Medford Girl Scouts take home gold
Three Girl Scouts who graduated from Medford High School created projects that addressed community needs.
The following was submitted by the Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts.
Girl Scouts Claire Gingo, Jossira Kouyate, and Bethiah Peirce have received the Gold Award, which is the highest achievement in Girl Scouting. The Gold Award recognizes Girl Scouts who identify a community need, develop a sustainable solution, and demonstrate exceptional leadership through a significant service project.
Gingo, Kouyate, and Peirce graduated from Medford High School in 2025 and have completed their first year of college.
Here is information about each of their projects:
Claire Gingo
Claire's project is titled, "Invasion Intervention: Tackling Invasives in Medford."
Claire understood that invasive plants can pose numerous problems for an area’s ecosystems, biodiversity, and even humans. To prevent her community from experiencing these hardships, Claire organized community clean-ups, performed educational outreach at farmers’ markets, and created a mini-curriculum for her high school’s environmental science classes.
Throughout her project, Claire organized and participated in the removal of invasive plants from over 250 square feet of land, engaging more than 150 community members in the process. Her efforts will be sustained through the continued use of her curriculum and ongoing clean-up efforts by Friends of the Fells and the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR).
“Doing a project on my own as a high school student felt very daunting, and the Gold Award was certainly a step up in difficulty from the Silver Award," Claire said, "but I learned that I am able to rise to the challenge and accomplish more than I expected myself to.”
Jossira Kouyate
Jossira's project is titled, "We Like School Too: Increasing Academic Rigor for Vocational Students." Jossira was frustrated that vocational students at her high school were not informed of advanced academic opportunities because systemic inequities prevented the school from acting in their best interests. Through extensive research, collaboration with school administrators, and a final presentation, Jossira highlighted the inequities in vocational education and proposed solutions to increase access to rigorous coursework.
Her efforts led to a commitment from Medford Public Schools to promote dual-enrollment opportunities at a local community college and remove restrictions on vocational student participation. Jossira’s project will be sustained through ongoing distribution of her informational flyer and continued support from the Medford High School Guidance Department.
“My willingness to engage in thoughtful conversation with those around me to find a solution, even during times of serious doubt, played a significant part in my seeing this project to the end," Jossira said. "But my passion for this topic is ultimately what kept me going.”
Bethiah Peirce
Bethiah's project is titled, "Drowning Prevention in the Mystic." Bethiah was concerned by her community’s lack of swimming education and awareness about drowning risks in the Mystic Lakes and watershed area. Through research, community outreach, and collaboration with local organizations, Bethiah educated families and students on swim safety, proper swimming attire, and drowning prevention. She hosted booths at local farmers’ markets, created informative flyers, and worked with her high school and the Mystic River Watershed Association to incorporate water safety information into the curriculum.
Her project will be sustained through the updates to her school’s curriculum, her blog post on the Mystic River Watershed Association website, and the distribution of her educational materials.
“Unlike selling cookies, people won’t stop to speak to you [at the farmer’s market] because you aren’t selling them food; you have to give them motivation to stop by, bridging the gap between you and the person you are talking to,” Bethiah said.
