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Volunteer Toolkit

The Volunteer Toolkit is a digital resource that supports troop leaders and co-leaders, making the process of running a troop easier and more efficient. The VTK will save you precious time as you and your girls plan, organize, and manage troop activities. It allows you to spend more time doing the things you imagined when you stepped into your volunteer role—changing girls’ lives through amazing experiences!

Through the Volunteer Toolkit, troop leaders can:

  • Plan the troop’s calendar year.
  • Email parents with one click.
  • View the troop roster, renew girls’ membership, and update girls' contact information.
  • View Daisy through Ambassador Journeys and badges (to plan for troop meetings), including prepopulated tracks.
  • Customize meetings by troop year with other badge and Journey options.
  • Explore individual meeting plans that show a breakdown of every meeting, including a list of materials needed and editable time allotments for each activity within a meeting.
  • Record girls’ attendance at meetings and their badge and Journey achievements.
  • Add council or custom troop events to the troop’s calendar.
  • Easily locate both GSUSA and USAGSO resources, such as Safety Activity Checkpoints. 

Want to know what you’ll find inside the VTK? Check here to explore by program level the Journeys and badges available to you.

Here are a couple Volunteer Toolkit resources for our communities to share with their members. We have both flyers for parents and troop leaders, as well as an image (or two) to share directly with our overseas members.

Log in today! Click on My GS in the upper right-hand corner to get started.

What will I find in the Volunteer Toolkit

You will find the five areas below to help you manage your troop with ease.

My Troop: Manage your troop contacts, renew memberships and communicate with parents.

Year Plan: When you log into VTK for the first time, you will see many year-plan options from which your girls can choose including a Girl Scout Badge year, multiple Girl Scout Journey year plans and a customizable Girl Scout year.

Meeting Plan: Set your calendar to include meeting locations, date and time. You can also view meeting details including activity descriptions, meeting aids, materials lists and more.

Resources: Customize activities, delete those your girls don’t choose and replace them with activities they will enjoy! You will also find the Safety Activity Checkpoints, meeting aids and other helpful resources.

Finances: This will allow you to submit your troop financial report to the council and share it with parents. Keep in mind, you will still have to submit your troop’s May bank statement each year.

How do I access the Volunteer Toolkit?

Log into the VTK by clicking MY GS on the website toolbar. The VTK integrates right into the USAGSO website to allow you to seamlessly go back and forth.

Will all troop leadership have access to the VTK?

Registered co-leaders for all troops will have access of the VTK. Parents can view troop meeting information. Plans are to expand the VTK to additional troop volunteer roles.

What about parents?

Parents will be able to access the VTK to see what their girl's troop or group is doing (e.g. meeting information and which badges and Journeys she is working on).

What’s new to the VTK?

More STEM and Outdoor Journeys and badges are here!

Combined with existing STEM and outdoor programs, as well as programming that addresses life skills and entrepreneurship, these new Journeys and badges help girls empower themselves to take the lead like a Girl Scout as they accomplish amazing things.

Outdoor Journey

Anchored by the Troop Camping badge, our new Outdoor Journeys strengthen girls’ outdoor skills and ignite their interest in environmental stewardship. Girls will also complete a Take Action project.

STEM Journeys

  • Engineering: Think Like an Engineer. Girls discover how to think like an engineer by participating in hands-on design challenges and completing a Take Action project.
  •  Computer Science: Think Like a Programmer. Girls learn how programmers solve problems as they participate in interactive computational-thinking activities and complete a Take Action project.
  • Outdoor STEM: Think Like a Citizen Scientist. Girls practice the scientific method by undertaking a citizen science project. They make observations, collect data, and work with scientists who provide feedback on research and findings. Girls also complete a Take Action project.

Badges

  • Engineering | Robotics: Girls design their own robots after learning how they’re built and programmed. “Unplugged” activities allow girls to earn badges without buying kits.
  • Engineering | Mechanical Engineering: Girls complete hands-on engineering activities, such as building and testing rollercoasters, race cars, and gliders.
  • Girls’ Choice | Troop Camping: Get ready for fun, adventure, and challenge in the great outdoors with the winning Girls’ Choice
  • Daisy Badges: Two new Daisy badges, Outdoor Art Maker and Good Neighbor, give Daisies a chance to get in on the creativity and discover all about their school, city or town, and country!
What if I don’t have internet at my meeting place?

How will I access program materials? You can easily download the materials to your device or print them prior to your meeting. Also, the VTK can be accessed on a tablet or smart phone, which may expand options where it can be used.

What about volunteers who don’t have home internet?

The VTK  can be accessed from any computer or device. Libraries and schools are a great resource for volunteers who don’t have access to the internet at home. They can print meeting plans or download them to their personal computer or drive.

Why has Girl Scouts decided to go digital?

We have heard about all the hours that Girl Scout volunteers spend supporting troops. The VTK is designed to help cut down the amount of time it takes for a volunteer to manage their troop including planning meetings (in partnership with the girls), communicating with parents, and finding support resources. The VTK puts all of this at their fingertips by having a central location for all their Girl Scout “stuff.” Now volunteers can easily find resources, access the website, and communicate with parents all in one place.

 

Have questions or want more information about the Volunteer Toolkit? Please contact the Customer Care team via email or by calling 1-800-467-0070.