Sunday, September 3, 2017

Gold Award Spotlight: Teen Driving While Under the Influence

Jennifer, a Chesapeake Girl Scout, has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor and achievement a girl can earn in Girl Scouting.

Jennifer’s project addressed the issue of teens driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs. She developed a presentation that she shared with more than 200 students in their driver’s education classes at Deep Creek High School. She also made a presentation to the members of Students Against Destructive Driving at her school.

Jennifer also distributed fliers about the dangers of driving under the influence, as well as bumper stickers that she designed with the message, “Driving Impaired Causes Fatal Consequences.” She also designed a retractable banner about the issue that she displayed at her school and a local AAA Club.

“I know teenagers that drink alcohol, take drugs and huff household chemicals before or while driving,” Jennifer said. “I wanted to make them aware of the fatal consequences of their bad decisions.”

After presenting to students at her school, Jennifer sent a copy of her presentation to the principals at each of the high schools in Chesapeake. In an accompanying letter, she explained her project and asked that her presentation is shared with students at the schools. Jennifer also created a website, where she placed resources and information for anyone to use.

The Gold Award requires girls to identify an issue in the community and carry out a Take Action project to address the matter through leadership work. Nationwide, less than six percent of eligible Girl Scouts earn the Gold Award, which adds Jennifer to an elite group of female leaders across the country with the honor.