Gabi Poeschl, '26 earns the Gold Award in Girls Scouts

Gabi worked to provide children from low-income areas in KCK with the tools/resources to be successful over the summer. Through her website, www.happylearningkits.org she was able to generate 181 kits for kids in first and second grade in just this past year, bringing the total of kits donated in the past three years to 500! 🤩

Way to go Gabi! 🥳

Saint Thomas Aquinas offers a scholarship to students who have earned their Eagle Scout Rank and or Girls Scout Gold Award or American Heritage Girls Stars and Stripes Award. 

From Gabi's essay:

My Gold Award addresses the issue of educational disparities among school-age children. The achievement gap has only continued to grow over the last decade. Strides made to close this gap have been challenged by the effects of the summer slide. The summer slide is a decline in reading ability and other academic skills that can occur over the summer months when school is not in session. Research has shown that students can lose one full month of learning over the summer break. Through my Gold Award, I can help change this by providing children from low-income areas with the tools/resources to be successful over the summer. The primary way I addressed this issue was through my website www.happylearningkits.org. The website I created makes it easy for students and their families to navigate learning over the summer. I began designing my website in June of 2022 and officially launched my site on January 7, 2023. On my website, you will find information regarding the summer slide and online resources available for students to use. There are links to online stories, math games, and more! The second part of my Gold Award project included summer supply kits. This past year I was able to provide 181 kits for kids in first and second grade. Over the past three years, I have donated over 500 kits to kids in KCK. Each kit was filled with a variety of resources to keep little minds busy over the summer. This past year's totals include 905 books, 181 workbooks, 181 coloring books, 543 pencils, 181 pencil sharpeners, 181 erasers, 181 24-pack crayon boxes, 181 pencil cases, 181 folders with 10 sheets of ruled and 10 sheets of blank paper, 181 reading buddies, 181 flashcards, 181 card games, 91 play-dohs, 90 puzzles, 181 bookmarks from Happy Learning Kits, 181 drawstring bags, and 181 bookmarks from the Kansas City Kansas Public Library. Grand Totals include: 1,862 books, 500 workbooks, 500 coloring books, 1,500 pencils, 500 pencil sharpeners, 500 erasers, 500 24-pack crayon boxes, 500 pencil cases, 500 folders with 10 sheets of ruled and 10 sheets of blank paper in each, 500 reading buddies, 500 flashcards, 500 card games, 125 etch a sketches, 400 play-dohs, 400 puzzles, 500 Happy Learning Kit bookmarks, 500 bags, and 181 bookmarks from the Kansas City Kansas Public Library.