My daughter, K had been waiting to be a Girl Scout for almost 2 years. There just wasn't any troops open at the time. Suggestions from our SU that new troops don't usually get started until Nov or Dec did not sit well with me. We were READY! I wasn't going to wait til late Sept or Oct to try and gather parents to hopefully get going by November or Dec. Yes, thank you very much for your input. No Thanks. I think we'll just do our own thing and muddle through, thank you very much.
image courtesy of www.girlscouts.org
And by the way, I can just see it now, "Yes parents, you need to spend $15 on a tunic, $22.50 on a Girl Guide and about $20 on insignia and patches....and oh yes, you'll only need them until May and then you get to spend it all over again on the Brownie gear."
Nope. We're good with our own thing such as it is...
So we just started (well I *did say* in earlier posts that I just kind of plowed ahead, didn't I?) and I hoped for the best. While I think we did have a great year, I think not having had a parent meeting also set us up for same failure too. We were clearly not as organized as we could have been and there was definitely confusion at times...
So this year I am planning a parent meeting. Not exactly sure what I am doing, but here are my thoughts. There is such a big difference between Daisy's and Brownies...I just see us traveling more and after training there are clearly some concerns to address.
Training, I've found, is always sketchy at best. One instructor tell you one thing, another instructor tells you something else, and your SU tells you something altogether different. So I'm not 100% sure, but it's my understanding that a parent cannot transport another child unless
a) they are a registered Girl Scout themselves
b) they have Girl Scout clearance (not the school ones, it has to be from Girl Scouts)
c) there is another registered adult in the same car with you and the girl(s).
Further more...they cannot attend more than 3 events or activities (meetings or activities) without being registered.... I have exactly NO registered parents and only one 02 leader. Girl Scout rules state that there must be two unrelated registered girl leaders or adults with the kids at all time.
Are you seeing my dilemma here? Hence my first rule:
Rule No. 1
All parents must register themselves as Girl Scouts.
My second rule also revolved around activities and travel. I finally was able to get the long awaited First Aider/CPR training required for most trips. Key piece of information here? If a child is injured and needs to be transported to a hospital, *I* need to go with the injured child, NOT THEM. When parents bring their child to a Girl Scout event, they are handing over responsibility to me. If they over ride this rule, two important things can happen.
a) They invalidate the Girl Scout insurance they essentially purchase when they register their child as a Girl Scout and
b) Possibly invalidate their personal insurance by invalidating the Girl Scout Insurance.
So really, we see the importance of rule no 1 coming into play if I have to leave the troop, right? I can't leave my single co-leader alone with the girls without another registered adult, and I can't leave the injured girl alone and let the parents just take over assuming they are along on the trip, hence rule no 2....
Rule No. 2
All parents must understand and acquiesce (via the health history and troop activity consent forms) that they are essentially signing over responsibility of their daughter to my care, even in the event of injury.
My third rule revolves around communication. There's so much going on throughout the school year....after school clubs, sports etc Even last year, when we had clearly set meetings, the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays of the month, I still had some parents showing up on non-meeting nights (think about the months with 5 weeks and you'gll get it). This year, we are having trips almost every month, adn the meeting weeks will change based on those trips.
image from www.ronrosenhead.co.uk
Then of course are all these requirements for Girl scouts. Who needs clearance checks, consent for troop activity forms, $5 for this event, what to bring for the next meeting and now this year we are throwing in "homework" to boot. We need a communication tool that the parents will use. Hence my third rule...
Rule No. 3
All parents must create an account for our Private Troop website (more on how to do this for free in the next post) so they can find forms, check badge requirements, see our Calendar of events and receive manual and automated messages from the my co-leader and myself.
The last is more an exercise of understanding for the parents. It takes a lot of work to do this. Truly, it is a labor of love.... I feel honored to be a part of the girl's lives, and I just LOVE it when they get excited over a meeting or activity I've planned. But the simple truth remains...I am only one person, and there are only 24 hours in a day. Hence the final rule....
Rule No. 4
All parents must attend and help with at least one meeting OR plan a trip or badge requirements.
There you have it. My 4 simple rules. I don't know how the parents will react, or how they feel, but I think this is information that they HAVE to be aware of in order for us to have a successful year. Oh wait....I guess that means I have 5 simple rules....
Rule No. 5
All parents must attend the parent meeting. If they miss it, they must meet with me or their girls are not allowed to attend more than three meetings or any outside activities until they do.
I admit I am nervous about this and hoping not to become a human target or cut my group in half. but I can't think like that and most of the rules really, are dictated by Girl Scouts USA, not me. But I open to hearing what the parents think and am willing to adjust what I can if it make sense. I'll be sure to post how it goes.
image from fcsl.edu
Sincerely,
Leader Mom in the making
