Girls on the Run (GOTR) Lancaster will open registration for its upcoming spring season on Thursday, Feb. 15. The organization will have teams in multiple school districts in Lancaster County and the surrounding area, and girls who are in third, fourth or fifth grade are invited to sign up with their local group. Registration will remain open online at http://tinyurl.com/GOTRlanc24 until the first week of the season, which will kick off on Monday, March 11.

Over the course of the 10-week spring season, GOTR teams will meet twice a week for a one-and-a-half-hour session. During each session, volunteer coaches will guide team members through a curriculum designed to help young girls to develop self-confidence and various social skills. The program will incorporate physical activities to supplement every lesson and to prepare the girls for a 5K celebration at the end of the season. The 5K will be held on Saturday, May 4, at Franklin & Marshall College, 637 College Ave., Lancaster.

" 'Run' is in the name, but the program is really about helping to lift up and empower girls," said Jennifer West, executive director of GOTR Lancaster. "You can run, hop, roll, walk or push through our lessons and the 5K."

This year, GOTR will introduce a new curriculum titled "Hello Superstar." While the new material shares many of the same goals as GOTR's previous lessons, it will place an additional focus on the importance of inclusion and celebrating diversity. As part of the curriculum, each team will collaborate on a project that will positively impact the local community, and the girls will have an opportunity to choose where to direct the focus of the assignment. In the past, participants' projects have supported animal rescues, teachers throughout their school district, local first responders and individuals who could use a care package.

"The girls learn that it's important to think of others while taking care of yourself, and it's really neat to see teams choose a project meaningful to them," said Kylie Homan, GOTR Lancaster's program director. "They are not only making a difference in somebody's life, but also in the community at large."

GOTR Lancaster expects to have more than 1,200 girls and 90 teams participate in the spring season, which will require a minimum of 400 volunteer coaches. Coaches are not required to be runners themselves, and students in high school are invited to sign up as volunteers.

For more information, visit http://www.gotrlancaster.org.