Girl Scout Gold Award
 The
Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor a girl can receive
in Girl Scouting, recognizes the leadership, effort and
impact girls in grades 9-12 or are 14-17 years of age have
had on their communities.
In membership year
2006, 5,500 Gold Awards were received nationawide; representing
approximately 5.4% of registered Girl Scouts eligible to
earn the Gold Award. Those
who complete the journey change the lives of others and
their own in amazing and significant ways. These truly
outstanding young women are acknowledged by many governmental,
national and local organizations. A growing number of colleges
and universities award scholarships and grants to Girl
Scouts Gold Award recipients.
New Gold Award Requirement
ATTENTION: All Senior and Ambassador Girl
Scouts
Frontier Council Gold Award Standard: As of October 1, 2007, completion of
the "Go For The Gold Girl Scout Gold Award" training will
be a *requirement for any girl who wishes to present her Gold
Award project for council approval.
*Girls must complete the training course prior to the scheduled presentation
date. Girls who have already received council approval for their Gold Award
projects are exempt from this requirement.
Any girl who resides in a council jurisdiction area outside of Las Vegas, Henderson,
or Boulder City, can contact the council program department to schedule a training
session and project presentations to the Gold Award Alliance.
If you have questions regarding the new requirement, please contact Holly
Smith at (702) 385-3677
ext 248.
History of the
Girl Scout Gold Award
The Girl Scout Gold
Award evolved from a long line of special Girl Scout awards.
The Girl Scout Gold Award was introduced in 1980 as the
highest award a Girl Scout could earn. This replaced the
Curved Bar Award established in 1940, the First Class badge
(1938-1940), which replaced the Golden Eaglet Award (1918-1939).
Prior to the Golden Eaglet, this award was known as the
Golden Eagle (1916), established by Juliette Gordon Low
based upon the Guiding Silver Fish award. This prestigious
award recognizes the work of Senior Girl Scouts who have
achieved outstanding accomplishments in the areas of leadership,
community service, career planning, and personal development.
- In 1980, the Girl Scout Gold
Award was introduced in "You Make the Difference".
Council volunteers and staff received additional information
on the Girl Scout Gold Award at the 1980 Program Conferences
conducted around the country. This new recognition helped
girls focus on four areas: skill development, leadership,
service, and career exploration.
- In 1987 a new handbook was
developed for Cadette and Senior Girl Scouts. Minor changes
were made to the Girl Scout Gold Award, including an added
service project.
- Delegates to the 1990 National Council
Session approved a proposal to keep the name of the Girl
Scout Gold Award in perpetuity.
- 1993 - The National Council Session
approved the establishment of the Girl Scout Gold Award
Alliance.
- 1995 - New resources for Cadette
and Senior Girl Scouts were developed with separate handbooks
for each age level. Included was clarification on record-keeping
for the Girl Scout Gold Award project.2001 - Research is
done on what girls 11-17 want and need, including suggestions
about the Girl Scout Silver and Girl Scout Gold Awards.
- 2002 - STUDIO 2B materials, the
result of the research, are introduced at the GSUSA national
council session in California. The Girl Scout Gold Award
is revised to allow for Girl Scout STUDIO 2B Focus books.
- 2004 - Girl Scout Gold Awards
are revised to reflect girl and council suggestions and
research; new materials are prepared for girls, advisors
and councils.
The Girl Scout Gold
Award is most often completed by an individual girl; to
really give her a chance to demonstrate all the leadership
skills, communication skills, organization, knowledge and
awareness of the community she has obtained in her Girl
Scouting experience. While many mistakenly view the project
she completes as a "glorified service project",
it is rather a community action project designed to make
a true difference in the community at large.
The Girl Scout
Gold Award has 7 steps:
 |
1 |
• Learn
about the Award requirements and meet with an advisor |
| 2 |
•Leadership
Award
*Complete Cadette Girl Scout Gold Leadership Award |
| 3 |
•Career
Exploration
*Earn the Girl Scout Gold Career Award |
| 4 |
•Cadette
Girl Scout Challenge
* Earn the Girl Scout Gold 4B Challenge |
| 5 |
•Create
a project plan |
| |
6 |
•Complete
the Gold Award Project. Must be a minimum of 65
hours. |
| |
7 |
•Girls
reflect and evaluate. How has earning the Gold
Award changed them and impacted others? |
The first five requirements
may be completed in any order, but MUST be
completed before you
work on the final requirements.
A Girl Scout Gold
Award Project is an extension and a combination of all
that has been learned in previous Girl Scout work. The
first four requirements helped develop skills, practice
leadership, explore career possibilities, and discover
more about one's self. All of this will be put into action
as the special community action project is designed and
carried out. The project may be done with others, but must
be personally special and relevant to each of the participants.
Each project must reflect a minimum of 65 hours in planning
and implementing a Girl Scout Service project that has
a positive and lasting impact on the community.
The Gold Award packet contains the application procedure,
information sheet, application form, the project report form,
recipient biography sheet and tracking sheet for contributions
and gifts-in-kind. It also includes a project plan,
must be submitted prior to beginning work on the project.
- Gold Award Full Packet- Prerequisite
Workbooks, Planning Your Project, Intent Forms, Project
Proposal and Final Report (PG 20 and PG40)
 PDF  Word
- Gold Award Project Proposals and
Final Report Packet (PG20) PDF Word
- Gold Award Prerequisite Workbooks,
Planning Your Project, Intent Forms (PG40)
After your proposal
has been received by council you will be scheduled for
a presentation with members of the GAA. This is not
a standing day of the month. We schedule for the best convenience
of the girls and mentors. Please do not arrive on the committee
meeting night to present, we do not hear presentations
on that night you will need to re schedule with Holly
Smith 385-3677 ext 248, or 1-800-762-6032.
Gold Award recipients
are recognized at a special council-wide award ceremony
in May of every year.
Scholarships and Other Benefits
 A
young woman who has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award has
become a community leader. Her accomplishments reflect leadership
and citizenship skills that set her apart. An increasing
number of colleges and universities have recognized the achievements
leadership abilities of Girl Scout Gold Award recipients
by establishing scholarship programs for them.
Although Girl Scouts of the USA does not award scholarships
to Girl Scout Gold Award recipients, GSUSA does publish the Scholarships
for Girl Scouts Directory, which lists these schools.
The Elks Foundation presents
scholarships to ten Girl Scout Gold Awardees who qualify
for financial assistance annually. Information is available
to councils and girls about special
scholarships and other
opportunities online on studio2b.org.
Girls who have earned the Girl Scout Gold Award often enter
the four branches of the United States Armed Services at
an advanced level and salary, having been recognized for
their level of leadership shown in earning the Girl Scout
Gold Award. The achievements of Girl Scout Gold Award recipients
are acknowledged by many government and non-profit organizations.
Frontier Council Recipients
**NOTE: SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATIONS ARE BEING REVISED AND WILL
BE AVAILABLE SOON.
Gold Award recipients
interested in continuing their education at any accredited
community college or university are also eligible to apply
for the Girl Scouts of Frontier Council Gold
Award Scholarship.
Scholarships are awarded on a yearly basis. Applications are accepted January
2 – April 1. Applications MUST be postmarked or date stamped by council
on or before April 1 to be considered for funding. NO EXCEPTIONS!
If you are a first time applicant please download the Gold
Award Scholarship packet, which contains the scholarship application ( PDF or Word
2003) and information sheet.
If you have already received a Gold Award Scholarship and are re-applying for
an additional year, please download the Scholarship
re-application form:
- Fall Re-application
packet ( PDF or Word
2003)
- Spring Re-application
packet ( PDF or Word
2003)
Remember ALL recipients of Gold Award Scholarships
are responsible to provide the following information mid-year of
their funding in order to receive their second (spring) installment:
• Current
proof of enrollment/transcript and grades
• Short statement on your current activities and school experiences
• Postmarked or date stamped by Council on or before January 2nd.
For further information, or for assistance regarding Gold
Award Scholarships, contact Holly
Smith 385-3677 ext 248. or the Service Center at (702)
385-3677 or 1-800-762-6032.
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