Amber Wood earns Girl Scouting’s highest award for anti-bullying project
WINCHENDON, MA – Nearly half of all students 9-12 years old say they have experienced bullying at school. And all students who experience bullying are at increased risk for depression, anxiety, sleep difficulties, lower academic achievement, and dropping out of school, according to the PACER National Bullying Prevention Center. To counteract this nationwide problem, Gold Award Girl Scout Amber Wood created a curriculum, website, and Instagram page addressing the problem of bullies in school.
Wood, 19, of Winchendon, participated in a Girl Scout troop in Jaffrey, NH, right across the state border. She created her PowerPoint presentation just as the COVID-19 pandemic began, and had to readjust her plans to present her curriculum to middle-school and high-school-age students.
“I decided this was a good topic because I have personally been bullied and know many people who have,” said Wood. “Also, it's a very serious topic worldwide.”
Wood learned a lot about organization, leadership, and especially how to handle things when unexpected challenges come her way.
“My original goal was to go out to different places and do hands-on crafts and a presentation but no one ever got back to me or gave me the approval to present, and then COVID-19 came around,” she said. “I switched up my project to an online presentation-type platform where I made a website and an Instagram page and also did Zoom meetings.”
Project advisor Danna Mirviss of the PACER Center is grateful for her help.
“I was happy to provide Amber with resources from our website about bullying and bullying prevention for her to use to learn more about the issues and to share with others,” said Merviss. “All efforts to share information and help others who are experiencing bullying is helping to create a world without bullying!”
“I know that my audience gained skills because after the different Zoom meetings I had many of them reached out to me and wanted to have personal questions and asked for more advice on different situations,” said Wood.
Overcoming obstacles taught Wood that she is able to be successful, and that no matter how hard things get, she can’t give up. Seeing her website get several views every week showed her that she was able to provide help.
Wood is now a student at Montachusett Regional Vocational Technical School in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, but plans to switch to the Florida Universal Technical Institute in Florida this fall for their automotive program, with the goal to become a NASCAR mechanic.
Gold Award Girl Scouts don’t just change the world for the better, they change it for good. The Gold Award is earned by girls in grades 9–12 who demonstrate extraordinary leadership in developing sustainable solutions to local, national, and global challenges. Since 1916, Girl Scouts have answered the call to drive lasting, impactful change. They earn college scholarships, demonstrate high educational and career outcomes, and are active in their communities.
Amber Wood has answered the call to drive lasting, impactful change, and her Gold Award is a testament to her remarkable dedication to improving her community and the world. The Gold Award is the mark of the truly remarkable.
About the Girl Scout Gold Award
- Gold Award Girl Scouts on average spend one to two years on their project.
- A Gold Award project must be sustainable after the girl’s involvement ends.
- The average age of Gold Award Girl Scouts is 17.
- Since 1916, more than 1 million girls have earned the Gold Award or its equivalent.
- Gold Award Girl Scouts are entitled to enlist at a higher pay grade when they join the military.
- University research indicates that noting you are a Gold Award Girl Scout on a college application is influential in the admissions decision-making process.
- Eleven young women from New Hampshire and Vermont earned their Gold Award in the 2019-2020 membership year as part of Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains.
- The Girl Scout Gold Award is the mark of the truly remarkable!
About Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains: Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains is recognized throughout New Hampshire and Vermont as a leading expert on girls. Our Girl Scout Leadership Experience is a one-of-a-kind leadership development program for girls, with proven results. It is based on time-tested methods and research-backed programming that helps girls take the lead—in their own lives and in the world. Through our exciting and challenging programs, Girl Scouts not only participate but also take the lead in a range of activities—from kayaking, archery, and camping, to coding, robotics, financial literacy training, and beyond! Serving girls throughout New Hampshire and Vermont, girls discover the fun, friendship, and power of girls together. Visit www.girlscoutsgwm.org.
