a girl’s guide to going · 2020. 1. 22. · a girl’s guide to going gold. your name: _____ girl...

12/2019

A Girl’s Guide to Going Gold

Your Name: ________________________________________________________________________

Girl Scouts–North Carolina Coastal Pines

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Who We Are We’re Girl Scouts and we’re 2.5 million strong—that’s 1.7 million girls and 750,000 adults who believe in the power of every G.I.R.L. (Go-getter, Innovator, Risk taker, Leader™) to change the world. Because if we’re going to change the world, it’s up to us to take the lead, like a Girl Scout, like a Gold Award Girl Scout!

Girl Scout Promise

On my honor, I will try To serve God and my country, To help people at all times, And to live by the Girl Scout Law.

Girl Scout Law I will do my best to be honest and fair, friendly and helpful, considerate and caring, courageous and strong, and responsible for what I say and do, and to respect myself and others, respect authority, use resources wisely, make the world a better place, and be a sister to every Girl Scout.

Are you ready to make a difference? For over 100 years, Girl Scouts have planned and executed extraordinary Gold Award projects in response to local, national, and global needs. We applaud your leadership and cheer your commitment to pursuing this incredible distinction. As a Gold Award Girl Scout, you’ll be part of an elite group of young women and we’ll be here to help and guide you every step of the way!

You are a true G.I.R.L.!

Girl Scouts–North Carolina Coastal Pines Girl Scout Gold Award Committee and Staff

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Table of Contents

The Girl Scout Gold Award – History and Background ........................................................................... 5 Benefits of Earning the Girl Scout Gold Award ................................................................................... 5 Earning the Girl Scout Gold Award ..................................................................................................... 6 Community Service vs. Take Action Projects ..................................................................................... 6

Steps to Gold ......................................................................................................................................... 9 1: Identify an issue. .......................................................................................................................... 10 2: Investigate it thoroughly................................................................................................................ 10 3: Get help and build your team........................................................................................................ 13 4: Create a plan. ............................................................................................................................... 14 5: Present your plan and gather feedback. ....................................................................................... 21 6: Take action. ................................................................................................................................. 22 7: Educate and inspire. .................................................................................................................... 28

Opportunities for Gold Award Girl Scouts ............................................................................................. 31 Gold Award Celebration ................................................................................................................... 31 National Gold Award Girl Scout ........................................................................................................ 31 Scholarships .................................................................................................................................... 32 Girls Changing the World Map ......................................................................................................... 32 Tell Your Girl Scout Gold Award Story ............................................................................................. 32

Frequently Asked Questions ................................................................................................................ 33 Appendix.............................................................................................................................................. 36

Parent/Caregiver Information Form .................................................................................................. 40 Caregiver Email: ............................................................................................................................... 40 Girl Scout Gold Award Project Advisor Sample Communication ....................................................... 41 Proposed Gold Award Project Budget Planning Guide ..................................................................... 42 Girl Scout Gold Award Project Record of Income and Expenses ...................................................... 49 Girl Scout Gold Award Biographical Information ............................................................................... 51 Adult Photo Release Form ............................................................................................................... 53 Minor Photo Release Form ............................................................................................................... 54

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The Girl Scout Gold Award – History and Background

First introduced as the Golden Eagle of Merit (1916-1918) and later as the Golden Eaglet (1918-1938), Girl Scouts’ highest award marked the beginning of a long tradition of recognizing the extraordinary efforts of extraordinary girls. From 1938 to 1940, Girl Scouts’ highest award was known as the First Class Award followed by the Curved Bar Award (1940-1963). In 1963, Girl Scouts saw the return of the name First Class which continued until 1980. Since 1980, the Gold Award has inspired girls to find their passion and share their ideas locally and globally.

While Girl Scouts’ highest award has gone through several name changes over the years, the essence has always remained the same. The Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor a Girl Scout can earn, acknowledges the power behind each recipient’s dedication to not only empower and better herself, but also to make the world a better place for others. Gold Award Girl Scouts are courageous leaders and visionary change makers. They are our future, and it looks bright!

Benefits of Earning the Girl Scout Gold Award The benefits of earning the Girl Scout Gold Award (Gold Award) come in many forms and when compared to non-alums, Gold Award Girl Scouts rate their general success in life significantly higher and report greater success in reaching their goals in education, career, and volunteer work. Below are some key benefits of achieving the Girl Scout Gold Award:

Higher Education/Career • Distinguish yourself among the competition in the college admissions process. • Earn college scholarships. • Enlist at a higher pay grade when joining the military.

Life Skills • Become a pro in team building, project planning, and time management. • Enhance your confidence and self-worth. • Empower yourself to lead in your own life and the world.

Community • Tackle a local issue that’s important to you. • Serve as a role model for members of your community and beyond. • Learn what it takes to achieve sustainable impact locally. • Establish a network of supporters to last a lifetime.

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Earning the Girl Scout Gold Award The Girl Scout Gold Award is a girl-led project that develops girls’ leadership skills. Each girl chooses her own project that addresses a unique need in her community while demonstrating that she can learn and teach others in the process and make a difference—locally and globally. Gold Award Girl Scouts don’t just change the world for the better, they change it for good!

The Girl Scout Gold Award is earned by girls in grades 9–12 who demonstrate extraordinary leadership in developing sustainable solutions to local, national, and global challenges. Since 1916, Girl Scouts have answered the call to drive lasting, impactful change. The Girl Scout Gold Award is the mark of the truly remarkable.

Gold Award Prerequisites • You must be in grades 9-12 (or equivalent) and a registered Girl Scout Senior or Ambassador. • You need to have completed two Journeys (Senior or Ambassador) or earned the Girl Scout

Silver Award and completed one Senior or Ambassador Journey. • You need to complete Girl Scouts–North Carolina Coastal Pines’ Girl Scout Gold Award

training. To complete your training, visit www.nccoastalpines.org and follow the steps below. 1. From the Home page, click on About and choose Our Program. 2. Select Highest Awards. 3. Select Gold Award. 4. Scroll down the page and click on Before You Start Your Gold Award Proposal. From

the dropdown, select Girl Scout Gold Award Training. The training is your first step and should be completed prior to attending a Gold Award Workshop.

When you decide to earn the Gold Award, you're on your honor to uphold Girl Scouts' standards of excellence, which include:

• living the Girl Scout Promise and Law, and • demonstrating civic responsibility.

These standards set a high benchmark for everything you do and invite you to think deeply, explore opportunities, and challenge yourself.

Upholding the standards of excellence challenges you to develop yourself as a leader, achieve Girl Scouts Five Leadership Outcomes, and make a mark on your community that leaves a lasting impact on the lives of others.

Community Service vs. Take Action Projects So, you meet the prerequisites and feel ready to pursue the Girl Scout Gold Award. That’s great! But before you begin it’s important that you understand the difference between a community service project and a Take Action project.

It’s important that the completion of a Journey align to your Girl Scout level at the time of completion. For example, a Girl Scout Senior should not complete an

Ambassador level Journey. All prerequisites must be completed prior to submitting your Gold Award proposal.

http://www.nccoastalpines.org/https://www.girlscouts.org/content/dam/girlscouts-gsusa/forms-and-documents/about-girl-scouts/research/GSUSA_Five-Ways-Girl-Scouts-Builds-Girl-Leaders_2017.pdf

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Community service projects are direct and immediate service activities that change something and make the world a better place right now. Whether you engage in a short-term community service project, like collecting toys for children who live in a shelter, or a long-term, recurring project, like weekly volunteer shifts at a soup kitchen, a community service project fills an immediate need in the community. Remember, a community service project:

• addresses an immediate need; • addresses a problem by working for a community partner; • makes a contribution to the community that is sometimes measurable; • makes the community better for some people, right now; and • is not usually long-lasting or continuous.

Take Action projects, also called service learning, take community service to the next level. Though you still identify areas in which you’d like to help your community, a Take Action project is a longer- lasting activity that addresses the root cause(s) of an issue and creates an ongoing effect. Remember, a Take Action project:

• addresses a need, immediate or not; • addresses the root cause of a problem by working with (not for) community partner(s); • creates a lasting impact in the community; • makes a contribution to the community that is always measurable; and • includes provisions to ensure sustainability long after girls’ involvement in the project has ended.

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Can you spot the difference? When you go Gold, you’ll need to be able to spot the difference between a community service project and a Take Action project and understand what makes your project measurable and sustainable. For each of the issues below, label the actions as either CS (Community Service) or TA (Take Action).

Issue 1: Local animal shelter needs supplies and volunteers. _______ A. Hold a food and supply drive in your community. _______ B. Create a marketing campaign (posters, radio spots, flyers etc.) encouraging the community

to donate supplies and time to the shelter and then hold a food and supply drive. Give all marketing materials to the shelter for use in future drives.

Issue 2: Local food pantry needs help. _______ A. Collect food, develop a recipe book of nutritious foods available at the pantry, and host a

nutritious food workshop at the pantry for community members. Find a local printing company to print several copies of the recipe book and give the original to the food pantry to make more when needed.

_______ B. Collect nonperishable food through a food drive at school. Issue 3: Kids at the middle school say they don’t feel safe and bullying is a problem. _______ A. Put up posters encouraging students to be nicer. _______ B. Have a karate expert come to the school and give everyone a self-defense lesson. _______ C. Work with the school to start an annual program for all students to learn how to identify

bullying and step in when they witness it. Issue 4: An average meal at the school cafeteria contains more sugar, calories, and fat

than the local fast food joint. _______ A. Get your health class to do a day on nutrition. _______ B. Work with the school to find healthier food options and to create healthier menu selections;

educate students and staff on how to make healthier food choices. _______ C. Encourage students to boycott the cafeteria and start bringing healthy food options from

home. Issue 5: Elementary school children are not able to read at their grade level. _______ A. Send information home to parents about the importance of reading. _______ B. Organize a book collection drive for the school library. _______ C. Set up a program between the high school and elementary school to provide ongoing

tutoring.

That’s right! Now that you understand what a Take Action project is, you’re ready to take the first step–you’re ready to identify an issue you are passionate about!

Answer Key: Take Action choices are: Issue 1/B; Issue 2/A; Issue 3/C; Issue 4/B; Issue 5/C

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Steps to Gold

Essentially, there are 7 steps in the Gold Award process:

1. Identify an issue. Use your values and skills to choose a community issue you care about. 2. Investigate it thoroughly. Research everything you can about the issue. 3. Get help and build your team. Invite others to support and take action with you. 4. Create a plan. Create a project plan that can deliver sustainable and measurable impact. 5. Present your plan and gather feedback. Sum up your project for the Girl Scout Gold Award

Committee to review. 6. Take action. Take the lead to carry out your plan. 7. Educate and inspire. Share with others what you have experienced and learned.

Before you get started, we’d like you to check out Girl Scouts’ gogold! This online resource is where you’ll find resources, documents and forms, and the Girl Scout Gold Award Toolkit that includes items such as a standards of excellence tracking sheet, tips for going Gold, planning guides, and best practices to guide you through each step of your Take Action project; gogold even provides you with resources to help you stay organized and keep everything in one place! And the best part–it’s available all day, every day! So, take few minutes to discover how you can get the most out of this great resource and when you’re ready, kick off your project with Step 1!

Ready? Turn the page and let’s go Gold!

It’s important that you are comfortable with gogold as a resource and tool as you will be required to submit your Gold Award Proposal and Final Report using gogold.

Be sure to set up your account and take some time to familiarize yourself with the gogold platform before you get started.

To setup your account visit: https://gogold.girlscouts.org/en/sign-in.html

Before creating your gogold account, take the Internet Safety Pledge at: https://www.girlscouts.org/en/help/help/internet-safety-pledge.html.

https://gogold.girlscouts.org/en/sign-in.htmlhttps://www.girlscouts.org/en/help/help/internet-safety-pledge.html

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1: A Gold Award Take Action project requires you to draw on your experience, education, and personal values. Looking for a little inspiration? To help you identify an issue that you care about, visit gogold or use the interactive question tree in gogold where you’ll answer a series of questions to narrow in on issues that you may be interested in and passionate about. It’s easy! Simply read the questions in gogold and choose from dozens of options (with a click) and gogold will do the rest, providing you with ideas and suggestions on topics that might interest you!

2: You identified issues you care about now dig deeper to find their root causes. To address a community issue, you must first narrow down the issue to its root causes. This allows you to focus on a project topic that is achievable within the parameters of the Girl Scout Gold Award. By zooming in on your issue you’ll be able to pick a specific aspect of it that you would like to address, because focused effort has more impact than a big idea that’s scattered. Below are a few ways you might go about investigating your issue.

Log on. Check news sites and the sites of organizations related to your issue. Explore how the media in other countries covers your issue. If you haven’t done so already, take the Girl Scout Internet Safety Pledge at https://www.girlscouts.org/en/help/help/internet-safety-pledge.html.

Go to the library. Find books that offer in-depth analysis about your issue, read your local newspaper, and look for magazine articles that offer different perspectives.

Interview people. Talk to your friends, neighbors, teachers, business owners, and others who can offer information or insight about the issue you’ve chosen.

How do you want to make a difference? Will you change a law, lead workshops, start a club, develop a curriculum, give presentations, teach a skill? Can you think of another role?

HOW?What are your strengths and talents? Is it public speaking, math, community building, empathy, research, or people skills?

WHAT?Where do you want to make an impact? Your city, neighborhood, state, country, school, or around the world?

WHERE?Who do you want to help? Is it the elderly, children, those less fortunate, nature, people with disabilities, animals?

WHO?Why are you inspired? Do you care about poverty, women's rights, environmental sustainability, healthy relationships, animals, human rights, veterans, sports, or something else?

WHY?

Identify an issue. Use your values and skills to choose a community issue you care about.

Investigate it thoroughly. Use your sleuthing skills to learn everything you can about the issue you’ve identified.

https://www.girlscouts.org/en/help/help/internet-safety-pledge.html

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Interview and involve community partners. Community partners that have information and knowledge about your issue are an invaluable resource. Consider interviewing community partners in different roles—they know what their community needs and what works. It is strongly recommended that you set up several interviews with potential partners prior to submitting your proposal. Your main partner might be able to provide a project advisor, resources, and a location for your events (if applicable). And other partners might be a source of volunteers or a link to a network of people knowledgeable about your project. Having discussions with several potential community partners early in your project will help you refine the root causes of your chosen issue into an implementable project.

Interview Tips 1. Decide who you would like to interview, contact the person, and set up a date and time. 2. Research and gather background information to help you formulate questions to ask the

interview subject(s). Use these sample interview questions to get you started, then add some of your own:

• What are the biggest challenges/problems your organization has faced or is facing? • What do you think is the root cause of these issues? • What will it take to address these issues? • Are there any resources available to do that? • What do you consider to be the strengths of the community?

3. At the interview: • Find a quiet place where you’ll have each other’s full attention and agree to turn off your

cellphones. • Start by thanking the interviewee for her/his time and then briefly describe your project. • Keep questions simple and related to the issue at hand. Preparation is key! • Ask the person you interview if she/he would like to hear more about your project as it

develops. 4. Your interview is over, now what? First, send a thank you note within a week of the interview.

Mention the possibility of a follow-up interview if needed. Then sift through your notes to find the information that’s relevant to what you’re working on. If there are gaps that you need to fill, contact your interview subject(s) to get more information and to find out whether or not you have your facts correct. Remember to check and recheck your facts!

Discover the Root Cause(s): Create a Mind Map Knowing the various causes of a problem enables you to figure out unique ways to solve it. A mind map is a tool that can assist you in determining the root cause(s). Follow these instructions to create your own mind map on an issue you care about:

1. Write the community issue in the middle of a sheet of paper or anywhere that works for you.

2. Think about what some of the causes of this issue could be, ask yourself, “is this issue a problem?” Write your main causes around the issue on your map. In the example below, one of the main causes of car accidents is bad weather.

Safety first! Before you meet with new people, talk to your troop/group volunteer for safety tips and do’s and don’ts. Also make sure your family

knows who you’re talking to and meeting with.

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3. Next, think of causes that may be contributors to the main causes and write them down. Now try connecting the different contributing and main causes you come up with to each other and to the main issue. How do the causes connect? Do you see a pattern? In this example, the root causes are found in the outer prongs. For distracted drivers the root causes are using cell phones and drunk driving. And the root causes for accidents caused by bad weather are icy and slick roads, poor visibility, and can’t see road signs. These are the topics that you can successfully address in a Take Action project. Select one or two and you have the foundation of a strong Gold Award project!

Your Turn! Create Your Own Mind Map

Follow the steps below to create your own mind map using one of the issues facing your community. Doing this will help you come up with different ways to approach a problem, as well as different ways you might go about addressing it.

1. Start by writing the community issue in the center. 2. Think about what some of the main causes of this issue could be. 3. Next, think of causes that may be contributors to the main causes and write them down.

Now, try connecting the different causes you came up with to each other and to the main issue. How do the causes connect to each other?

4. Do you see a pattern? What are some of the root causes you came up with?

Community Issue

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3: Building your team. Networking with people can make you a more effective leader. Consider reaching out to classmates, teachers, friends, and experts from organizations and businesses to be on your team. Also, the more people you have behind you, the more likely you’ll be to positively influence your community.

As you build your team, remember that you are the leader. You will plan your project, motivate your team, and learn from others. As you consider individuals for roles on your team, keep in mind the following guidelines for which roles individuals can fill during the different stages of your project.

Steps 1-7 Girl Scout Gold Award Program Director

We’re with you every step of the way! The Gold Award program director coordinates Girl Scouts–North Carolina Coastal Pines’ Gold Award program and works closely with the Gold Award committee. Have general Gold Award questions? Need help with gogold? Contact Gabriel Wlliams, [email protected].

Steps 1-4 Parents/Caregiver, Troop Co-Leaders, Juliette Mentors

Parents can act as coaches, cheerleaders, sounding boards, and chauffeurs and your parents can review your proposal before you submit it. Your troop co-leader(s) can help with ensuring you meet the prerequisites and also can review your proposal before you submit it. You can be supported in an ongoing basis by both your parents and your troop co-leaders and either or both can help you identify a project advisor with expertise on your issue and help you navigate Safety Activity Checkpoints and Money-Earning Guidelines. For specific questions on Safety Activity Checkpoints or Money-Earning Guidelines reach out to the Girl Scout Gold Award program director.

Steps 3-7 Project Advisor

Your project advisor is a person with expertise on the topic of your Gold Award project. An advisor can help you identify resources, provide insights, solve problems, and provide additional background information on your chosen issue. They can also guide you as you plan and implement your project, but they shouldn’t design your project for you, that’s up to you. A sample communication you can use as a guide to introduce yourself and thank your advisor can be found in the Appendix. Because we know how important it is for you to stretch yourself, we encourage you to go outside your family when looking for a project advisor; your project advisor cannot be a parent/caregiver or troop co-leader(s).

Steps 4-7 Girl Scout Gold Award Funding Counselor

While you are creating a budget for your project, you may need funding expertise if you identify that your project will need funding outside of in-kind donations and individual money-earning activities.

YOU

Project Advisor

Steps 3-7

Parents & Troop

Co-leadersSteps 1-4

Committee Liaison

Steps 5-7

Get help and build your team. Form a team to support your efforts and Take Action with you.

mailto:[email protected]://www.nccoastalpines.org/content/dam/nc-coastal-pines-images-/forms-and-documents-/2018%20Safety%20Activity%20Checkpoints%20%20GSNCCP%20FINAL%205-2018.pdfhttp://www.nccoastalpines.org/content/dam/nc-coastal-pines-images-/forms-and-documents-/Money%20Earning%20Guidelines%20%207.7.17.pdf

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Should you discover that you will need additional funding, you must connect with the Gold Award funding counselor (Mary Malaythong, [email protected]) before taking any type of action to secure project funding that includes grant writing or soliciting corporate donations. Crowdsourcing such as GoFundMe, Network for Good, and via Facebook are not permitted by GS-NCCP. Remember, you can make an impact without spending money. Girl Scout Gold Award projects do not require the acquisition of in-kind donations or funds earned through money-earning activities, grants, or donations.

Steps 4-7 VP of Strategic Initiatives and Special Projects

Once you have identified the root cause of an issue, a Take Action project can benefit the Girl Scout community if Girl Scouts or a Girl Scout facility is the most logical beneficiary of the project and if the project fits the within the current strategic and/or property plans. If Girl Scouts is identified as the most logical beneficiary of the project, you must discuss the project with the VP of Strategic Initiatives and Special Projects (Connie Walker, [email protected]) prior to submitting your proposal to ensure the project fits GS-NCCP’s strategic and/or property plans.

Steps 5-7 Girl Scout Gold Award Committee Liaison

A Girl Scout Gold Award committee liaison is a Gold Award process expert who will guide you and help ensure that your project meets the Gold Award requirements. You will be assigned a Gold Award committee liaison within a week of your proposal being reviewed by the committee. Your liaison’s goal is to ensure that your project proposal and final report are approved, so have an open mind when she offers suggestions. She has your best interests at heart!

4: In step four you will explain exactly what you plan to do for your project, and you’ll need to provide as much detail as you can. And gogold has just what you need! When you create your plan using gogold you will need to clearly describe your issue and target audience and share the reasons for why you chose your project. The next several sections will help you prepare for Step 4.

Know Your Gold Award Before you set out to create your plan using gogold be prepared to answer the following:

Be sure your team includes volunteers who will work with you and support you while you put your project into action and who will stick it out until you’re done.

As you work through Step 4 using gogold, you’ll find dozens of tips and tools for setting your goals, planning for obstacles, ensuring sustainability, creating a budget,

and more! So, while it’s important that you’re ready with your answers to key questions, remember, gogold will be there to help you along the way!

Create a plan. Create a plan to tackle the root cause of your issue.

mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]

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• My Gold Award aims to address this issue… • The reasons I selected my issue are… • The root cause of my issue is…

Know Your Target Audience: Who? What? How? As part of Step 4, you will be asked to define who your target audience is. Your target audience may include one or more of the following groups:

Adults Elementary School Age Children Elected Officials Retired Adults Middle School Age Children Educators Infants and Toddlers People with Physical Disabilities Business Owners Preschool Age Children People with Mental Illness Church Community Parents of Toddlers People who Raise Chickens Be sure to be specific. For instance, instead of saying, elementary school age children or high school students you might say, “…elementary school age children in science classes” or “…high school students who are first generation college applicants.”

In addition, take your target audience into consideration when determining the best way to interact with them. For example, you might choose to make a video to convey your message if your target audience is teens, but maybe a written set of instructions would be more appropriate for older adults.

You will also be asked to describe the impact your Gold Award will have on your target audience. Ask yourself, “what are the skills, knowledge, and/or attitudes my target audience will gain from my project?” For example, your target audience might:

• demonstrate a deeper understanding of the skill or issue; • demonstrate a change in a choice, behavior, or habit; • become an advocate for the issue/tell others about it; • become a volunteer/get involved in an actionable way; • teach others a new skill; • earn a grade (in school settings only); and/or • something else you determine or identify.

And, you’ll need to be able to identify how you’ll know that you’ve successfully reached your target audience. To do this, ask yourself, “I will know that my target audience has gained the desired skills and/or knowledge because…” Remember, be specific. Will your audience complete a survey or pass a test to demonstrate deeper understanding of a skill or issue? Or, are they telling others about the issue? If so, how will they tell others about the issue?

Last, in order to successfully conduct your Take Action project, you’re going to need to spend a significant amount of time with your target audience. Because we want you to be successful, we recommend that at least 15% of your project time (or 12 hours of the suggested minimum of 80 hours) is spent interacting with your target audience or demonstrating your leadership skills to lead and guide your team to complete aspects of your project which raise awareness, educate, and inspire others about your chosen issue and its root cause, and to ensure your project makes a lasting, positive impact on your community. But don’t forget 15% is the minimum amount of time, don’t hesitate to stretch yourself and really get out there! We’ve seen project time logs detailing 30% of a girl’s time spent with her target audience and/or community–that’s great too!

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Know How You Plan to Meet Your Goal Establish steps to meet your project goal. List step-by-step what it will take to reach your goal. Be as specific as possible so that you can put together a timeline and draw on your team to help you reach your goals.

• Briefly describe the steps involved in putting your plan into action, including any resources, facilities, equipment, and approvals needed.

• What methods or tools will you use to evaluate the impact of your project? o Describe the impact you hope your project will have on your community and target

audience and how you plan to measure the impact. o Describe how you'll let others know about your project, its impact and what you learned

(i.e., via website, blog, social media, presentations, posters, videos, articles). • How will your project be sustained beyond your involvement?

Develop a detailed project plan. This will help you determine how much time should be allocated to each part of your project and help establish your estimated date of project completion. Use gogold to capture your detailed project plan. Be sure to provide thorough information so the Girl Scout Gold Award committee can evaluate the timeline and scope of your project.

Know the Financial Costs (if any) It's budget time! As part of your proposal, you will need to prepare a budget. Start by figuring out what you need and where you can get it for little or no cost, if possible. If that’s not possible, think about how much it's going to cost and how you can cover the expenses. You can use your own money but going for the Gold Award isn’t meant to be a hardship on you or your family. It’s more of a learning opportunity. But if your project will incur costs, put on your thinking cap and think about easy activities you can do to earn the money you need. Consider pet-walking, babysitting, lawn mowing, recycling, tutoring, or making something to sell. The possibilities are endless!

As you get closer to working with your target audience, think about how your target audience likes to be addressed. This is especially important if you will be working with, or on behalf of, people who are marginalized by society. Different groups—and different people within a given group—have different preferences for how they like to be addressed and written about. For example:

• a person who is deaf/hearing impaired • an autistic person (read more) • Native American / American Indian / Native Person / Indigenous Person • mixed race / bi-racial / multi-racial • gender queer /nonbinary /gender fluid • senior citizen / senior / older person / elder

Be sure to take time to find out how the people you are representing prefer to addressed, referred to, and written about (ideally by asking them directly) and accommodate their preferences to the best of your ability through every stage of your project.

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Questions to consider during the budget planning phase of your project include: • What resources and materials will you need? • How can you/will you obtain them? • How much will they cost?

Don’t forget, it’s a good idea to have a “Plan B” when it comes to funding your project. Use your influence and leadership skills to come up with ways you can make a difference that aren't dependent on earning money.

If you do determine that your project is going to require funding outside of activities you can do to raise the money, it may be time to think about money-earning. Work with your project advisor, troop co-leader, or parents to determine exactly what is required to meet the needs of your project. If you are feeling stressed about money, go back to your budget and see what you can do differently to meet your goals. If you determine that additional funding will still be required, brainstorm additional ways to finance your project and use gogold to capture your proposed budget plan. Be detailed and consider all options for funding following GS-NCCP guidelines. Remember, all money-earning activities must be approved by the Gold Award committee prior to beginning your Take Action project. Refer to the Budget Planning Guide in the Appendix for more information.

As you think about money-earning opportunities, remember that as a Girl Scout you are prohibited from engaging in the following money-earning activities:

• Raising money for another organization. You cannot have a bake sale, performance, or other activity and give the proceeds to another organization. You cannot ask for pledges to benefit another cause or hold a benefit event to raise money.

• Money-earning projects where you are potentially doing an activity that someone else normally is hired to do.

• Projects where the Girl Scout organization might be perceived as endorsing a product, political viewpoint, or cause. This includes passing out political flyers, handing out freebies at a business, or holding product sales such as Creative Memories, Pampered Chef, Scentsy, etc.

• Selling anything on the Internet. • Games of chance (raffles, drawings, etc.) • Crowdsourcing opportunities such as GoFundMe, Kickstarter, via Facebook, or IndieGoGo.

Know the Anticipated Impact Girl Scout Gold Award projects are not a one-shot deal—they create lasting change. Ensuring the sustainability and measurability of your Gold Award project is critically important to the success of your project.

Sustainability. You must make arrangements (such as collaborating with community leaders or organizations, building alliances with mentors, etc.) to ensure that the project creates lasting change and is not a one-time event. Ask yourself, “how can I ensure that my project will continue to have an impact once I am no longer involved with it?”

Remember, you must connect with the Gold Award funding counselor before taking any type of action to secure project funding that includes writing grants

or soliciting corporate donations.

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Measurability. The success of the project can be determined based on the number of people the project helped, the number of people who were involved, any reduction in the community’s need, and other concrete numbers. Think about what you can count in your project–how much, how many–this is the project’s measurable impact. To focus in on your project’s measurable goals ask, “what will my audience learn/gain,” “how will I measure impact,” and “when will I measure impact?”

Know the National and/or Global Link You don’t have to leave the country to establish a global link for your project. Your project has a national and/or global link when you can explain how it connects to an issue that is relevant worldwide. Think: local-to-global-to-local and consider how to connect your project to an issue that affects people in other parts of the country or world. In other words, global issues don’t just happen “somewhere else.” You can address a global issue that is evident in your local and/or national community, like poverty, hunger, illiteracy, homelessness, or climate injustice.

Global Link and Setting Measurable Goals Example

Alyssa’s Gold Award After meeting with her local district attorney during a school field trip and learning about human trafficking, Alyssa decided to explore and address this global issue through her Gold Award. She identified that human trafficking is not well known enough to be correctly identified, so she produced a documentary on domestic human sex trafficking that the FBI now uses for training purposes across the nation. Alyssa worked with the FBI and local law enforcement to identify their needs for training, as well as victim advocates from around the world to discover and share best practices. Once the documentary was completed, she traveled throughout her region to build awareness of human sex trafficking.

Alyssa’s Measurable Goals The target audience(s) for my Gold Award is/are: FBI, high school students, and adults.

The skills, knowledge, and/or attitudes my target audience(s) will gain are: ability to identify human trafficking warning signs and the ability to advocate on behalf of potential victims.

I will know my target audience(s) has gained the desired skills or knowledge because: they can identify human trafficking warning signs and know how to help.

How Alyssa Measured her Gold Award’s Success What my audience will learn/gain? Knowledge of warning signs. How will I measure impact? Survey When will I measure impact? After watching documentary or presentations. What my audience will learn/gain? Know how to advocate on behalf of victims. How I will measure impact? Successful role play. When I will measure impact? During presentations.

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Your project has a global link when you take your project outside of your local community and inspire others to take action. You can take your project to local youth groups, health and human service agencies, community centers, churches, synagogues, mosques, and local school districts and have a global link! You can also create a global link by investigating how people in other communities or other parts of the world address your issue. What kinds of programs do they have in place? What can you learn from these? Can you incorporate what you learn about other communities into your project? Can you share what you have learned with others nationally or globally?

Remember, a successful Gold Award project has a measurable, sustainable impact. One workshop that teaches a handful of girls about childhood obesity isn’t a Gold Award project. Stretch yourself so that you create meaningful change. Then measure it. Get a feel for the scope of Gold Award projects by visiting www.girlscouts.org and searching for “Girls Changing the World”. Below are two more examples of real-life Girl Scout Gold Award projects.

Gold Award Take Action Project: Girls Love STEAM*

Nikki is a STEAM enthusiast who wanted to change the perception that robotics and other STEAM activities were just for boys. Through her research, she discovered the root cause: girls weren’t the target audience for most STEAM outreach programs.

She showed her leadership by partnering with a publisher, local elementary schools, and the school district to create something new. She wrote, illustrated, and published two STEAM books for girls and built a companion website and lesson plans. She also formed a team to help her present her books and activities to local elementary school classes.

Nikki tracked her progress so that her impact was measurable. Her books have been taught to 180 students from six classes in four schools across the county. She also collected evaluations of her project from the classroom. The feedback she received was rewarding! Students let her know that because of her class, they were excited to try more science projects and join robotics teams. Nikki’s project is sustainable because her books and lesson plans have been adopted by schools who continue to use her curriculum. She has also launched a company called Girls Love STEAM and has a third book in the works. Nikki established a global link by making her STEAM curriculum available to schools across the country.

*Science, technology, engineering, arts, and math.

http://www.girlscouts.org/

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What a Gold Award Project is Not It’s important to remember that a Gold Award project is not…

…a collection project. Collecting food for the animal shelter, for example, wouldn’t qualify. When you collect food once, it’s not sustainable. It’s really just a one-time gig. It doesn’t identify and solve a root cause, like overcrowding of animal shelters. A collection style project (i.e. book drive, food drive, One Warm Coat, Operation Gratitude) may be a component of your project but shouldn’t be the focus of your Take Action project.

…a fundraiser. Planning a 5K or another event to raise funds for a cause won’t do. That’s because money alone doesn’t usually address the root cause of a problem. The money runs out, so it’s not sustainable. Also, in your role as a Girl Scout, you can’t raise money for another organization.

…a make or donate project. Making blankets or donating food for homeless families also wouldn’t work. While it’s helpful, it doesn’t identify and solve a root cause, and it provides immediate but not long-term relief so it’s not sustainable.

…a project that already exists (in most cases). Your project should be unique–just like you! Maybe making a cookbook is a good idea for a project but it’s not new and different if it’s already been done in your community.

Gold Award Take Action Project: Special Olympics Aquatic Program

Victoria Rose reached out to the Special Olympics Aquatic Program in her community and asked them about their program needs. She discovered they didn’t have enough volunteers or formal volunteer training. The program also didn’t have enough athletic training facilities. Through her research, she discovered the root cause: there was no startup support for a training program.

She showed her leadership by partnering with Special Olympics to create something new–the first-ever Special Olympics Aquatic Volunteer Training Program.

Victoria Rose tracked her progress so that her impact was measurable. She recruited and trained 60 volunteers to support 150 athletes during their annual spring games. She also secured three additional pools as training sites, located in underserved areas of Raleigh. Victoria Rose made her project sustainable by allowing Special Olympics to adopt and implement her volunteer training program. Victoria Rose established a global link by creating a program that could be adapted for use elsewhere, reaching out to other communities to secure pools for training, and serving diverse athletes.

Remember, making things or collecting things to be donated are service projects. You may have done these activities before as a Girl Scout, and there’s no doubt that

service was very important to the community but the Girl Scout Gold Award asks you to step into a leadership role where you research, plan, and then create something new

that isn’t already in place. Consult the Girl Scout Gold Award Rubric in the Appendix for an overview of the Gold Award committee’s project review standards.

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5: In step five, you will present your proposal to GS–NCCP’s Gold Award committee for approval. Prior to submitting your project proposal, go through the checklist below to ensure that you have met all the requirements detailed in the preceding sections and haven’t missed anything.

Gold Award Proposal Checklist

I am a currently registered Girl Scout with Girl Scouts–North Carolina Coastal Pines.

I am in grades 9-12 (or equivalent).

I have either completed (a) my Girl Scout Silver Award and one Girl Scout Senior/Ambassador Journey or (b) two Girl Scout Senior/Ambassador Journeys.

I have completed Girl Scouts–North Carolina Coastal Pines’ online Girl Scout Gold Award training. My project challenges me. A Girl Scout Junior or Cadette could not do my project.

I have a project advisor who has specific knowledge about my topic. He/she is not my troop co-leader or parent.

My project serves a community that I care about and I developed the idea in collaboration with this community.

My project shows leadership. I am (a) working hands-on with the community I am benefitting, (b) networking, scheduling, organizing a team, and/or (c) leading others.

My project is measurable. I will be able to show my project’s impact with numbers (statistical data).

My project is sustainable and will continue to have an impact after I am no longer involved in it.

My proposed budget is realistic and attainable. I have reviewed the Budget Planning Guide in the Appendix.

My project is new and innovative.

My project does not involve raising money for another organization.

My troop co-leader and project advisor have reviewed my proposal.

I have created a plan to inspire others.

My parent/caregiver has completed the required Parent/Caregiver Information Sheet.

If applicable, I have the completed required Girl Scout Gold Award Project Funding Agreement.

Present your plan and gather feedback. Submit your Project Proposal to the Girl Scout Gold Award Committee for approval.

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Submitting Your Proposal So, you think you’re ready to submit your proposal? Go ahead and download your project proposal and double-check it one last time to make sure it’s ready to submit. Ask yourself, “has my troop co-leader/volunteer verified that I completed my prerequisites, and have I obtained support from my project advisor?” If the answers are, “YES!” you’re ready to submit your proposal!

Submit your proposal! It’s time to submit your proposal for review and approval. When you submit in gogold your project advisor will also receive a copy.

Notification and approval. As part of the review process, you will be assigned a Gold Award committee liaison who will notify you of your approval status and assist you through the remainder of your Gold Award project. Following the committee’s review of your proposal you will be notified by your Gold Award committee liaison of 1 of 2 possible outcomes*:

Approved as Submitted. You are free to start your project. Get started by establishing a relationship with your Gold Award committee liaison. Remember she has your best interests at heart and is there to guide you through your final report. Take time to touch base right out of the gate!

Clarification Needed. This indicates that additional clarification or paperwork is required for your project or your project needs to be further developed to meet Gold Award project standards. The committee will clearly articulate what is needed. You may not begin until your project receives full approval.

*Resubmission. A member of the committee may contact you during their review period with questions about your proposal/project. Often the questions can be resolved during the conversation, however, should the conversation result in changes that significantly alter the course of your project, you may be asked to resubmit your proposal.

6: Congratulations! Your proposal has been approved and you are ready to Take Action to implement your project. There are several components to keep in mind as you work on your project: communication, insurance and safety, tracking hours, and tracking finances.

Communication It is your responsibility to establish and maintain communication with your Gold Award committee liaison and all communication with your liaison must be completed by you (the girl). Your parents, troop co-leader(s), or project advisor should not act on your behalf. When emailing your Gold Award committee liaison be sure to cc: [email protected]. Additionally, you must keep in contact with your project advisor. Your advisor is a key resource for you as you implement and complete your Gold Award project.

If you are not able to check off all the boxes in the checklist, you are not ready to submit your proposal. Proposals are due by the first business day of each month

for review by the Gold Award committee on the third Thursday of the month; incomplete proposals cannot be accepted or reviewed.

Take action. Lead your team and carry out your plan!

mailto:[email protected]

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Guidelines for Additional Types of Marketing & Communication Communication for Supplementary Materials All materials you create for your project (anything that will be going out to the public) must be approved by the Gold Award committee prior to use. This includes flyers, educational handouts, PowerPoint presentations, program information, websites, blogs, and videos, etc. Email your materials to your liaison for approval. It usually takes about a week to get approval, please plan accordingly.

Communication for Photo/Media Release If you are taking photos during your project that you plan to share publicly (i.e. on a website, blog, PowerPoint, newspaper, etc.) you must obtain a photo/media release from the subjects of your photos. If the subjects in your photos are minors (anyone under the age of 18) you need written permission from the parent or legal guardian. Generic photo releases (one for adults and one for minors) can be found in the Appendix.

Can I Use Media as Part of My Project? You are free to include videos, photos, websites, blogs, and flyers in your Gold Award project provided they have been reviewed and approved by the committee. Keep these considerations in mind:

• Think safety. Be sure that the location of the people in your photos and videos can’t be traced. For example, avoid filming the front of a home with address or street names in sight or filming a driveway with a car license plate visible.

• Represent yourself well. As you know, what you post on a website can be seen and read by anyone so be guided by safety and how you represent yourself as a Girl Scout. Things to consider include privacy, language use, sponsorship, links, and proper use of copyrighted material (writing, music, brand images, and pictures).

• Weigh whether you need a website. It’s common for Gold Award projects to have a website. Building a site can be a great way to learn a skill. You can also recruit an expert who can guide you on the technical and legal aspects of having a site. This is your project, so get involved in the process at all levels—decision-making, research, writing, graphics, and web page creation. But before settling in on having a website ask, “why do you want a website?” Do you need to convey information to your target audience? Or post notices and dates? Would you like to create a guide for the person who continues your project to follow? If you answered “yes” to any of those questions, a website may be right for you. To further weigh your decision to have a website, consider these additional questions:

o How many websites already exist on your topic? Are there a lot? If so, will another really make an impact, or will it just get lost? Keep in mind that a website might be helpful as part of your sustainability plan but establishing sustainability for your project takes more than a website.

o Does your target audience have internet access? Choose another communication tool if your target audience doesn’t have internet access. If your target audience has access,

As soon as you are aware of a necessary change from your original proposal, you should reach out to your Gold Award committee liaison to discuss it immediately. Approval of your final report depends on completing your plan as approved or as

modified by mutual agreement between you and your Gold Award committee liaison.

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how will they know about the website? Will it show up on an internet search? Will you need to market it? Also consider, even if they have internet access, are they internet savvy? Remember some populations don’t gravitate to the internet, so a website might not be the best choice depending on your target audience.

o How much will it cost? Will your website be part of another site? Or do you need to purchase your own URL? Will you have to pay more for a password protected site? Does the site provide a way to keep individual files and downloads? Does it have all the functions you need (i.e. a calendar function, email and comment box features)?

o How much time will be required for upkeep? Who will be responsible for posting changes? How often do you want to change the site—weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, quarterly, or yearly?

o Will you need interactivity? Is your site an information-only site, or will you need an interactive component? If so, can you build in password protection?

Insurance and Safety Some facilities and organizations request proof of general liability insurance and GS-NCCP requires accident insurance whenever non-members are participating in any Girl Scout event. If the facility or organization you are working with asks you to provide proof of insurance, contact your troop co-leader or Gold Award liaison for assistance in guiding you through the process. To access GS-NCCP’s insurance forms visit Forms on the website at: www.nccoastalpines.org. You will need to fill out the form and follow the instructions for submitting your request. Be sure to keep a copy for your records.

Activity Safety and Non-Member Activity Insurance As a Girl Scout, you know that safety is our number one priority. When planning any Girl Scout activity or event, safety should always be the primary concern. Before you set to work on your Gold Award, ask yourself the following questions:

1. Am I planning to organize an event/activity as part of my Gold Award project?

If the answer is “YES” review and follow Girl Scouts’ Safety Activity Checkpoints (SACs) for the activity. (Safety Activity Checkpoints are Girl Scouts of the USA and GS-NCCP’s guidelines for staying safe while participating in Girl Scout approved activities). SACs will provide you with detailed information on the activity you are planning as well as any required safety precautions and guidelines you must follow. Use the information found in SACs to ensure that your activity meets all safety requirements and to create a basic safety plan for your event. To ensure that you are consulting the most current version of SACs, visit Forms on the website at www.nccoastalpines.org (search Safety Activity Checkpoints). Don’t see the activity you need or have questions? Reach out to your Gold Award liaison for guidance.

Safety Activity Checkpoints may indicate that you need prior approval for your activity. If so, consult with your Gold Award liaison for guidance and email [email protected] at least four weeks in advance

of your activity to receive approval.

http://www.nccoastalpines.org/http://www.nccoastalpines.org/mailto:[email protected]

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2. Will there be any non-Girl Scout members (community members, family members of registered girls, etc.) present and/or participating?

If the answer is, “YES” review the information below to purchase non-member accident insurance for the activity/event. Every registered Girl Scout and adult member of Girl Scouts is automatically covered under Girl Scouts’ Basic Activity Insurance Plan however when non-members are participating in any Girl Scout event non-member accident insurance is required. The insurance covers costs that are not covered by personal health insurance, like co-pays and medicines. And, for those who don’t have personal health insurance, Girl Scout insurance can help to cover medical costs up to a limit. An example of a non-member at an event is a volunteer there to help with construction. The form you must complete is known as a TP300. To access the form, visit Forms on the council website (search TP300).

Driving and Travel Safety All Gold Award projects involve some travel. Travel can be anything from a short drive to a plane trip. Either way, plan to follow GS-NCCP’s guidelines for transporting girls anytime you are in charge of getting people from one place to another. Examples of when you’re in charge of travel include:

• Your troop is at a meeting and decides to carpool afterward to a site where they’ll help with your Gold Award project.

• Your Gold Award project takes place at more than one site and you help volunteers get from one site to another.

When coordinating driving and/or travel plans be sure to: • Have at least one adult first-aider traveling with the group; keep a first-aid kit in each car. • Check the adult-to-girl ratio to make sure you have enough adults for the trip. • Purchase extended event activity insurance for trips lasting three nights or more, or trips that

are out of the state or country. Consult with your Gold Award liaison for assistance if this circumstance applies.

At Girl Scouts, safety is always our number one priority. To ensure that you are following current safety guidelines and standards, Girl Scouts recommends that you

consult the most recent version of Volunteer Essentials for information on adult to girl ratios, driving, and other important information concerning the safety of our members.

To access Volunteer Essentials visit: https://www.nccoastalpine.org/en/for-volunteers/VolunteerEssentials.html.

https://www.nccoastalpine.org/en/for-volunteers/VolunteerEssentials.htmlhttps://www.nccoastalpine.org/en/for-volunteers/VolunteerEssentials.html

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Tracking Hours When you submitted your proposal, you included an estimated project time log, now that you’re working on your project you will need to keep track of your actual time in gogold. The suggested minimum amount of time you should plan to spend on your Gold Award project is 80 hours.

When tracking your time, be sure to record all time spent working on your project including a short description of how you spent your time and the actual time spent on the project/task. You will submit your actual time log as part of your Gold Award final report.

This pie-chart can help you see how your time might be divided across the parts your project.

Please note that the following do not count toward your 80 hours: • Time spent driving, getting gas, or picking up volunteers. • Time spent volunteering at an existing event or organization. • Others’ time. You may not count the hours of people helping you with your project toward your

hours. If you are hosting a workshop, training, or event, you cannot count the hours of those attending or assisting, only the hours you presented. But be sure to keep track of the number of participants as it will help show the impact of your project.

Tracking Your Finances When you submitted your proposal, you included a budget and information on how your project would be funded. However, should you discover that additional funding, money-earning, applying for a grant, or solicitating a business or organization for a donation is needed to support your project once you have begun, you should connect with your liaison immediately. Your liaison can help facilitate the approval process for you. As a reminder, excess funds may not be donated to the benefiting organization.

Share Your Experience During Step 6 you have the opportunity to upload photos, videos, and or text posts to document your progress throughout your Take Action project using the “Add an Experience” feature in gogold. These photos and/or videos may be shared publicly to promote your project so remember, you must have a signed photo release for all identifiable individuals. Uploading videos and photos helps to paint a picture of your project and can help showcase your leadership. You are encouraged to record a short (1-3 minutes) video summary of your project. You might tell us why you’re passionate about the issue, the impact on your community, the growth you experienced as the leader of your team, what you learned

Did you know? You can start preparing for your project before your proposal is approved by working on things like getting started on research, contacting possible venues or

community partners, and finding potential volunteers. However, don’t start implementing your project until it’s been approved. Implementation is the process

of leading and performing the work you defined in your project proposal and making changes, if necessary, to achieve the project's goal.

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about yourself or general details about your project and your accomplishment. Don’t be shy, it’s okay to brag! Please note that accepted video types include YouTube or Vimeo URL.

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7: It’s time to tell your story–to tell others about what you did, what you learned, and the effect you hoped your project would have on its intended audience. And the best thing about telling your story, it may inspire others to take action to make their community better! Here are a few suggestions for how you can demonstrate your project’s achievements and share what you learned*:

• Create a website or blog or join a social networking site (Facebook, Instagram, etc.) to post updates and details about your project and its influence on the national and/or global community.

• Create a campaign that showcases your cause. Make buttons, posters, and flyers to hand out. • Present what you learned and what your project will do for the community at a local workshop. • Make a video about the effects of your project. Post it online. Invite friends, community leaders,

and people from like-minded organizations to view it. • Write an article for your local newspaper or create a newsletter about your project.

*Remember all materials you create for your project, including those that help you share your story, must be approved by the Gold Award committee prior to use.

Submitting your Final Report Upon completion of your Take Action project, return to your gogold profile to update your project’s progress and submit the Gold Award project final report (Steps 6-7). Be sure to fill out your final project steps in detail (all questions answered in complete sentences) and be sure to complete all supplemental forms required by GS-NCCP. Final reports should be submitted by the first business day of each month for review on the third Thursday of the month by the Gold Award committee.

Your final report must include: • Record of Income and Expenses (if applicable) • Receipt of Contributions (if applicable) • Money-Earning Activity Form (if applicable) • In-Kind Donation Form (if applicable) • Girl Scout Biographical Information form along with two digital photos. Please include a photo of

yourself (head shot) and, if applicable, a photo featuring you during the Take Action project (see photo instructions on form).

Important Deadlines for Submitting Your Final Report Each year Girl Scouts–North Carolina Coastal Pines celebrates current program year Gold Award Girl Scouts at the Gold Award Celebration which is traditionally held in late May or early June. If you want to take part in the Gold Award Celebration during the current program year you must submit your final report by the first business day of March. This will allow the committee time to review your final report and if approved, provide you with time to RSVP for the celebration before the registration closing date.

Final reports that are incomplete cannot be accepted and will delay your approval process. It is important to note that the committee may need additional documentation or clarification to approve your final report. Please allow ample time for approval.

Educate and inspire. Tell your story and share your results.

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Graduating high school seniors have until September 30th of the year they graduate to submit a final report. Those who submit a final report after the first business day of March and before the September due date will be honored during the Gold Award celebration the following year. If you want to include the Girl Scout Gold Award distinction on your college application, you should submit your final report as early as possible, but no less than 2 months prior to completing your college applications. This will allow time for the committee to review and approve your application as well as time for you to receive notification of your honor.

Reflect on Your Accomplishment Wow, you’ve been busy! It’s time to set aside some time to reflect on all that you’ve done. Gogold will help coach you through your reflection by asking you to answer the following questions. Take a minute to think about your responses and then visit gogold to reflect on your experience.

• The obstacles I encountered were… • I overcame them by… • Leadership skills I put into practice were… • I learned the following about myself… • The most successful part of my project was… • I would change the following if I could start over…

During Step 7 you’ll also be asked to share photos of your project. Let’s be honest, you just did something incredible and we can’t wait to shout it from the rooftops. Keep in mind that we’re likely to use your photos on Facebook, Instagram, GS-NCCP’s blog page, during the Girl Scout Gold Award Celebration, or another avenue that shines a light on your accomplishment. For this reason, remember to have a signed photo release for all identifiable people in your photos. Accepted file types include: PDF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, DOC, and DOCX; maximum file size is 25MB.

You’re Done, Now What? Once you are notified (via email or by your Gold Award committee liaison) that your Gold Award has been approved, you can expect some pretty exciting things to happen. Most importantly, you will receive a packet in the mail containing:

• Girl Scout Gold Award Certificate • Congratulatory letter from Girl Scouts–North Carolina Coastal Pines Chief Executive Officer • Girl Scout Gold Award Pin and 2 Girl Scout Gold Award adult pins for you to distribute to

parents and/or your project advisor • Sample letter for use when notifying organizations and leaders of your accomplishment. You

may choose to notify: o City and county officials: your mayor, city council officials, school board president,

superintendent, parks and recreation director o State and national officials and agencies: the governor, your area state representatives o Business leaders: CEOs and executives at major corporations based in your city o U.S. officials: the president of the United States, cabinet members, senators,

representatives, military leaders, department heads o Armed services; Army, Navy, Airforce, Marines, Coast Guard o Prominent individuals: astronauts, athletes, filmmakers, actors

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Also, if the Girl Scout Gold Award Biographical Information form is completed, signed, and submitted with your final report, Girl Scouts–North Carolina Coastal Pines will send a press release to the media and notify your school, place of worship, and/or your parents’ place of employment publication. Be sure to complete this form as it will capture some other important information including how you want your name printed on your Gold Award certificate and the phonetic spelling of your name (so we can correctly recognize you in person or at events).

Please note that coordinating the GSUSA Gold Award certificate, congratulatory letter, and pins takes time. Please allow 6-8 weeks for your packet to arrive.

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Opportunities for Gold Award Girl Scouts

There are several opportunities that are available to Gold Award Girl Scouts and in some cases only Gold Award Girl Scouts. You’ve done the work, now take advantage of the perks!

Gold Award Celebration Girl Scouts–North Carolina Coastal Pines hosts a Gold Award Celebration each year to honor all Girl Scouts who have earned the Gold Award during the current program year. In the spring, after your Gold Award project is complete and receives final approval, you will receive an invitation with the details of the celebration. The Gold Award Celebration typically takes place in late May or early June. Location and time vary from year to year.

In order to be included in the current year’s Gold Award Celebration, all Gold Award project final reports and attachments must be submitted to GS-NCCP via gogold no later than the first business day in March. Girl Scouts whose Gold Award projects are submitted after the first business day in March will be invited to the Gold Award Celebration taking place the following year. The March deadline is to ensure GS-NCCP has adequate time to obtain outside Gold Award recognition items and prepare for the celebration.

National Gold Award Girl Scout Every year, ten exceptionally inspiring Gold Award Girl Scouts are chosen as National Gold Award Girl Scouts. This honor is given to Girl Scout Seniors and Ambassadors whose Gold Award projects demonstrated extraordinary leadership, had a measurable and sustainable impact, and addressed a local challenge related to a national and/or global issue. These young women are taking matters into their own hands, generating much-needed change!

Did you know?

• National Gold Award Girl Scouts represent GSUSA as speakers at local and national events. • All National Gold Award Girl Scouts receive professional public speaking training. • National Gold Award Girl Scouts have the opportunity to reach a broad audience while

highlighting the importance and impact of their projects. • National Gold Award Girl Scouts are awarded college scholarships and other opportunities to

sustain their Gold Award projects.

How are National Gold Award Girl Scouts chosen? Councils are asked to select their top three Gold Award Girl Scouts using gogold. GSUSA then ensures a rigorous review process during which each application is thoroughly evaluated by GSUSA staff and an external panel of trusted partners. Once the list is narrowed, GSUSA's internal National Gold Award Girl Scout team selects the top ten.

When are National Gold Award Girl Scouts announced? Councils are asked to nominate candidates between April 1 and April 30. Following a two-month review process, ten new National Gold Award Girl Scouts are announced in July.

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Scholarships So, you’ve earned the Girl Scout Gold Award. That’s awesome! And guess what? You might be eligible to apply for a Girl Scout scholarship! We know how hard all our girls work to make the world a better place and we’re so excited to support you in your continued leadership journey! For more information on scholarships visit www.nccoastalpines.org.

Girls Changing the World Map Wow—talk about impressive! Girl Scouts everywhere are changing the world in meaningful ways. What can we say? It’s in our DNA. See what Girl Scouts are doing to make the world a better place by checking out the projects on this interactive map. And you can enter your Gold Award Take Action project on the map too! To post your project on the “Girls Changing the World Map visit https://www.girlscouts.org/en/for-girls/girls-changing-the-world.html

Tell Your Girl Scout Gold Award Story Help raise awareness of the value of the Gold Award as you inspire and encourage girls to earn their Girl Scout Gold Award! Volunteers in this role tell the story of what it means to be a Gold Award Girl Scout and share the benefits of earning this remarkable award with girls, co-leaders, parents, and community groups. Due to the nature of this engagement, volunteers must complete a short one-on-one training before serving in this role. We will work together to prepare you for this opportunity and will provide you with all the materials you need to be comfortable and successful. Interested? Contact Connie Walker at [email protected].

http://www.nccoastalpines.org/https://www.girlscouts.org/en/for-girls/girls-changing-the-world.htmlmailto:[email protected]

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Frequently Asked Questions

Below are some frequently asked questions about the Girl Scout Gold Award.

Q: Why are Journeys prerequisites to earning the Girl Scout Gold Award? A: A Girl Scout Journey is an extended engagement with a topic that culminates in a Take Action project to make the world a better place. The Journeys give you the full experience of what you will do as you work to earn the Gold Award. Journeys are created specifically for leadership development. The skills you gain while working on the Journeys will help you develop, plan, and implement your Take Action project.

Q: How do I know when a Journey is "complete"? A: A Journey is completed when you have earned the Journey awards, which include creating and carrying out a Take Action project.

Q: What makes the Gold Award’s guidelines different from the Journeys? A: In contrast to Journey Take Action projects, which give you themes on which to base your Journey Take Action project, the Girl Scout Gold Award Take Action projects have no pre-designed theme. You can select your own theme and design and execute your Take Action project.

Q: What are the suggested hours for earning the Gold Award? A: Not all projects will require the same length of time to complete from planning to sharing and celebration. Your Take Action project may take you 100 hours to complete while another girl’s Take Action project may be accomplished in 85 hours. The time it takes to earn the award will depend on the nature of the project, the size of the team, and the support of the community. Quality projects should be emphasized over quantity of hours. However, the suggested minimum hours for the Girl Scout Gold Award is 80 hours.

Q: Can I work with my troop or another girl on my Gold Award project? A: No. The Gold Award process requires you to take control of your leadership development and grow in new ways that a group setting cannot provide. This is a commitment you make and complete as an individual.

Q: Can Take Action projects for the Gold Award focus on Girl Scouting? A: Yes. Girls may now do Take Action projects that benefit the Girl Scout community. Once the girl has identified the root cause of an issue, a Take Action project can benefit the Girl Scout community if Girl Scouts or a Girl Scout facility is the most logical beneficiary of the project and if the project fits the council’s strategic goals and/or property plans. This should be identified in Step 4: Create a Plan, but not before.

Q: I am an individually registered member/Juliette, can I earn the Girl Scout Gold Award? A: Yes! Any girl who meets the grade-level and membership requirements, can work on her Girl Scout Gold Award.

Q: Does a Senior or Ambassador need to do the two Journeys in any particular order? A: No. You can complete either two Girl Scout Senior Level Journeys, two Girl Scout Ambassador Level Journeys or one of each. It is important that the completion of a Journey align to your Girl Scout level at the time of completion. For example, a Girl Scout Senior should not complete an Ambassador level Journey.

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Q: What is the difference between a troop volunteer and a Girl Scout Gold Award project advisor in the Girl Scout Gold Award process? Do I need both? A: A troop volunteer is the adult who works with an ongoing troop or group. Once you identify your issue, the troop or group volunteer might help you identify a person in the community who could be a great project advisor. A Girl Scout Gold Award project advisor is a volunteer that guides you as you take your project from the planning stage to implementation and is typically someone from the community who is knowledgeable about the issue and who can provide guidance, experience, and expertise along the way. Because we know how important it is for you to stretch yourself, we encourage you to go outside your family when looking for a project advisor; your project advisor cannot be a parent or troop co-leader(s).

Q: At what point should a Girl Scout Gold Award project advisor be identified? A: The project advisor should be identified in the planning phase before the Girl Scout Gold Award project proposal is turned in.

Q: What is the role of the Girl Scout Gold Award committee? A: The role of the Girl Scout Gold Award committee is to support you as you go through the process of earning your Girl Scout Gold Award and ensure your project meets national guidelines. If your project has not yet achieved its goals, the committee provides suggestions and tips to help you develop a high-quality Gold Award project. The Girl Scout Gold Award committee is typically comprised of community members, educators, key volunteers, and young women who have earned their Girl Scout Gold Award. The committee works with designated council staff.

Q: What does it mean to have a sustainable project? A: A sustainable project is one that lasts after your involvement ends. A focus on education and raising awareness is one way to make sure a project is carried on. Workshops and hands-on learning sessions can inspire others to keep the project going. Another way to create a sustainable project is by collaborating with community groups, civic associations, non-profit agencies, local government, and/or religious organizations to ensure the project lasts beyond your involvement. Physical items, such as benches, amphitheaters, sidewalks, etc., alone do not ensure sustainability.

Q: How do I measure project impact? A: You identify your project goals for your community, target audience, and yourself by developing success indicators using a matrix provided in the guidelines.

Q: Can I earn the Girl Scout Gold Award even if I haven’t been in Girl Scouts very long? A: Yes! As long as you are a registered Girl Scout Senior or Ambassador and have completed the prerequisites to begin your Gold Award project.

Q: What if I am not 18, but I am graduating? Can I complete my project when I am in college? A: You have until the end of the Girl Scout membership year (September 30th) of the year you graduate high school.

Q: What if my project is not completed by the Gold Award Celebration? A: If you want to be included in the Gold Award Celebration for the current year, you should submit your final report by the first business day in March. For final reports submitted after the first business day of March, girls will be celebrated during the celebration the following program year.

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Q: Can I count the hours that I volunteer at an organization toward my project hours? A: No. You cannot count the hours you volunteer at an organization toward your project hours.

Q: Can I raise funds for another organization? A: No. Solicited funds are to be used explicitly for the your Gold Award project, which should have a defined project scope. You may not solicit monetary donations for another organization.

Q: Is there an IRS restriction about soliciting cash? Does "the ask" need to come from an adult? A: Girl Scout Seniors and Ambassadors can solicit cash and in-kind donations for their Gold Award projects. As long as the donation is being used exclusively for their Gold Award project and the council is aware of the donation, they are not in violation of IRS regulations.

Q: Can I do a 'walk-a-thon' or 5k for my own cause? A: Yes, as long as all funds raised from the event are dedicated to the approved Gold Award project. This means you will have to launch and participate in your own walk-a-thons created for your own particular cause (your project). You may not do walk-a-thons or solicit funds on behalf of another organization. Walk-a-thons must be held on a closed track where there is no vehicle traffic.

Q: Who at the council approves my plan to solicit donations? A: The Gold Award funding counselor evaluates the feasibility of your project budget. Your project budget and funding are approved during the review of your proposal.

Q: What is the role of my Gold Award project advisor with regard to the solicitation of funds? A: Project advisors can support you in the solicitation process but you determine the best route for funding including adhering to all money-earning policies, and securing funding approval from the Girl Scout Gold Award committee (and Funding Counselor if applicable).

Q: Will I need to track expenditures? A: Yes, you must keep a record of all income and expenses to be turned in with your final report. You should keep good records of your expenditures by maintaining all receipts and invoices associated with your project. Any unused funds must be returned to Girl Scouts–North Carolina Coastal Pines to be used to offset Girl Scout Gold Award program administrative costs.

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Appendix

The following items are included in the Appendix:

• Girl Scouts–North Carolina Coastal Pines’ Gold Award Project Review Rubric • Parent/Caregiver Handout from Girl Scouts of the USA • Parent/Caregiver Information Form* • Girl Scout Gold Award Project Advisor Sample Communication • Proposed Gold Award Project Budget Planning Guide

o Form A: Girl Scout Gold Award In-Kind Donation Form* o Form B: Girl Scout Gold Award Money-Earning Activity Form* o Section A: Girl Scout Gold Award Grant Writing Guide o Section B: Business/Organization Donation

Girl Scout Gold Award Project Funding Agreement* Girl Scout Gold Award Receipt of Contribution Form*

o Girl Scout Gold Award Project Record of Income and Expenses* • Gold Award Biographical Information* • Adult Photo Release Form • Minor Photo Release Form

*Complete in gogold before submitting your proposal and/or your final report.

Links to documents and resources referred to in this document:

Girl Scouts Five Leadership Outcomes, p. 6 https://www.girlscouts.org/content/dam/girlscouts-gsusa/forms-and-documents/about-girl-scouts/research/GSUSA_Five-Ways-Girl-Scouts-Builds-Girl-Leaders_2017.pdf (read more), p. 16 https://www.autistichoya.com/2011/08/significance-of-semantics-person-first.html

https://www.girlscouts.org/content/dam/girlscouts-gsusa/forms-and-documents/about-girl-scouts/research/GSUSA_Five-Ways-Girl-Scouts-Builds-Girl-Leaders_2017.pdfhttps://www.girlscouts.org/content/dam/girlscouts-gsusa/forms-and-documents/about-girl-scouts/research/GSUSA_Five-Ways-Girl-Scouts-Builds-Girl-Leaders_2017.pdfhttps://www.autistichoya.com/2011/08/significance-of-semantics-person-first.html

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Girl Scouts–North Carolina Coastal Pines Girl Scout Gold Award Project Review Rubric Gold Award Project Review Standards

Category Category Criteria/Definition Does Not Meet Requirements Meets Requirements Exceeds Requirements

Project Meets Requirements AND/OR:

a girl’s guide to going · 2020. 1. 22. · a girl’s guide to going gold. your name: _____ girl...

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