[00:00:00] Walter: The Hearts of Gold podcast is brought to you by the Grow and Share Network, produced by Off The Walter Media.
[00:00:11] Sheryl: Welcome to Hearts of Gold. Today we have Grace with us. Hi, Grace.
[00:00:16] Grace: Hi there. Thanks for having me.
[00:00:18] Sheryl: Well, thanks for joining us. Can you tell us about your Girl Scout Gold Award project?
[00:00:22] Grace: Of course. So my Girl Scout Gold Award is called Speak Up, Stand Out Journalism for Young Activists.
[00:00:28] I have been a member of the journalism community in my high school. For more than two years now, and I’m coming up on my third. So journalism is something that’s been very important to me ever since, I mean, ever since I joined that community for real. What I wanted to do with my gold award was to address a problem that I saw in journalism.
[00:00:48] So my school is a diverse school. I really love going to my school. It’s a public high school and however, our journalism community, which is a very big one. We have more than 100 students. It doesn’t reflect the greater diversity of our school. And that was something that bothered me and that I wanted to try and fix.
[00:01:05] So what I did was I wanted to introduce underserved kids in my community to journalism at a younger age so they could get comfortable with it and be excited in high school to join the community. So what I did was I developed a camp, a free camp for students. And initially I was planning, all right, we have maybe 25 kids.
[00:01:27] I started writing the curriculum. I, you know, consulted with my journalism teacher to figure out the best way to teach journalism. I recruited about a dozen of my peers in my community to donate their summer to help me teach. I taught them the curriculum. And then I went to an organization in my community called dream catchers to help me basically market the camp.
[00:01:50] So dream catchers does one to one peer tutoring with underserved kids in my district with high schoolers. And so I went to them, I said, Hey, do you want to hear about this camp that I developed? And I was speaking with the director, the executive director at the time, his name was And he said this is great.
[00:02:07] Can we use it as our summer program? Like you, your camp is a part of our summer program. And I said, Oh my gosh, totally. I would love that because I wanted it to impact as many kids as I could. And then at that point I was like, Oh boy, they have 70 students. And I only have, what, 12 counselors and no money.
[00:02:26] So basically I had to sort of get my game together and I worked with the Dreamcatchers tutors. I took the tutors that I had taught and had them teach their tutors, basically. So, you know, delegating my work a little bit, which was very helpful. And I applied for some community grants. I worked with people in my community who offered sponsorships to the magazine.
[00:02:47] And we had a four week program that. had I think five different classrooms of kids grades six through eight and each of them got to learn about journalism. They got to learn about how to take cool journalism photos. They learned how to do interviews with each other and they practiced interviewing on each other.
[00:03:06] They did research for their stories and they each chose a topic of something they cared about. So They, we got a lot of articles on climate change and a lot of articles. There was an article on teen homelessness, an article about deforestation. We also got some sillier articles. We had one about hot Cheetos and about messy, I think.
[00:03:24] So these kids got to really experience things that they cared about through journalism in a way that was fun. You know, they had these high schoolers who were mentoring them. And at the end of the weeks we had we printed a. Magazine or we printed many magazines, one for each grade and each kid got to take home their magazine and show it to their family.
[00:03:43] And each kid also did a showcase where they read their article out loud. And then to, you know, complete the project and make it sustainable. I worked with Dreamcatchers to develop a website that has all my resources for the camp. The whole curriculum schedule is based off of if you want to do two weeks or one week.
[00:04:03] And. Basically all the tips and tricks that I’ve gathered over the period of working on my camp. So basically I shared this with dream catchers so that they can recreate the camp year after year. But I also shared this with journalism teachers all over the country to help basically show them like, here are some resources if you want to create your own summer camp to help grow your programs.
[00:04:23] And that’s available for anybody who wants to. Do, do the same thing I did.
[00:04:28] Sheryl: And we’ll put the link to that website in the show notes. What kind of feedback did you get on your project?
[00:04:34] Grace: A lot of it was positive and, and the most impactful feedback to me was from the kids. Obviously it’s these little, you know, they’re sixth through eighth grade.
[00:04:42] They’re you know, just trying to figure out. what they want their high school experience to look like and you know, get through middle school. And a lot of them were really enjoying the chance to sort of share their opinions through art, through writing. You know, I had a couple of kids ask me like, wait, can I really write about that?
[00:04:57] And I said, yeah, you can write about whatever you want. Part one of the beautiful things about journalism, they were so happy seeing the magazine at the end of the camp. It was just so meaningful to me to see them all like, you know, showing their, their, their pages to each other and saying, Oh, look, look, look, I wrote this.
[00:05:11] And so the, the most impactful feedback to me was from the kids. being excited about the program and excited to see all of us every day. And a lot of these kids spent the whole day before this at summer school and they were still coming to see us and just excited to see, you know, their, their big school teachers.
[00:05:28] And it just was a really positive and kind of joyful experience the whole way through. And so I think that’s the best feedback I’ve gotten.
[00:05:35] Sheryl: When you’re working with that many kids, there’s a lot to plan and to juggle. How did you manage your time and communications with your volunteers in order to make a successful program?
[00:05:51] Grace: Yeah, I mean, that was something that I was honestly terrified of at the start. The first day going in, like, stomach in knots, terrified. I saw all these little kids running around, like, on their break, and I was like, oh my goodness, are we going to get them to focus? Are we going to get them to enjoy the lessons?
[00:06:08] Are they going to listen to us? And most of all, like, are we going to have enough people to teach them? So a lot of the managing my team was I had these 12 tutors who I had taught the program to, and then there were a bunch of Dreamcatchers tutors who they lent their time to us, which is amazing, but they didn’t know the curriculum.
[00:06:26] So I worked with my tutors who I had taught and basically helped deputize them to teach everybody else. So a lot of that was, you know, not just me doing everything, but also trusting the people who I had, you know, worked with to also help. take kind of ownership of the project in the same way. You know, at the beginning it was my gold award, but by the end it’s, it’s not really mine.
[00:06:48] It’s sort of everybody who was involved with it. And so I think that a lot of the managing tons of kids and working with a separate organization and also like a bunch of student volunteers is just having the confidence to feel comfortable letting other people also help out and not having to do it all on your own.
[00:07:07] Sheryl: How did you create the curriculum?
[00:07:09] Grace: So the curriculum is based off of a class that I took and that all journalists at Pali take, or in general, which is called beginning journalism. It basically goes over all the different types of journalism. We do some, a little bit of sports journalism, a little bit of review writing, a little bit of personality profile stuff.
[00:07:28] And so I wanted to basically condense that class into a fun, short version that the kids could take and basically You know, make their own by writing their own article. So I drew on writing the curriculum mainly from my experience in that class. And I also, my advisor for my project is my journalism teacher.
[00:07:48] Mr. Wilson, he’s amazing. Thanks, Mr. Wilson. And he helped me write the curriculum in a way that would get through to middle schoolers, since that’s another challenge is these are, you know, littler kids, they don’t quite have the same, you know, understanding of like essay writing that a high schooler would have.
[00:08:07] So. You know, we adapted the curriculum of that class a little bit, and then I also basically made the curriculum for the camp using, you know, I made Google Slides. All of the slides have their slide notes so that everybody in their own room, like all the different tutors, would feel comfortable taking control of the classroom and teaching with the slides.
[00:08:27] The biggest thing for me was timing of it because over the four weeks, we had 10 days of instruction because it was pretty spread out. And So I had to make sure that we had enough time for them to learn about journalism, write their articles, and then finish with enough time for me to design all the articles and put them in a magazine, send them to print, and then get them before the end of the camp, which was a pretty big challenge.
[00:08:51] So in the end, I had to, since we were working over Fourth of July weekend, the printers had to basically have me move it up a day. So we changed the curriculum a tiny bit. We like took out a photo lesson and we moved up like the period where they could finish their outlines. And we basically helped them all, you know, feel comfortable writing.
[00:09:11] And then on that end of that, period where they were supposed to be writing. It was kind of a mad dash for me to design all the articles, put them in the magazines, and then send them to print before the printers you know, closed for the weekend, and then they could get it going. This whole camp, whole project, has been predicated on me learning how to be flexible.
[00:09:31] So, Essentially, I had to be okay with my plans changing last minute. I had to move the curriculum around halfway through camp because I was like, shoot, we’re gonna need an extra day. And that was okay because I, you know, I had gotten used to being able to adapt and that sort of thing. So you know, if you’re doing your own gold award, be sure to be flexible and be okay.
[00:09:48] If your plans get, you know, a little messed up because it’s going to happen.
[00:09:51] Sheryl: What skills were enhanced with your Gold Award process that you see yourself still using today?
[00:09:58] Grace: What I just mentioned is flexibility. Kind of before my Gold Award, I am a very, I’m a very scheduled person. I like having my lists and I like having everything on my calendar.
[00:10:08] And so I was a little worried about seeing whether I’d be okay. Like just kind of letting things go and be how they are. And at the end of the day, I figured out that, you know, all the, even the best laid plans have some hiccups. And so I have learned to be a lot more okay with making mistakes and figuring out how to adjust those things kind of on the fly.
[00:10:34] And that’s something I use even now, like, you know, in school, it helps me be a better academic just in terms of how I approach problems and stuff like that. So that would be one skill that I definitely use a lot. I mean, persistence and resilience, this project like took, I mean, obviously took a lot of time, all gold words do, but it took a lot of effort and a lot of me doing things that I wasn’t familiar with.
[00:10:54] And so being able to tackle that in a way that Didn’t make it seem like it was a roadblock, but instead a speed bump was definitely something that I got better at through the course of the project. And that is definitely I noticed being a bigger part of my life now because I see, you know, my, my school life is a lot more.
[00:11:18] a lot less stressful now that I know that there are problems that I can deal with that aren’t, you know, insurmountable.
[00:11:24] Sheryl: Knowing how you have increased that flexibility while still, I’m guessing, maintaining your schedules, how does that help the way that you manage your schoolwork and swimming? And being an editor of a national magazine.
[00:11:41] How do you do all of that?
[00:11:43] Grace: A lot of the things for me is that I really, you know, I like to spend my time on things that I love. That is really important for me. Like I don’t want to waste time on things that I don’t care about. So I, everything I do in my life is something that I feel a passion for and that I’m interested in and that I care about.
[00:12:00] And so. You know, at times it can be overwhelming to have a lot of things on your plate, for sure. But, you know, when you realize, like, why you’re doing it, when you have a good reason for why you’re doing it, when you really care about what you’re doing, it makes it much easier to be okay with taking the time to do things that might take a lot of time out of your schedule, or might be stressful, or might be exhausting, like swimming sometimes can be.
[00:12:23] But I think, you know, the flexibility that I’ve gained from my gold award has helped me in that because, you know, even though I care about everything I do at times, it can be really stressful, or at least it could be really stressful. But since I have learned to adapt and learn to be a lot more flexible, I find myself.
[00:12:42] less worried about making a mistake in one thing or missing something or something else I because I think I feel like I have a little bit more control over everything going on. And so it makes me just a lot more comfortable and a lot more content just spending my time on those things. And so, you know, it definitely has been helpful, but it hasn’t, you know, replaced or changed any of the joy that I get out of things I do.
[00:13:04] Sheryl: Can you share something about the Gold Award process itself that you didn’t know and might be helpful for future Gold Award Girl Scouts?
[00:13:12] Grace: Be very communicative with the liaisons in your area, because, you know, you, the best you can do is to be clear about what your project is, be clear about how you got to it, and, you know, like, for me, I kept my time in a separate sheet, like a separate chart, and then I realized when I was submitting my, in my GoGold account, I realized, like, you’re supposed to put it in there.
[00:13:35] I was like, well, shoot, I have like a hundred entries and I have to put them all separately. But, you know, I reached out to my counsel and they were like, don’t worry about it. Like you can submit your sheet that you took and that would be fine. And so, you know, you can if you, if there’s something in the process that shocks you or that you’re confused about, definitely be totally okay with reaching out for help because it is.
[00:13:56] That’s, that’s why they’re there for you, really, and they are so kind and helpful and always gonna be there for you, especially if they really want you to get the award. So make sure that you are communicative and you reach out and you use them because they are really good resource.
[00:14:10] Sheryl: Clearly, you’re very interested in journalism.
[00:14:13] And I really appreciate this project in order to, like you said, encourage others who may not have been involved in journalism to, to try it out and to put, dip their toes in the water. How did you get involved in journalism and where has it led you?
[00:14:29] Grace: I mean, I’ve always been kind of a writer. I like writing stories when I was little and I also screenwrite for fun sometimes.
[00:14:36] So, you know, expressing myself through writing has always sort of been a passion of mine, but I learned about the Pali journalism program, my high school journalism program specifically because my older brothers were a part of it and they. Really found a lot of fun and joy and, and power through it, being able to tell stories and represent our community in really fun ways.
[00:14:56] So that was how I got involved with it. And, you know, I kind of fell in love right away. And what I want to do with it, my future. I mean, I, I do, like, I do hope to do journalism in the future whether that is you know, as my main career or just being a part of a journalism community, you know, staying involved with journalism and helping support journalists.
[00:15:17] But I certainly want that to be a part of my future because, you know, journalism to me is one of the most powerful industries that there is. You know, I was thinking about it, like, you could have a strike in any, any other industry, but if there was a journalism strike, no one would have any idea what was going on.
[00:15:32] So I, you know, journalism is really our, our lens that we view the world through. And I think that having high quality, well researched you know, balanced and, and responsible journalism is super important to me. And so I want to definitely be a part of that in the future.
[00:15:47] Sheryl: We’ve talked a lot about the writing portion of journalism.
[00:15:52] You have a interesting position in that you’re editor in chief of a national sports magazine. Can you tell us what you do in that role and tell us a little bit about the magazine too?
[00:16:04] Grace: So I’m the editor in chief of Viking Magazine. Viking Magazine is the first and only, so they’re for the best high school sports magazine in the country.
[00:16:14] And we, you know, a lot of people, a lot of s Publications have a sports section that is undeniable, but the thing that makes Viking special is that we try to take athletics and connect it to the greater world and just basically go deeper in the main issue. So, you know, some of the stories that I wrote before I became editor in chief include an article about athletes with disabilities and how like the, you know, the aspect of inclusion is really important in terms of athletics.
[00:16:42] And I wrote another article about menstruation and athletics and how that affects female athletes and athletes with uteruses and, and, and those those impacts. And so basically Viking is all about going deeper into the main issues. So that’s a little bit about our magazine and the editor position.
[00:16:59] I mean, It has been a lot of fun so far. I mean, I love my team. I love our staff. It’s just a really great experience and something that’s very special about the journalism at my school is we get a lot of freedom to kind of, you know, we go up in the classroom. We lead the classroom. We say, Hey, guys, welcome today.
[00:17:15] You’re going to do X, Y and Z. So, it has helped me build a lot of leadership and confidence in speaking, for sure, and then also you know, the process of helping my staffers figure out what they want to write, and we do our story idea brainstorm as a group, and then we go off into our groups and we talk about what the different angles we want to take are, and I help people figure out interviews and timing and stuff like that.
[00:17:39] So, basically, being there for my staffers is. A really big part of being an editor and probably the most important part, obviously, but then we also, you know, do a lot behind the scenes in terms of, you know, setting up the advertising in the magazine and getting everything sent to print on time and making sure that, you know, our online platform is working well.
[00:17:59] So it’s definitely kind of. A very different job than just being a staff writer, but it’s a lot of fun because it’s helping me build a lot of leadership and confidence in terms of dealing with the problems that might show up like once our, our website had to be shut down and I had to reboot it to a day before, but that was like a moment where I was like, Oh my goodness.
[00:18:18] And then I dealt with it and I kind of moved on. And so being able to have those skills to to. Deal with problems on the go and, and make sure that we’re producing a high quality magazine is very important to me and something that I’m very happy to have on my, my staff.
[00:18:33] Sheryl: What are your plans for the future?
[00:18:34] Grace: I’m a senior. So going through college application process right now, but, you know, hopefully I will be able to keep. You know, working on journalism, maybe if I go to a school with a school paper, I’ll sign up for that or yeah, and I definitely continue, will continue to be a Girl Scout as always.
[00:18:54] Sheryl: What other Girl Scout memories do you have you’d like to share?
[00:18:57] Grace: Girl Scout camping, always a good one, making a armpit fudge with my troop, very fun. And another top one is when we. All took the bus together to get Pinkberry in first grade because we needed a bus badge.
[00:19:14] Sheryl: Is there anything else you’d like to share with the audience?
[00:19:17] Grace: Getting a gold award is a huge accomplishment.
[00:19:20] So if you are a Girl Scout on your way to that is you know, keep at it. It can be really tough sometimes. It can be stressful. You could hit some road, some, some speed bumps. But just remember to be persistent and to keep an eye on the thing that’s motivating you because that’s, that’s what’s important and that’s what you’re, you’re going for.
[00:19:37] So I don’t know. Just keep, keep at it. You got this.
[00:19:41] Sheryl: How do you make your s’mores?
[00:19:43] Grace: Patient, slow roast until it’s golden brown and soft on the inside. And two, two, two squares of chocolate, not one.
[00:19:52] Sheryl: Absolutely. That’s the perfect way.
[00:19:54] Grace: It’s the perfect way.
[00:19:55] Sheryl: Well, thanks for joining us today.
[00:19:57] Grace: Thank you so much for having me.
[00:19:58] This was wonderful.
[00:19:59] Sheryl: Make sure to click follow or subscribe. So you always know when new episodes are released, power your passion and conquer your challenges.
[00:20:09] Walter: Thank you for listening. If you’d like to be on the show to share your story of how you earned your gold award, reach out and send an email to growandshare@outlook.Com.
[00:20:19] Be sure to catch up on our previous shows on any of your favorite podcasting platforms, as well as view the full video versions at youtube.com/SherylMRobinson. Thanks again for listening, and we’ll see you next time.