Effective September 3, 2021, until further notice:
Council is currently operating in Phase IV. In order to gather in person, Girl Scout members and their families must agree and adhere to all GSVSC COVID-19 Safety Requirements as outlined in this document.
Phase IV: Effective September 3, 2021
Indoor & Outdoor Gatherings
- Indoor gatherings are to be restricted by the square footage of the facility to allow for participants to properly social distance (36-100 sq. ft. per person) based on the activity being conducted.
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When gathering outdoors, inclement weather plans are to include enough indoor space so that participants can shelter indoors and maintain proper social distancing of 6 feet; otherwise must postpone or cancel.
Masks & Social Distancing
- During all indoor in-person gatherings or activities, all children ages 2 and older, and all adults are to wear a mask* and maintain 6 feet of social distance, regardless of vaccination status.
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During all outdoor in-person gatherings or activities, all children ages 2 and older, and all adults are to wear a mask* when they are unable to maintain 6 feet of physical distance, regardless of vaccination status. Individuals should always keep a mask with them at all times in case of close contact.
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During all indoor and outdoor gatherings or activities, maintain proper social distancing of 6 feet.
- Any activity that requires unmasking for greater than 5 minutes is not recommended as an indoor activity (eating meals, physical activity, playing a musical instrument, etc.)
- If close contact occurs, limit to no more than 10 minutes and wear a mask.
* CDC
recommends masks have two or more layers of washable,
breathable fabric; completely cover nose and mouth; fit snugly
against the sides of the face; don’t have gaps; have a nose wire to
prevent air leaking out the top of the mask; block light when held
up to bright light source.
There are different carpooling, masking, and social distance guidelines for Summer Camps. See “Summer Camp” section for complete details.
In-Person
Troop/Group/Service Unit Meetings
These Girl Scout meetings are
permitted and volunteers must continue to:
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Prescreen; confirm temperature checks and collect completed COVID-19 Questionnaire (#1082) & COVID-19 Waiver, Participation Agreement, and Pledge and Girl Scout Culture of Care Pledge (#1083) from all participants prior to participation in any Girl Scout activity.
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Keep stellar travel rosters, as well as attendance, contact, and health records for all participants.
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Obtain signed parent/caregiver permission slips prior to girl participation.
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Routinely clean areas before and after all in-person meetings or activities; must have cleaning supplies available for all in-person meetings or activities.
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Communicate and enforce all COVID-19 exposure mitigation guidelines, including masking and social distancing.
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Follow proper COVID-19 exposure reporting procedures.
Troop/Group Spending
All families may not be ready to have their daughters meet with
the troop/group in person. The ideal troop/group experience during
these times would be to have some virtual opportunities. When planning
activities or trips, volunteers should ensure 75% of the active girls
are able to participate. All girls worked really hard during the
council-sponsored product sales and will want to enjoy the outings
that had been previously cancelled.
Activities/Trips/Travel
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Volunteers no longer have to submit an activity/trip permission for ALL activities away from their regular meeting place. Instead, volunteers must submit an Activity/Trip Permission (2129) and obtain council permission for activities and travel that involve a) a day or overnight trip that includes non- registered participants; b) a day or overnight trip outside council boundaries; c) trips or overnights of 2 nights/3 days or more; d) travel outside the continental US e) camping activities, including backyard camping, campfires, outdoor cooking and cabin camping; f) programs that include human sexuality and related health issues; g) activities that present a greater risk than usual to participants. Refer to the Council Policy P1.
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Continue to practice the "Hygiene and COVID-19 Risk Mitigation" guidance outlined in this document.
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Obtain COVID-19 Questionnaire (#1082) & COVID-19 Waiver, Participation Agreement, and Pledge and Girl Scout Culture of Care Pledge (#1083) from all participants.
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Confirm temperature checks prior to participation; keep a daily log of temperature checks for trips and overnights.
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Keep stellar travel rosters, as well as attendance, contact, and health records for all participants.
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Obtain signed parent/caregiver permission slips prior to girl participation.
- Communicate and enforce all council safety and COVID guidelines, as well as COVID guidelines for the state/local destination to which troops/groups are traveling
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Not combine Girl Scouting activities or travel with family activities or travel as a means to avoid following Safety Activity Checkpoints, Council Policies, or COVID-19 Restrictions.
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Follow proper COVID-19 exposure reporting procedures as outlined in this document.
Local Day, Overnight & Regional Trips/Activities
Trips/activities up to three days/two nights are permitted for all
grade levels.
- When renting or using your own tents, keep the sleeping occupancy at 50% of the manufacturer recommendation for the tent; avoid using family-size tents with occupancy capacity over 6 people unless only used by one family household.
- When renting
council properties or cabinettes/platform tents structures, limit
sleeping capacity to 50% of the recommended occupancy. For
example:
• council platform tents sleep 4-6 people; keep to 3 or less.
• council cabinettes sleep 6-8; keep to 4 or less.
See “Guidelines for Girl Scout Meetings, Activities, & Travel” for further details.
Extended Regional Travel
Travel beyond three days/two
nights and national travel activities are permitted only for fully
vaccinated adults and fully vaccinated girls ages 12 and above; all
participants must provide proof of vaccination along with their Activity/Trip
Permission (2129), See “In-Person
Gathering Guidelines for Girl Scout Meetings, Activities, &
Travel Progression” for further details.
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Additional Girl Scout activity insurance must be purchased.
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At least 75% of active girls in the troop/group must be able to participate in the trip/travel or activity.
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Additional supervision may be required.
- Girls must have their own bed if they are sharing a room with a non-family member.
- Girls may share a bed if all room occupants are from the same household.
Carpooling
Carpooling is permitted
without household restrictions. Note that carpooling is not
recommended as coronavirus transmission risk is high when people are
in close proximity (less than six feet apart). The risk increases
when people are in a closed-in area or indoors for longer than 10 minutes
- When carpooling, if possible, girls from different households should not carpool.
- When carpooling, all girls (ages 2 and above) and adults must wear a mask at all times when inside a motor vehicle regardless of vaccination status.
- When carpooling, keep the windows partially open to provide ventilation.
- When carpooling, always space out the girls to avoid crowding and ensure all girls are wearing seatbelt.
- When carpooling, obtain parent permission ahead of time if girls will be in a car together; keep a travel roster.
See “Transportation Guidelines” for specific carpooling details.
Parents/guardians should provide camper transportation to and from summer camp. Due to COVID-19 safety protocols, carpooling with others outside the assigned camp unit/cohort/pod is NOT permitted. The summer camp carpool restriction is to protect the structures put in place as a means to mitigate the risk of transmission from one unit/cohort to another and significantly reduces the number of people who would be required to quarantine for 14 days should there be a report of COVID-19 exposure or positive test result. See Summer Camp section for details.
Public Transportation
Public transportation is
permitted. However, public transportation should be avoided whenever
possible as large groups of people, indoors, for longer than ten
minutes are typical of most public transportation which increases
transmission risk. Also, maintaining six feet social distance is often
difficult or impossible with public transportation. When using public transportation:
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Obtain parental or legal guardian permission ahead of time; keep a travel roster.
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Masks are required at all times while in planes, buses, trains, and other forms of public transportation traveling within the United States and in U.S. transportation hubs such as airports and stations.
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Avoid peak hours.
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Allow extra time to wait and avoid crowded buses, or subway cars.
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Space out girls to avoid overcrowding (but keep to the buddy system).
- Clean hands before and after public transportation travel.
See “Transportation Guidelines” section for complete details.
International & Cruise Travel
International and
cruise travel are not permitted at this time. Provisional planning
& promotional clearance will be provided for international travel
that occurs after May 1, 2022. (Dates subject to change based on US/VA
travel guidelines and/or restrictions.) *At least one year prior to
trip departure, volunteers must have completed GSVSC GS 203
International Trip Training and a council-approved Intent
to Travel for International Trips (#2279) form must be on file
at council. Official approval will be assessed closer to travel dates.
“It’s Not Girl Scout Approved” – It’s Not a Good Idea!
Occasionally, a Girl Scout volunteer, in an effort to support the
girls in the activities they would like to participate in, will decide
to tell the girls and families that they will do the activity “as
friends, and not as a Girl Scout troop” rather than find an approved
vendor or modify the activity in order to comply with all safety
guidelines. Then the girls in the active troop/group, supervised by
the Girl Scout volunteers, engage in the activity together, and the
supervising adults choose not to follow policies and procedures
established in Volunteer Essentials, in a Safety Activity Checkpoint
or COVID-19 guidelines. This could jeopardize the girls’ safety and
also puts both the Council and the volunteer(s) at legal risk, because
courts may look beyond the words to the actions (the girls in the
troop/group, supervised by the Girl Scout volunteers, engaged in the
activity together). It may also expose the volunteer to some personal
liability if there is an accident, injury or liability that might have
been avoided had the volunteer followed Girl Scout safety guidelines.
Also, it is important to note that Girl Scout insurance does not cover
participants in non-Girl Scout events and Girl Scout funds cannot be
used for non-Girl Scout activities.
