After completing an Appreciative Inquiry process in 2021, GSNI developed five Action Teams to drive and support membership growth. These teams are led by staff members, with Board, volunteer, and older Girl Scout representation. Here’s what we’re working on:
Older Girl Scout
The Older Girl Scout Action Team is making progress! We plan to have a new Cadette flyer to include with the 5th grade Leader Letter and as a handout for 5th Grade Retention Events. The Older Girl Scout Survey (for ages 13+) is being sent in early February. This survey is to identify older Girl Scouts who may be interested in sharpening their skills in things like blogging, being a social media influencer, hosting events, and more. Our plan is to provide training and give interested Girl Scouts the opportunity to use these skills to help recruit and retain members in Girl Scouting!
We’ve also decided to launch the BAND App, a communications tool for connecting older Girl Scouts to each other with a pilot project beginning with attendees of the Better Together Event in April. If you would like to get involved with the Older Girl Scout Action Team, please reach out! Our next Zoom meeting is Thursday, February 10, at 7 p.m.
Community Engagement
The Community Engagement Action Team continues to seek ways to grow GSNI’s relationships and support in communities across our council! Following some successful outreach with religious leaders in the Elgin area that led to the development of several new relationships with local houses of worship, the team is looking to expand this work into additional communities.
We’ll be asking for input and recommendations from our members at upcoming service unit meetings. In addition, we’re having conversations with members from the council’s west side to make sure the Community Engagement team’s work is best supporting their needs. Our next team meeting is on Thursday, February 10, at 6 p.m. If you have thoughts or suggestions to share or are interested in joining us, please reach out through the contact information below!
Communications & Brand Awareness
The team met on January 10 and discussed progress on GSNI’s podcast. The first episode was delayed due to unforeseen circumstances but is back on track!
We also discussed the usage of platforms to share a digital toolkit for our older Girl Scouts and volunteers to use to talk about Girl Scouts on their social media pages. A smaller working group was formed to hold this discussion.
Do you have thoughts about ways to improve access to information on our website? Do you have any suggestions on how to make finding things easier? We’d love for you to join us in sharing your ideas and opinions! Let us know at customercare@girlscoutsni.org.
Recruitment Processes
The Recruitment Processes Action Team is currently reviewing phases of the recruitment cycle and considering changes to the timeline to ensure new troops are set up for success and get started earlier in the year. There was an in-person meeting on January 24 to work on an organizational flow chart. This chart describes “who does what” and clarify responsibilities for council staff, volunteers, and parents. If you have an interest or a passion for recruiting or have ideas to be included, please reach out, and we will include you on the next monthly meeting on Monday, February 7, at 6 p.m.
Hiring for Diversity
Work is ongoing to streamline the staff recruitment process overall, and GSNI is now including interview questions that are related to inclusion, diversity, equity, and access (IDEA), culture, and community involvement.
If you would like to learn more about any Action Team or are interested in joining, please contact customercare@girlscoutsni.org with the subject line “Action Team” and specify which Action Team you’d like to learn more about!
