Alyssa Anderson project photo

Seven students and an alum from The Hockaday School and Ursuline Academy are recipients of The Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas‘ Gold Award.

The Gold Award is the highest honor a girl scout can receive. The award is given to students and graduates who have demonstrated exemplary leadership, initiative and commitment to positively impacting their communities.

Here are this year’s local Gold Award recipients and their projects, which ranged from STEM to civic engagement.

Margaret Coleman: How Cycles Promote Sustainability in Both Nature and Industry (Environment)
Margaret’s project educated youth on the importance of cycles in the context of sustainability. Margaret and her volunteers partnered with the Dallas Arboretum to design and install an engaging exhibit for youth using zoetropes, and spinning mechanical animations, for permanent installation at the Arboretum. The zoetropes used examples in nature, such as the life cycle of a bee or plant, to illustrate how nature’s cycles promote sustainability. Margaret also gave presentations to Arboretum visitors who visited the Children’s Adventure Garden using the zoetropes to promote the importance of sustainability and how it could relate to decisions made by industry leaders. Margaret will graduate from The Hockaday School in 2024.
Anya Aggarwal: Beautiful Body through Beautiful Mind – Inside and Out! (Mental Health)
Anya designed and implemented a science camp that focused on hands-on activities with human body systems and positive body image messages built-in throughout. The camp was delivered using a team of volunteers to Dallas ISD WT White Feeder Elementary Schools through collaboration with United to Learn. Some of the areas students learned about were neurons, DNA, heart valves, cell membranes, and gene traits. They focused on healthy habits and choices relating to food, exercise, sleep, and misconceptions about body image. She also created a binder of how-to materials for the program to be replicated by United to Learn. Anya will graduate from The Hockaday School in 2026.
Alyssa Anderson: STEMusers Career Expo for Middle School Girls (STEM)
Alyssa’s project focused on inspiring 5th to 8th-grade girls to maintain an interest in STEM careers. Alyssa planned and implemented a career expo with 13 executive women across a variety of STEM professions, such as radiation, oncology, engineering, chemistry, patent law, and food science. With support from volunteers, Alyssa hosted the 30 Dallas area middle school girls with a keynote speaker, panel, and round table discussions. She also created a recap video, so additional girls can benefit from the sessions. Alyssa started a non-profit organization called STEMuses to continue holding similar events and offer scholarships for girls in STEM. Alyssa will graduate from The Hockaday School in 2024.
Grace Dorward: Cards for Change (Civic Engagement)
Grace’s project focused on increasing voter participation in young adults by creating an awareness campaign for youth just becoming eligible to vote. Grace and her volunteers designed birthday cards that inform students as they turn 18 about registering and the importance of voting. Grace provided Cistercian Preparatory School with 100 birthday cards to share with students. This streamlined method of sharing voting registration information will empower the school to educate students on this issue in a convenient way. Her materials have been shared with a digital copy, a video, and a packet of materials for the school to continue using going forward. Grace graduated from The Hockaday School in 2022.
Mary Borkowski: Bringing Joy through Sensory Toys (DEIA-RJ)
Mary’s project benefited autistic children within the community. After seeing how sensory toys help her autistic brother, Mary decided to create sensory toys for local youth and organizations serving the autistic community who lacked the financial resources to purchase them. With support from volunteers, Mary made 107 sensory items to donate to various community organizations for distribution. Items included marble mazes, manipulation mats, weighted lap pads, and sensory blankets. Additionally, Mary created a YouTube channel where she shared tutorials on making her sensory items, hoping to inspire others to carry out a similar project. Mary will graduate from Ursuline Academy of Dallas in 2024.
Audrey Pierce: Sensory Walk (Education)
Audrey’s project supported preschoolers at the Vogel Alcove learning center. Vogel Alcove provides services for children and families experiencing homelessness in Dallas. After learning about the benefits sensory tools can provide children who have experienced trauma, Audrey helped children engage in different feelings through their sense of touch. With her volunteers, Audrey built a sensory walk from various materials, including pipes, rocks, rope, wood, and turf. The new walk encourages the students to be outside and clear their heads before returning to the classroom. The teachers have incorporated the sensory walk into their lessons and will continue its use. Audrey will graduate from Ursuline Academy of Dallas in 2025.

Caroline Rippel’s project.

Caroline Rippel: Music Wall at Vogel Alcove (Poverty)
Caroline’s project supported Vogel Alcove, an organization that provides services for children and families experiencing homelessness in Dallas. Together with her volunteers, Caroline created a music wall for children to explore their creativity and musical ability in a safe environment. By having access to the music wall, the children at Vogel Alcove will gain the opportunity to discover a new passion for music. In addition to the music wall, Caroline also provided documentation on how to create her project and shared extra instruments with the organization for future use. Caroline will graduate from Ursuline Academy of Dallas in 2025.
Olivia Isbell: Art that Impacts (Cultural)
Olivia addressed the lack of access to arts education in lower-resourced communities. Knowing that children develop imagination and creativity through art, Olivia partnered with Brother Bill’s Helping Hand to host an art camp for children in kindergarten through second grade. With support from her volunteers, Olivia planned a three-day art camp for approximately 25 kids. Activities included watercolor painting, paper crafts, and drawing. She also coordinated a backpack drive for all camp attendees to have a new backpack for the upcoming school year. Olivia provided additional supplies and instructional videos for the kids to continue their new love of art. Olivia will graduate from Ursuline Academy of Dallas in 2024.
The awards will be officially presented to the recipients at a special ceremony on Saturday, June 3rd, at the Plano Event Center.