Site Requirements

These are the elements that should be considered when thinking about starting your own GirlSound Inc. Site

1. CLASS LOCATION – where will you hold classes? Optimally this would be an existing establishment already equipped with a computer lab. Most of our chapters operate inside of other locals schools or centers and class time in the space is donated. We can help you find a location for classes to be held if you don’t already have one in mind.

2. HARDWARE / SOFTWARE – We work in close liaison between manufacturers such as PreSonus, Novation, Focusrite, Apogee, and Sweetwater with and for you. Generally speaking, the software will be free, and in some cases, the hardware will be as well. Depending on the circumstances we can either provide you with everything you need or offer it to you at a very low cost. We typically include these costs in our fundraising efforts.

3. CURRICULUM – The Girlsound curriculum consists of several levels and areas of study including Intro to Beatmaking/Music Production, Sampling, Intro to Mixing, and Songwriting. Part of the chapter agreement provides a free license to all existing and future curriculum assets. 

4. COMMUNITY INFRASTRUCTURE  – Having a local community to pull from is an important piece of the puzzle. We’ve seen great results from chapters that have partnered with places like local after-school programs or non-profit community orgs. Promoting for enrollment can be tricky if you’re doing this all on your own so it’s good to be directly connected to communities that need/want to be served. 

5. TEACHER TRAINING – We provide teacher training at various levels to help you or any of your collaborators get up to speed with how to teach the concepts. Optimally, teaching artists have a foundation to build upon, but we will meet you where you're at and help you however you need to be helped. We've developed several supplemental resources which include video lessons and tutorials, a guide to general teaching practices, and video footage of the first two lessons so you can watch one of our teachers in action. We also offer in-person chapter training and setup if you need it, which has additional costs associated.

6. FUNDRAISING – GirlSound Inc. typically does not provide any direct funding.  However, we can help you raise money by participating in fundraising efforts and have been generally successful in doing so. For certain chapters, it makes sense for us to act as a Fiscal Sponsor, which allows a chapter to leverage our 501c3 status to accept tax-deductible donations or grant/foundation money to fund their chapter.  

7. PROMOTION and MARKETING – GirlSound Inc. is a recognizable brand name that member chapters get to use in their efforts and promotion. A site can have their own dedicated GirlSound, Inc. social channels which we help to promote and we also have dedicated members of our staff who design posters and flyers to help with any needs you might have. 

8. SUPPORT – GirlSound was originally developed to create a safe and comfortable place for young women to get involved in music technology while having as much fun as possible. Our goal is to provide guidance, access, tools and role-support to girls of all ages. We are here to support you and help get the ball moving as your chapter grows. If you need help, just ask for it!