Connect Newsletter ~ January

This New Year is an exciting time for Girl Scouts and specifically for GSCSNJ. There is so much to look forward to as we celebrate our new identity and come together in the Girl Scout community. This year you can look forward to:

A new Girl Scout Leadership Development Model, which focuses of three key Girl Scout philosophies; being girl-driven, learning by doing and cooperative learning
Continued implementation three keys to leadership: Discover, Connect, and Take Action
A fantastic cookie sale
A new 2008 Spring Training & Program Guide
New opportunities for girls and so much more

We put our running shoes on and hit the pavement, join us as we make strides in this new year

Trenton Girl Scouts get down with Keke Palmer

keke pic cropped

Featured above with Keke Palmer (center) Morgan, Imani, Ahjanae, Amber, Keelan, Teliah.

Six lucky Girl Scouts from the Trenton Service Unit rocked out at Sovereign Bank Arena with singer, actress and Girl Scout spokesperson, Keke Palmer.

The girls took advantage of the once in a lifetime opportunity to spend time with Palmer backstage. They took pictures and talked to Palmer one-on-one about being a young woman of 14, with a demanding touring schedule and an already successful career as a performer.

In preperation for the meet and greet the girls watched Palmer's (Girl Scout) Public Service Announcement (PSA) in promotion of the Uniquely Me program which fosters self esteem within girls. The girls also completed the Uniquely Me flower activity featured in the Palmer PSA, as part of their cooperative learning experience.

"This activity really set the stage for the girls," said Membership Specialist, Tannya Hemingway, who coordinated the opportunity for the girls. "They were nervous but excited to meet Keke. She is so wonderful and humble; she was so normal and nice. Keke is very talented at such a young age." The girls asked Keke how she got started and how she developed as a performer. "Keke treated the girls as if they were the only ones in the room although there was so much going on back stage," said Hemingway.

Girls sang along with Palmer and her team of dancers on stage as they exemplified the Uniquely Me mission, performing with confidence.

"The girls were so excited to meet Keke and then see her perform," said Hemingway. "They watched the whole show and barely moved from the edge of their seats."

For more infromation about the Uniquely Me program visit the GSUSA website.

Annual Meeting

The Girl Scouts of Central & Southern NJ will hold its Annual Meeting on March 5, 2008 and want you to be a part of the celebration.

As a registered member of the council, your presence and participation at this meeting is very important. GSCSNJ by-laws state that our quorum must be 180 registered members representing EVERY county in our jurisdiction. Those same by-laws outline a "ONE MEMBER, ONE VOTE" structure. Which means, every one of our members over the age of 14 is a delegate, entitled to vote and effect change within the council.

Now I know your next question is: How will we facilitate a gathering of potentially 30,000 members for a meeting of this kind? After all, since the merger, GSCSNJ has grown substantially and become more spread out. Our service centers and members are hundreds of miles apart, and getting everyone into the same room for a meeting is decidedly impractical. For this reason, we will be videoconferencing -- the real-time exchange of information between people who are not in the same physical space -- for the 2008 Annual Meeting.

The Annual Meeting will be held on Wednesday, March 5^that 7:00 PM simultaneously from the following three locations:

Mercer Community College main headquarters in (Mercer County). Building CM, Room 108, 1200 Old Trenton Road, West Windsor, NJ 08550. http://www.mccc.edu/welcome_directions.shtml

Camden County College campus in Blackwood (Camden County)

*Building annoucement to come.

Atlantic Cape Community College Mays Landing campus (Atlantic County). Building H, Room 116, 5100 Black Horse Pike, Mays Landing, NJ 08330. http://www.atlantic.edu/about/directions.htm

Please save the date and plan to participate at the location most convenient for you. Thank you in advance for making this meeting a success.

Save The
Date!

Annual

Meeting

Forums

We will be holding 4 Member Forums prior to our Annual Meeting. The purpose of these Forums is to have "issue-oriented discussions prior to the annual meeting". Topics to be discussed:

October convention
the new way of governance (new by-laws)
Have an open forum for Q&A

Sinse delegate applications are due into Jan Anderson by February 1^st, we are extending these forums to encourage member input.

The forums have been scheduled at the Service Centers from 6:30 PM - 8:00 PM on the following dates:

January 23rd at: East Brunswick

January 24th at: Newfield

January 29th and 31st at: Cherry Hill

	Camp Like a Girl - coming your way soon
*Get excited!* GSCSNJ summer, day and resident, camp information is coming your way soon. Look out for the new 2008 Camp Brochure in the mail.

What does the new Leadership Development Model mean to you?

What is the Girl Scout Leadership Development Model?

The leadership model is the new design for what girls do in Girl Scouting and how adult support can strengthen their experiences. It is the roadmap for determining what a girl will learn and how she will be impacted.

Activities

Program activities are organized around the Girl Scout three keys to leadership activities based on the values of: Discover. Connect. Take Action.

Processes

The processes of girl-driven, learning by doing and cooperative learning are integrated into the activities (what girls do). The processes (how girls do it) create an environment of fun and friendship for girls, determine the quality of the experience and make Girl Scouting unique, thus further enabling the development of leadership skills.

Long-term Outcomes

Over time, the measurable short-term and intermediate outcomes will set girls on a life-long path to

lead with courage when they speak out on issues they care about and take active roles in their communities;
lead with confidence when they make the most of their strengths and feel empowered to make a difference in their lives and beyond;
lead with character when they act with integrity and compassion, making decisions that promote the well-being of themselves and others;

Why is the Girl Scout Leadership Development Model so important?

The leadership model ensures that everyone speaks in one, powerful, national voice about the benefits of Girl Scouts to girls: leadership development. It provides the design for what girls do in Girl Scouting, illustrates how adult support strengthens girls' experiences, and defines and displays all of the elements that must be in place to positively impact girls' lives.

What is the Girl Scout Leadership Development Program?

Since the leadership model defines and displays all of the elements that must be in place to positively impact girls' lives, the Girl Scout Leadership Development Program, then, is the model in action.

How will the changes impact the volunteer experience?

Over the next several years, Girl Scouts of the USA will strive to improve the volunteer experience by:

Making it easier for busy volunteers to join, stay involved and serve in flexible ways.
Providing user-friendly new materials, resources and training that make it easier for volunteers to deliver a fun and impact-driven Girl Scout experience.
Helping volunteers to better see (and show others) the difference they are making in girls' lives.

Why is Girl Scouts of the USA changing now?

Since 1912, Girl Scouts has risen to the challenge of meeting the unique needs of each generation of girls. Girls today are asking for compelling, relevant and impact-driven experiences. This change is part of the next-steps in the Core Business Strategy as expected since 2004. Imagining the power of the Girl Scout Movement speaking in one, consistent, national voice about what we do: leadership development for girls!

Call to Convention

Attention ALL GSCSNJ Members
CALL TO CONVENTION 2008: INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA
October 30 - November 3

Every three years, the members of the corporation of Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) gather at a location, in a meeting assembled, to conduct the business of the National Council (just as GSCSNJ meets once a year
in an annual meeting). As specified by GSUSA's Constitution, each council is allowed one delegate plus an additional delegate for each 1,500 girl members registered as of September 30th of the year preceding the National Council meeting. As such, GSCSNJ will send 18 delegates to the 2008 National Council Meeting in Indianapolis, Indiana, based on the recommendations of the Convention Delegate Nominating Committee. The committee will make its recommendations for both girl and adult delegates after careful review of all completed applications. APPLICATION DEADLINE IS FEBRUARY 1, 2008. The delegates will be elected at our March 2008 Council Annual Meeting.

For more information and for an applications visit the What's New section of the council website at www.gscsnj.org

APPLICATIONS MUST BE RECEIVED BY THE DEADLINE: FEBRUARY 1, 2008.

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