|
Gold Cord Guidelines
Students are encouraged to participate in community service. Awards and various designations are available to those students participating in community service. To attain specific awards and recognition at graduation, students are required to participate in community service each semester while at TAMS. The pinnacle award at graduation for community service is the Gold Cord Award. Students must participate each semester in community service and attain a minimum of 100 hours by the Spring deadline. In addition to the minimum 100 hours credit, students must design and complete a project.
We are looking for projects that make a significant contribution to a community organization or group in need over the course of the entire school year. The project should be developed, initiated, and followed-through by the Gold Cord Applicant. The following are guidelines for Gold Cord projects:
- It must help out people “in need” – this will be a bit subjective… Think of the homeless, orphans, disadvantaged students, the poor, the elderly and hurricane victims as GOOD examples of those “in need.” On the other hand, students in your home school marching band, normal kids in your home religious institution, a local tee-ball league are NOT GOOD examples of those “in need.”
- It must involve other TAMS students. We want you to display your leadership skills with your project. You will need to enlist at least 10 additional students (preferably juniors throughout the course of your project).
- If possible, it should be sustainable. Most of our current options for ongoing community service started by TAMS students taking initiative. Our goal is to have many of these projects turn into ongoing service opportunities for future TAMS students.
- It should be a substantial project. This is measured both by the time it takes to follow it through and the ultimate goal of the project. It is possible to spend a lot of time on a project that is not substantial. Conversely, it is possible to doing something that looks substantial, but only takes a few hours. It should take considerable time and should involve a significant goal.
|
Gold Cord Project Proposal
Before you can begin your project, you must first turn in a project proposal. Here’s what we need as part of your Gold Cord Project Proposal:
- Description of your project.
- Define the population of people you will be assisting with your project.
- How is it helping out people “in need”?
- What is your plan to involve other TAMS students?
- What is a clear and measurable definition of success of the project?
- Provide a specific time line for your project.
- Approximate number of hours it will take to complete your project.
- How do you see your project sustaining beyond your time at TAMS?
- Any contact info you have with the group, agency, or institution you will be working with.
Gold Cord Midyear Qualifiers
In order to make sure your project is on track toward completion, you must take part in a midyear update. At this time, depending on your progress, you will either be given the green light to continue or you will not be allowed to continue toward the Gold Cord Award. The midyear update will be discussed in person. No materials are required for this, but you are certainly free to bring in materials that you feel show your progress.
Gold Cord Final Presentation
By the completion date, you should turn in a final summary of your project. The summary should include the following
- Description of your project (can be the same as your proposal).
- A log that records the other students/people who helped out along with the number of hours served.
- A revised timeline from your original proposal showing exactly how the project was carried out throughout the year.
- A record of the contacts including phone numbers and email addresses.
- A recommendation letter from someone intimately involved in the project – this would usually be an administrator from the group you were helping to serve.
- Photos of your project from start to finish.
Once the summary is received and you project is accepted, you will be asked to put together a brief poster presentation for the benefit of the entire student body. More information on this session will be given at a later date.
Important Dates
Proposal Deadline September 8 at 8am – proposal must be submitted via the form provided in the "Community Service" portal of OrgSync.
Notification of Acceptance You will receive an email and a letter in your box at the hall by September 15, 2009 at 5pm.
Midyear Update This will take place the first week of classes when we return from Winter Break (January 19-22, 2010). You will be notified of times to sign-up.
Final Summary Your final Gold Cord Summary must be turned in electronically by 5pm on April 15, 2010. Place it into a MS Word document and email it to Russ Stukel at russ.stukel@unt.edu.
Poster Presentations Those who qualify to receive the award will be notified by 5pm on April 20, 2009. As a final part of the project, you must present a poster summary of your project during the Student Life Awards on April 21, 2010. More details on this will be given as we move closer to this time.
|
Frequently Asked Questions
Can more than one person work on the same project?
In most cases, no. We are looking for students to initiate their own projects. Your project would have to be unbelievably large in scope for us to consider this option. Your best bet is to plan your own project.
Who will be making the decisions regarding project acceptances and final project approvals?
There will be a Gold Cord Committee made up of members of the Student Life staff along with students from the senior class meeting to look at the project proposals at the beginning of the year and helping to make final decisions at the end of the year.
Can someone from the committee help me come up with a project idea?
No. Coming up with an idea for a project is a big part of the criteria for projects. There are many, many needs around us in the Denton community. With a little bit of elbow grease, observation, and creativity, you are sure to find a way to meet some of those needs.
What if my initial proposal is rejected – will I be able to come up with another one?
Once we receive your project proposal, one of three things will happen: it will be accepted, it will not be accepted, or it will be accepted upon certain conditions we set out for you. If your project is rejected outright, you will be given a very brief period of time to come up with a new project. If that project is not accepted, you will not be able to move forward toward the Gold Cord award.
Are there certain projects that we should steer away from?
Yes - projects involving "raising awareness" and simply fundraising have become popular and trendy in today's world of community service. However, for the purpose of Gold Cord, we are looking for projects that involve more hands-on service. So simply raising awareness for a certain disease or cause or raising money for some native or overseas agency, while good things to do, will not count toward a Gold Cord. We want something where you are working directly with people in a fashion where you are directly making a difference.
If you have any questions, please contact Kevin Roden at kroden@unt.edu.
|
