Volunteer Essentials

Transporting Girls For planned Girl Scout field trips and other activities—outside the normal meeting time and place—in which a troop will be transported in private vehicles: • Every driver must be a registered, background checked and approved adult volunteer at least 21 years old, and have a good driving record, a valid license and a registered/insured vehicle • Girls never drive other girls. Girls who are licensed drivers and who are under 21 years of age can only drive themselves and parents/guardians • If a troop is traveling in one vehicle, there must be at least two unrelated, registered, background checked and approved adult volunteers in the vehicle, one of whom is female. In addition, adult-to-girl ratios must be followed • If a troop is traveling in more than one vehicle, the entire troop must consist of at least two unrelated, registered, background checked and approved adult volunteers, one of whom is female, and the adult- to-girl ratios must be followed. Care should be taken so that a single car is not separated from the troop for an extended length of time • State laws must be followed, even if they are more stringent than the guidelines listed here • Refer to Volunteer Essential s and Safety Activity Checkpoints for guidelines and standards, including those for activities, health and safety, transportation and accommodations. Further information about Girl Scout travel can be found on GSEM’s Travel page at girlscoutsem.org > Volunteer > Volunteer Resources > Travel Guidelines Girl Scout Activity Insurance for Trips Basic accident activity insurance is provided as part of the GSUSA membership registration fee and covers every registered girl and adult Girl Scout when they are participating in an approved Girl Scout activity lasting three days and two nights or less. (A third consecutive night is covered when one of the nights is a federal holiday.) If your troop is taking a trip of longer than three days and two nights or an international trip, it is strongly encouraged that you purchase additional insurance, as such trips are not covered under the basic accident activity insurance. In some cases, GSEM may make this insurance mandatory, particularly for overseas travel. If you need to purchase this insurance, contact the Troop Support Coordinator.ly. • It is not required that an adult female sleep in the same sleeping area (tent, cabin or designated area) as girls to supervise, but, if an adult female does sleep in the same sleeping area as girls, there must always be a second unrelated adult female present. • In some circumstances, such as a museum or mall overnight with hundreds of girls, this type of accommodation may not be possible. In such circumstances, men must not supervise girls in sleeping areas of the event, and the adult-to-girl ratio must be adjusted accordingly. Always avoid men sleeping in the same area as girls and women, but, during family or parent/guardian Girl Scout overnights, one family unit may sleep in the same quarters in program areas. • For overnight accommodations that are private residences (a family’s vacation home, a relative’s home, etc.), a Certificate of Insurance must be submitted six months prior to departure. • Airbnb and other personally-owned accommodations for hire (such as, but not limited to, Flipkey, VRBO, Homeaway, Housetrip, Vacasa and VTrips) are not permitted. When Planning Accommodations • Men must have separate sleeping quarters and bathrooms away from females. • Sufficient space must be reserved so that every participant has their own bed. How parents decide to transport girls between their homes and Girl Scout meeting places is each parent’s individual decision and responsibility.

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