Since 1990 Girl Scouts of Central Maryland has hosted the Girl Scout Gold Award banquet to honor Senior and Ambassador Girl Scouts who have earned the coveted Gold Award.  To date, 1,601 central Maryland Girl Scouts have received their Gold Award pins—the highest award a Girl Scout can receive. Achieving this award demonstrates how a Girl Scout has used her G.I.R.L. (go-getter, risk-taker, innovator, leader) power!

The Gold Award reflects the skills a girl has learned through her years as a Girl Scout.  It is an opportunity for her to demonstrate the leadership skills she has acquired as a Girl Scout and apply them to an issue she is passionate about to make the world a better place.

As a parent, you want your girl to succeed. When she becomes a Gold Award Girl Scout, she gains an edge in the college admissions process and for competitive scholarships while also creating solutions to some of society’s biggest problems. In fact, there are many colleges and universities that specifically offer scholarships for Gold Award Girl Scouts. Additionally, Gold Award Girl Scouts who enter the military often enter with a higher rank.

Nationally, only 6% of eligible Girl Scouts achieve this honor, setting your Gold Award Girl Scout apart from her peers. “I was hired due to my having my Gold Award. The interview was a tie and the tiebreaker was the fact that I had my Gold Award.” – Chris, Gold Award Girl Scout

When she’s ready to start her journey from green to gold, here are a few things to know:

We have made some changes to the process of working with council staff to complete Gold Award projects and to submit the necessary forms and paperwork:

• Go Gold–-a portal that provides information, inspiration and an easy way to submit information and required paperwork is now available to all Girl Scouts who seek to achieve this award.
• New Gold Award Advisory Committee—We now have 20+ Gold Award Committee members with representatives in each area the council serves.
• Gold Award Workshop—These sessions, including live workshops and online webinars, are MANDATORY for all girls planning to earn this prestigious award. The workshop is highly recommended for adults mentoring girls through the Girl Scout Gold Award process. Click here for a list of upcoming Gold Award information sessions.

Here’s what you need to do to get started:

1. Complete your Silver Award and one Senior/Ambassador Journey – OR – two Senior/Ambassador Journeys (including the Take Action
   Project) to hone the skills you’ll need to earn your Gold Award.

2. Complete Going for the Gold training online, OR attend a Gold Award workshop within six months of submitting your project proposal.

For more information visit http://www.gscm.or/gogold or email mygoldaward@gscm.org