Gold Award

Change the world, Girl Scout

Gold Award Girl Scouts are rock stars, role models, and real-life heroes. How do they do it? By using everything they’ve learned as a Girl Scout to solve a problem in their community or make a lasting change in their world.

Plus? Nothing beats that feeling of seeing real, lasting, and sustainable change and knowing it was you who made it happen. It changes the way you see your place in the world—and how the world sees you.

And you won't do any of this alone. Gold Award Girl Scouts are LEADERS, so you'll put together a team of at least five other people, including community partners, who will help you make your vision real. You will create a project proposal for preapproval from the Highest Awards Review Committee. Then you'll spend at least 80 hours working on your project, changing the world. Once you've finished your project (it will keep going, but your initial plan is complete) you'll fill out a final report to let us know exactly what you accomplished! When your final report is approved by GSOH's Highest Awards Review Committee, you've earned the highest award in Girl Scouting!

Please Note:

Your project should make a difference and have a lasting impact! The following projects will no longer be approved:

Little Free Libraries
Blessing Boxes or other projects that ONLY focus on donation drives and the collection of items
Pollinator gardens (Education projects about conservation topics are encouraged but creating a garden or habitat without education or sustainability will not be approved)
Fundraising projects for other organizations
Buddy Benches (collection of materials and construction of benches)
Projects that take place on council or camp properties
Badge and patch programs for scouting audiences

You can become a Gold Award Girl Scout if you:

Are in ninth, tenth, eleventh, or twelfth grade
Are a registered Girl Scout Senior or Ambassador
Have completed the Silver Award, a Senior/Ambassador Leadership Award, or a Senior/Ambassador Journey

ambassador high school girl scout wearing sash outside against green background

Become a Gold Award Girl Scout

Ready to change the world, for good?

GET STARTED

Resources

Training

Sam Goes for Gold (required).
Money, Money, Money (required).
Navigating Go Gold.
Quiz (required — only girls with completed quizzes on file will have their proposals reviewed by the Highest Awards Review Committee).

Documents

These resources will help you make sure your proposal is ready to go! Check out all the following documents to understand our council-specific guidelines and rules. Work through your project plan to make sure it’s got everything we need and plan the perfect Take Action project.

GSOH Going for Gold Rubric.
GSOH Gold Award Guidelines.
Before You Submit checklist.
Community Service Into Take Action.
Tree Worksheet.
Take Action Guide.
SAMPLE Gold Award Proposal: Check this out to get a better idea of what we think the ideal Gold Proposal looks like.
SAMPLE Extra Documents: Need to give us more details about anything in your proposal? So did our sample Gold Award Girl Scout. Here's a great example of someone using a word document to include more information.
Schedule a Highest Awards Office Hours Call

Deadlines

Proposals and Final Reports: Proposals and/or Final Reports are accepted on a rolling basis. The monthly deadline for the upcoming meeting is the 15th of each month. Proposals and/or Final Reports received after the 15th will be reviewed the following month.

Highest Awards Review Committee (HARC) Meetings: Usually the fourth Monday of the month. When your proposal is received, you’ll get an email with the date of the upcoming meeting in which it will be reviewed.

Graduating Seniors (no later than):
Project Proposal: March 15 of the year you graduate.
Final Report: August 15 of the year you graduate.

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We know you have friends, parents, troop leaders and community partners who will support you on your path to becoming a Gold Award Girl Scout. Here are a few resources they’ll find useful:

One of the people on your team will be your project adviser, an adult (not a family member or troop leader) who has expertise in your issue area and will offer guidance and feedback both during the proposal phase and as you carry out your project. Share this guide from GSUSA with your adviser to make sure they understand the Gold Award and their role!

How to earn the Girl Scout Gold Award

Find an issue in your community or the world that you care about.
Learn everything you can about that issue through research and trusted sources.
Form a team by identifying experts and people in your community who could help you.
Think about the root cause of an issue, then make a plan of how you could tackle it.
Submit your project proposal for approval.

Lead your team and carry out your plan.
Reflect on the change you’ve created in your community and the world, share your story, and inspire others to make a difference, too.

Resources

Highest Award Prerequisites

Leadership Awards

Celebrate all the ways you lead–yourself, your team, and your community–with new & updated leadership awards.

Journeys

Journeys encourage Girl Scouts of all ages to think critically, boost their problem-solving skills, and make an impact.

Highest Awards FAQs

Going for your Bronze, Silver, or Gold Award? Get answers to the most common questions to get started.

Hey, grownups!

When you support Girl Scouts earning their Gold Award, you’ll help them see their own power and be by their side as they make a lasting change in their community. Download a guide to get started today.

Gold Award Guide for Leaders

Gold Award Guide for Adults

Congratulations to our 2026 Gold Award Class!

Brianna D.

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As an active musician in her high school band programs, Brianna D. noticed that there weren’t many opportunities for younger students in middle school to explore musical instruments, By the time they reach high school, music programs are competitive and require students to have an idea as to what instrument they wish to play. Brianna created Junior Band Camp to provide 5th and 6th graders in the Bexley school district a chance to experience different instruments in a hands-on setting with band instructors and fellow high school band members as counselors. She reached 70 students with this program which culminated in a mini-concert experience and created a plan for the school district to move forward with her program on an annual basis.

Veronica F.

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Veronica F. observed a lack of engagement with reading and literacy among her peers and younger students in her area. With a personal love for books and reading, she created Book Buddies in an effort to inspire children ages 5-7 to love reading. She partnered with multiple libraries in her area to create literacy-focused events and take-home activities to give children in her target audience a chance to practice their language skills and find the joy of reading in a supportive environment with dedicated reading buddies. Working with young readers, teen volunteers, and library staff, Veronica promoted her program through multiple outlets and reached people in library settings as well as in the community through her efforts at the Delaware County Fair.

Sahithi S.

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Sahithi S. became passionate about heart health and observed trends in research that pointed to increased risks of heart disease and heart related-deaths due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and a lack of education on the risks and warning signs of cardiovascular problems. In conjunction with a nonprofit founded by her family, Sahithi created the Ohio Cardiac Collective to educate people on the risks and causes of cardiovascular issues, as well as general health education like CPR training in order to create a more heart healthy and safe community. She reached audiences through presentations, in-person workshops, and digital content in order to impact audiences of all ages in her local community and beyond.