The Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest award for Senior and Ambassador Girl Scouts, focuses on leadership, career exploration, challenge for personal growth and community action. The Gold Award celebrates a project showcasing all of the work a girl puts forth as she strives to make a sustainable difference, not just in her community, but also on a global scale. The topic is hand selected by a girl to ensure it is something she is passionate about in thought, deed and action. Because it is much more than a good service project, “going for the Gold” encompasses organizational, leadership and networking skills that girls will be remembered for long after they have completed their final year of Girl Scouting.

To make sure girls have all the tools for success in becoming the next generation of Gold Awardees, we’ve outlined some suggested steps and provided all the necessary forms (click on links within the text below to download) for girls to use as they “go for the Gold.”

Prerequisites to Earning the Girl Scout Gold Award:

Girls must be in 9th, 10th, 11th or 12th grade and registered as a Senior or Ambassador Girl Scout

AND

Have completed two Senior or Ambassador level Journeys, respectively

OR

Have earned the Girl Scout Silver Award and completed one Senior or Ambassador level journey, respectively.*

How to Earn the Girl Scout Gold Award:

• Complete ALL prerequisites
• Submit a Gold Award Interest Sheet to Girl Scouts of Hawai`i
• Watch the Gold Award video and then contact a GSH staff member for Gold Award orientation.

• Review the Gold Award Guidelines and the included resources like the frequently asked questions, plus project examples to understand the caliber of this project.
• Girl Scouts of Hawai`i will match you with a mentor whose job is to help you brainstorm ways to expand the impact of your project.  With their assistance, write a draft of your project proposal.  Mentor workshops will be held on the days listed below.  Please keep these dates in mind if you intend to work with a mentor.

2012 – 2013 Gold Award Mentor Workshops

July 18, 2012
October 9, 2012 **date change
January 16, 2013 **date change
April 2, 2013 **date change
July 10, 2013

A Girl Scouts of Hawai`i reviewer work with you on revising the proposal before it is submitted for panel review.

• Submit your Gold Award proposal to Girl Scouts of Hawai`i via email, fax, or postal mail for panel review. Click here for our address. If your Gold Award project is not approved by the panel as proposed, you may revise the proposal and submit it again up to three weeks after an initial panel decision is made OR wait to re-submit the proposal until the next panel meeting.
• Meet with your mentor to come up with a plan of action.
• Implement your project.  Remember you should hold a mid-project check in with your mentor.
• Write and submit your Gold Award Final Report to Girl Scouts of Hawai`i.  Submit by February 1, 2013 if you would like to participate in the 2013 Gold and Silver Award Ceremony.  Please note that you may submit the final report after February 1, but will then participate in the 2014 Gold and Silver Award Ceremony.
• CELEBRATE!

Girls should keep the timeline shown below in mind while planning a project:

*Please note that Ambassadors must complete Ambassador level journeys, Seniors must complete Senior level journeys, Cadettes must complete Cadette level journeys, and Juniors must complete Junior level journeys.

For more information about the Gold, Silver, or Bronze Awards, please contact Tiffany Carritt at 808.675.5526 or ticarrit@girlscouts-hawaii.org.