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National Council Session and Girl Scouts Unite!
by Girl Scout Senior Alex V., GSCCC National Delegate
At 9 a.m. on July 19th, 2026, I packed up my bags and hopped on a train going from Virginia to Washington D.C. for a very special occasion. It may not have seemed like a huge deal, but I had spent hundreds of hours working toward getting on this train. Two years prior, I’d applied to be a National Delegate for our council and was accepted. This meant that I now represented all GSCCC members.
The job of a National Delegate is to gather input from their council on issues concerning the Movement during their three-year term and conveying that information to GSUSA at the National Council Session. (If you’re part of my council, I’ve probably met you or read your feedback in one of our surveys and shared your opinions at the conference!) NCS is a triennial conference where National Delegates come to share the voice of their councils.
Before the Session, delegates have the opportunity to submit proposals and discussion topics to be considered for debate at NCS. Proposals are proposed changes to the Movement that delegates will vote on, and discussion topics are conversations held on a specific topic to raise awareness and brainstorm ideas.
When I arrived at the D.C. Convention Center for our first day of proposals, I was blown away by how many Girl Scouts were in the city. When I stepped out of the hotel to walk to the convention, there were thousands of uniformed Girl Scouts (at least two hundred in the crosswalk alone) who had come from around the country to ensure a thriving future for Girl Scouting. Not only were there hundreds of Delegates, but hundreds of viewers had come to watch our debates.
After we finished the proposals early during day two, I scurried around the convention center looking for Girl Scout Celebrities (our National CEO, Bonnie Barczykowski and National President, Noorain Khan). After spending years seeing them speak on webinars, the prospect of meeting the people in charge of Girl Scouting is like meeting a super star. And luckily for me, I got selfies with both of them!
On day three of NCS, delegates gathered for discussion topics, and I was elected the leader for my table, meaning I got to capture all that was discussed for GSUSA. We had important conversations relevant to today’s Girl Scouts on topics such as gender inclusivity, neurodivergence-friendly programming, multicultural inclusion, and affordability. The conference wasn’t all business, though. After proposals and discussion topics were over, the NCS portion of the week officially ended, and Girl Scouts Unite started.
Unite is essentially a huge celebration of Girl Scouting held throughout the city and is open to all Girl Scouts, not just National Delegates. Unite kicked off with an awesome opening ceremony, complete with a marching band and an inspiring speech from our incoming National President, Telva McGruder (who I also tracked down for a selfie). And because Unite is open to all Girl Scouts, when I showed up to events wearing my credentials lanyard as a delegate, I’m a Girl Scout Celebrity to some of the attendees – a younger Girl Scout even asked me for a selfie!
During Unite, the Hall of Experiences was one of the biggest attractions. The Hall of Experiences is a space where vendors set up activities for Girl Scouts to have a great time while learning about the organizations. The Hall had everything from interactive booths with Instagram, to a rock wall, to getting prop photos taken with Broadway camera equipment! Simultaneously, Unite had dozens of panels consisting of famous former Girl Scouts, such as Olympic athletes and bestselling authors. Girl Scouts got to hear from the panelists firsthand how much this Movement builds leaders of courage, confidence, and character.
After taking a moment to rest during dinner, everyone would then head over to Franklin Park for the block party organized by our host council for the week: Girl Scouts of Nation's Capital. The block party had a DJ, a zipline, free nail art, a water splash area, and outdoor escape rooms - not to mention ice cream! Nation’s Cap. staff also organized areas set up for us to meet like-minded people, such as the LGBTQ+ Girl Scout hangout where Girl Scouts could get colorful temporary tattoos and stickers!
At the end of the week, the Unite closing ceremony was a day to remember. One of my favorite actors, Madison Reyes, sang and Broadway actors from the cast of Six: the Musical and Wicked performed multiple numbers for us! As a life-long theatre kid, I was thrilled.
After returning from the National Council Session, I’d like to tell any Girl Scout who has a passion for the Movement, to consider being a National Delegate. There are going to be times when you might want to quit and times when you forget why you applied, but as you can tell from this article, hard work really does pay off.
