Gold Award Project: Dance, Dance Round the World
Ellie Tsuchiya, a Senior at Pine View, recently completed her Gold Award Project, “Dance, Dance Round the World” to address cultural apathy in younger generations. The program was created for the Dance-The Next Generation (DNG) students. DNG is a free Sarasota Ballet program for low income students at Title 1 schools. Ellie volunteered with the program and through interacting with the students realized, “they didn’t know about the diversity in our world and I thought it was something I could teach them.”
With her program, she expanded student’s knowledge of different dances and created a global link to cultures around the world. She believes, “cultural apathy causes many young people to partake in stereotyping or racism simply because they are not knowledgeable. My program helps these students become more culturally aware and more respectful.”
Lisa Townsend with the Sarasota Ballet and Ellie’s Gold Award advisor said, “Since our program utilizes dance to teach self-discipline, this tied in perfectly with what we do. It was a great way to help broaden their horizons, not just with dance, but with global cultures.”
This summer, Ellie visited the Girl Scout Headquarters in Japan, where she shared her project with members from across the world. 
“Earning the Girl Scout Gold Award designation is truly a remarkable achievement, and Ellie exemplifies leadership in all its forms,” said Sue Stewart, Chief Executive Officer of Girl Scouts of Gulfcoast Florida, Inc. “Her dedication, perseverance, and leadership, is making the world a better place.”
Ellie’s Gold Award Pose
Ellie learned presentation skills, confidence, audience adaptation, and time management through this project, but expressed the biggest thing she learned, “was that I could put my ideas into action for a cause I care about.”
The Girl Scout Gold Award is so prestigious that some universities and colleges offer scholarships unique to Gold Award recipients, and girls who enlist in the U.S. Armed Forces may receive advanced rank in recognition of their achievements. Ellie will be recognized for this achievement in May 2015, at Girl Scouts Young Women of Distinction ceremony.
Fantastic job Ellie!
Ellie in the news: Herald Tribune * The Observer
Learn more about the Girl Scout Gold Award: http://www.gsgcf.org/girls/gold-award
~Guest Blogger is Emily Prettyman, Girl Scouts of Gulfcoast Florida, Inc. alumna and volunteer. Emily C. of Troop 121 with the Media Team helped interview Ellie and is featured in the video.
Girl Scouts of Gulfcoast Florida, Inc. 