Molly Landis '23 Working Toward Girl Scout Gold Award

Being a Girl Scout is a part of who senior Molly Landis is. Since the first grade, and for the past 11 years, she has sold countless boxes of cookies, supported her local community in various initiatives, and, with members of her troop, earned the Girl Scout Bronze and Silver Awards. Molly is well on her way to achieving the most prestigious award that a Girl Scout can earn, the Gold Award. 

After completing an 80-hour project that is sustainable and benefits their community, a Girl Scout earns the Gold Award. Only 6% of Girl Scouts reach this achievement. Inspired by her love of history, Molly “researched and developed a curriculum on the abolitionist history of Brooklyn, Connecticut, to teach the 8th graders at Brooklyn Middle School.” Growing up in Brooklyn, Molly remembers that local history was not taught in the classroom. She wanted to change that for the next generation of Brooklyn middle schoolers.   

Once her curriculum was designed, Molly spent part of her Thanksgiving Break teaching her community history lesson. Comfortable before a crowd, Molly successfully delivered the seminar thanks to her Civic Engagement course at Marianapolis. “The students got a lot out of it and, through their written assignments, demonstrated that they learned a lot,” said Molly. 

And Molly got a lot out of it as well. She learned that Brooklyn had four homes on the Underground Railroad and many community individuals who worked to abolish slavery; Prudence Crandall, George Benson, and the Benson family. 

In addition to presenting to 8th graders, Molly also went on the WINY Morning Show to speak about her project and presented to a younger Girl Scout troop and the Brooklyn Board of Education. 

“Through my time at Marianapolis and all of the opportunities I have been able to take part in, I have learned how it is always important to know where you come from and learn about local history no matter how big or how small your town is. It may not seem like it affects you, but it does. History matters. History impacts us every single day. It is always important to always remember, recognize, and know about where you come from.”