What did you do for your Gold Award project?Â
For my Gold Award project, I instructed the freshman, along with some sophomores, juniors, and seniors at my high school, how to perform self exams for testicular cancer and breast cancer. My project included a Google slide presentation and fake testicles and breasts, with mock cancerous lumps so that students could understand what they are looking for when performing self exams.
How did you measure the impact your Gold Award project made on your target audience?
Before my presentation, I conducted a survey though Google forms asking students what they would do of they every encounter an abnormality with their body. The way I asked the question lead to the biased answer of contacting a doctor, but even with my biased conclusion, students were still unsure. After my presentation, there was a very similar questionnaire on their Health Unit test, and many of the students said they would contact their doctor after finding anything different about their body.
How is your project sustainable? How will your project continue to impact after your involvement?
After the completion of my project, the health teacher and the health science teacher at my school pledged to make it a formal part of her annual curriculum at Summit High School. Beyond this, I have made a video that will be played on Tiger TV through Summit County TV10.
What is your project’s global and/or national connection?
Beyond just having this presented in health classes at Summit High School, my friends and I edited a video giving a quick presentation on my project ,in Video Production 2 and it will be play on Summit County TV 10 through their broadcast journalism segments produced by the students in the Video programs at Summit High School. This reaches a global connection because Summit County is a very destination/recreation vacation spot and people from all over the world can watch SCTV10 as they stay in hotels in Summit County. This video will also be uploaded to YouTube.
What did you learn about yourself?
This project was very outside of my comfort zone. I have always been very afraid of public speaking, but this project gave me the leadership skills of taking action in situations I would have normally never put my self into. Through the Gold Award project and the majority of my Girl Scout experiences have led me to be the person I am today. I am now less held back, more outgoing, and I now have the will to complete any task that is brought my way. My determination through this project has also given me the chance to be the vice president of the Certified Nurses Assistant Club, Summit Health Leaders at my school. This has also given me a chance to grow my leadership skills. The Gold Award has brought me to a mentality that I can accomplish all that I work for.
How will earning your Gold Award impact you in the future?
Getting my Gold Award has proven to me that I can finish anything I put my mind to. Whether it is schoolwork or making a difference to the community around me, I now know that I can change anything that I feel needs to be changed. Dedication is one of my strongest attributes now. This can help me in the future because I am not sure what life holds for me, but I am confident I will find success.
Why do you feel the Gold Award was an important part of your Girl Scout experience?
The most important part of my Gold Award was the awareness that I have created for two very curable cancers. My view on these cancers are that if sex and mental health are so widely talked about in schools, cancers, too, need to be talked about.
How did earning your Gold Award help you become a G.I.R.L. (go-getter, innovator, risk-taker, leader)?
G- This project had the intention of getting me through the stress of something that will only benefit the community and eventually the world around me. This is important to me because I have never been the greatest about completing tasks that may seem a little difficult. But because I enjoyed the topic and the atmosphere I created with my Gold Award, I was determined to complete it. This will serve me in the rest of my life because I now have the mind set that even if I do not enjoy what I am working on, the feeling of completing a given task is so rewarding it is always worth it.
I- Though out my project, I created new ideas and brought my self into new positions that I would never have put my self in. My Gold Award has created a new, interesting presentation shown through out my school, but it has brought out the best in me. I am now comfortable with my self and am comfortable with unfamiliar situations.
R- The Gold Award says nothing more than risk-taker to me. To complete this project, you need to put your self out into new positions, find new interests, and make a difference. No difference would be made in the world if people never tried anything new.
L- My high school life has been filled with different leadership positions, but the Gold Award has brought it to new heights. I am now able to finish all that is brought my way, with confidence that I have done my best.
**IMPORTANT NOTE: This blog represents only a small fraction of the hard work, dedication, and requirements that go into earning a Girl Scout Gold Award. It is simply a brief summary, which is meant to inspire Girl Scouts to Go Gold in the future. For more information on earning your Gold Award, please email highestawards@gscolorado.org.Â