, giving volunteers fewer resources—and ones that are comprehensive-yet-concise, user-friendly, and easy-to-navigate—makes their initial weeks and months that much more enjoyable and that much more effective for girls. Although GSNENY will still give volunteers a copy of Safety-Wise for the time being, GSUSA has been hard at work on a strategy for combining Safety-Wise and the Volunteer Essentials into one document. 

What is the Troop Module? The Troop Module (in both English and Spanish) is an add-on component to Volunteer Essentials, designed especially for volunteers in the troop pathway. It includes topics such as how to form a troop committee, how to hold a parent/guardian first meeting, and how to plan and hold troop meetings. Troop volunteers will be given both components, reading Volunteer Essentials first, and then turning to the Troop Module. Volunteers in other pathways do not need to receive the Troop Module.

When will other pathways have their own modules? Additional modules for the travel, series, events, camp, and virtual pathways will be rolled out, one by one, over the next two to three years.

We have other volunteer learning resources. Do we have to use Volunteer Essentials and the appropriate pathway modules? One component of GSUSA’s core business strategy is that we will produce and distribute nationally consistent resources for volunteers. Using this GSUSA resource—with GSNENY customization meets this objective. 

Why is there some overlap with Volunteer Orientation and Leadership Essentials? GSUSA is committed to offering mix-and-match learning opportunities that volunteers across all pathways can use, that appeal to a number of learning styles, and that continuously reinforce earlier learnings. To that end, Volunteer Essentials offers material in a printed format that can be referenced over and over, which means volunteers don’t need to read the packet all in one sitting, and instead can look up the information they need, when they need it, by referencing the table of contents index. In addition, those who learn best through reading will appreciate the packet, while those who learn visually and tactilely will appreciate Volunteer Orientation and Leadership Essentials. In addition, Volunteer Essentials contains some information that does not exist elsewhere, and reinforces other information that does exist in other resources.

How often will Volunteer Essentials and the modules be updated? GSUSA will update Volunteer Essentials, as well as all modules in existence, every winter (beginning Winter 2010). One step of this update will include a review will take place each fall.

How will Volunteer Essentials and the modules be distributed to volunteers?
Both Volunteer Essentials and the Troop Module will be available on the websites as PDFs. Each Service Unit will also receive a hard copy format.