Important Safety Links & Resources:

2021-2022 GS Troop Annual Permission Form

Safety

The Girl Scout motto is Be Prepared. We want our girls, volunteers and families to feel as safe and prepared as possible all the time, but especially during this time.

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In-Person Activities during COVID-19

GSNETX troops and service units are encouraged to hold in-person activities as members feel comfortable and in a safe way, following all GSNETX In-Person Activity Guidelines below. For ideas on how to plan fun and engaging In-Person Activities during the pandemic, check out this resource.

When deciding whether to host an in-person activity, please consider the make-up and size of your troop or SU, including possible attendees, their families, and their current comfort level. We want to do our best to make sure all Girl Scouts feel included and safe through their Girl Scout experience.

These guidelines were created following CDC information, Girl Scouts of the USA guidance, and in alignment with our insurance provider. In addition to these guidelines, members are also responsible for following any city, county, or regional ordinances as well as any location-specific COVID-19 protocols.

Safety protocols can change rapidly. Keeping the best interest of our members in mind, GSNETX continues to monitor guidance on an ongoing basis and will make additional changes as appropriate.

Latest Updates

August 13, 2021 Updates:

GSNETX Service Centers, Shops, & Facilities: Clarified some information. Removed information about service center reservations having a 10-person limit.
In-Person Activity Size & Location and Pre-Screening, Permission, & Paperwork: Volunteers no longer have to submit an activity approval if having an in-person event with more than 10 people in attendance.
Pre-Screening, Permission, & Paperwork: Pre-screening forms are available but not required for volunteer-led activities. Updated information regarding GSNETX staff-led activities. Updated permission forms and waiver information.
Transportation: Simplified this section.
Food Safety: Combined this section with Physical Distancing, Masks, & General Health Protocols.
Activity Approvals: Moved into separate paragraph to reflect general use of this process.
Camp, Travel & Overnights: Combined and simplified sections.
COVID-19 Positive Test Results: Volunteers may contact those who may have been exposed to someone who subsequently tested positive for COVID-19 during a volunteer-led or may reach out to GSNETX for assistance.

Click here for our FAQs. For more information or questions, please contact Kristin Neel at kneel@gsnetx.org or 972-349-2457.

GSNETX Service Centers, Shops, & Facilities

GSNETX facilities are open. Masks or face coverings are highly recommended for everyone inside all GSNETX shops, service centers, facilities, and camps. GSNETX facilities are subject to any local jurisdiction directives and any specific guidelines will be posted in the facility.

GSNETX shops have curbside pick-up available- for details, email shop@gsnetx.org.

GSNETX service centers meeting rooms are now available for reservations for the 2021-2022 membership year through our online booking system.

The majority of GSNETX staff members continue to work remotely at this time.

In-Person Activity Size & Location

While there are no group size restrictions*, it is recommended to keep small group sizes for in-person activities and to hold activities outdoors whenever possible.

*Note: Some GSNETX program and camp opportunities may continue to have smaller group sizes to allow for program quality, physical distancing, facility capacity, and staffing.

In addition to or if stricter than these guidelines, participants should follow any specific rules of the in-person activity location.

If someone elects to host a meeting at their personal home, they should submit a GSNETX Activity Approval Request Form and receive approval before planning. This form only needs to be submitted one time for all the in-home meetings throughout the year.

Pre-Screening, Permission, & Paperwork

If a girl, parent/caregiver, or volunteer is showing any new or worsening signs or symptoms of possible COVID-19, has been in close contact with someone confirmed to have COVID-19 within the past 14 days (excluding people who have had COVID-19 within the past 3 months or who are fully vaccinated and are not showing symptoms), is awaiting COVID-19 test results, or has tested positive for COVID-19 within the past 10 days, they are not permitted to attend in-person activities.

While not required, volunteers, troop leaders, and event coordinators may require the completion of the GSNETX COVID-19 Pre-Screening Form (Word)(PDF) before a volunteer-led in-person activity or upon arrival. These responses should be kept for 30 days after the activity, along with a roster of everyone who attended. Volunteers may collect the pre-screening form information through email or an online survey using the same language on the form. Potential attendees who answer yes to any of the questions should not attend the in-person Girl Scout activity. Temperature checks are permitted but not required as part of pre-screening.

Attendees at GSNETX staff-led activities will go through a pre-screening process upon arrival to the activity.

Physical Distancing, Masks, & General Health Protocols

During the in-person activities, participants should maintain physical distancing of 3 feet between members of different households.

Masks are highly recommended for indoor activities, with the exception of times when members are eating, drinking, bathing, sleeping, etc. Masks are not required for outdoor activities.* Even when not required, all members may wear masks as they feel comfortable.

*Troop leaders, event coordinators, service units, or GSNETX may require masks for in-person activities. This requirement must be made clear as part of the registration process for activities or any pre-activity information.

Hand hygiene, cleanliness, sanitizing, and reduction of shared supplies are recommended. Before preparing or eating food, have all girls members wash or sanitize their hands.

In addition to or if stricter than these guidelines, participants should follow any specific rules of the in-person activity location.

Transportation

Members may carpool with other members outside of their family following these guidelines:

The personal situation of each girl should be factored into any decisions about carpooling- if a girl lives with a high-risk individual, carpooling may not be appropriate. Each parent/caregiver is responsible for making the best decision for their child in each situation.
It is recommended but not required that all girls and adults wear masks when inside of the vehicle.
Keep car windows open, at least partially, to circulate fresh air.

If members choose to use public transportation, any guidelines regarding public transportation, such as masks, must be followed.

Camp, Travel & Overnights

GSNETX members may camp in both family and troop camp settings following the in-person guidance above. Any large group, camp-wide activities should take place outside.

At least one volunteer must have the appropriate GSNETX camp certification training. For camping at GSNETX properties, that means TR301: GSNETX Camping. For camping at non-GSNETX properties, that means TR302: On the Road Camping. TR303: Camp Recertification is now available in gsLearn. Due to COVID-19, any camp certifications that expired in 2020 are extended through the same date in 2021. Camp training information is available at www.gsnetx.org/training.

While camping at GSNETX camps, multiple groups may book the same unit or activity, meaning they may have interaction with another group while at camp. If a group would like to rent out an entire unit or activity to prevent this, we can try and accomodate those requests. For more information about camping at GSNETX properties, reach out to camp@gsnetx.org.

Volunteers planning camping activities at non-GSNETX facilities must submit the 2020-2021 GSNETX Activity Approval Request Form and receive approval before planning. This step is not required for camping at GSNETX facilities.

Volunteers must submit a GSNETX Activity Approval Request Form and receive approval before planning any other type of overnight activities or trips.

COVID-19 Positive Test Results

In the event that someone who has attended an in-person Girl Scout activity within the past 14 days tests positive for COVID-19, they should alert their troop leader or GSNETX and all of those potentially impacted should be notified.

If it was a volunteer-led activity, volunteers may contact those impacted using these templates.

If the in-person activity was a GSNETX staff-led activity, if you're not sure who organized the event, if you have specific questions not answered above, or if you would like for GSNETX staff to contact those impacted, please reach out to Kristin Neel, VP of Membership Strategy & Volunteer Learning, at kneel@gsnetx.org or at 972-349-2457. GSNETX notification will take place via email and text.

Remember that personal girl and volunteer health information, including the identity of the person who tested positive and their symptoms, is private and should be only shared on a need to know basis with a GSNETX staff member.

Activity Approvals:

Volunteers must submit a GSNETX Activity Approval Request Form and receive approval before planning the following activities:

Overnight activities (not including those at a GSNETX camp)
Money-earning activities (not including the GSNETX Fall Product & Cookie Program)
Any activity requiring a signed contract
Meetings taking place at a personal home
Activities considered high adventure, regarding sensitive topic, or as outlined on p. 6 of the GSNETX Safety Activity Checkpoints

To allow time for review, please submit approval forms at least 4 weeks in advance and allow 5 business days for processing. After completing the request, you will either receive an automatic approval via email or will be notified that your request needs further review before approval can be given.

Activity Approvals will be subject to the guidelines GSNETX has in place at the time of submission. If those guidelines change after approval is given to where more is permitted, volunteers may resubmit for approval provided those updates. If they change to where approved events are not able to take place, GSNETX will contact the submitting volunteer as soon as possible.

Virtual Meetings & Activities:

Meeting online doesn’t have to feel like school or work. GSNETX encourages troops and service units to use virtual meeting platforms to engage members in regular meetings and to share information about GSNETX-led virtual programming opportunities.

Troops can refer to The Virtual Meetings Playbook for insight on having fun, engaging, and safe meetings in a virtual setting.

Prior council approval is not required for virtual meetings but the guidance in the Virtual Troop Meetings Safety Activity Checkpoint and GSNETX Internet Safety Pledge should be followed.

We are also offering discounted gsZoom licenses again this membership year. License are just $36 and valid through July 31, 2022.

Safety-Wise ratios still need to be met in a virtual setting and troop leaders should still have a GSNETX Annual Permission Form for each member.