W&L Student Named a Gold Award Girl Scout Emma Marvelli ’27 garnered the award after honoring her former high school coach and bringing attention to the hammer throw.

By Brian Laubscher
July 18, 2024

The Girl Scouts of Southeastern New England announced that Washington and Lee University student Emma Marvelli ’27 has been named a Gold Award Girl Scout, the highest award earned through the Girl Scouts organization.

A native of Barrington, Rhode Island, and a member of the track & field team at W&L, Marvelli earned the Gold Award for her project titled, “Coach Robert Gourley Advocacy Campaign and Hammer Throwing Awareness.” The project sought to bring attention to the hammer throw field event, which Marvelli learned through Gourley’s instruction at Barrington High School. The legendary coach and author of Gourley’s National List, a national boys and girls ranking of weight and hammer throwers, passed away in 2021.

Marvelli sought to bring increased public attention to the hammer throw and helped raise more than $7,000, which was used to purchase hammer equipment for her high school and to dedicate a bench in honor of her former coach.

“Almost a year after my final report was accepted by Girl Scouts, I have had a lot of time to reflect on how my project has impacted my life,” Marvelli said. “I attribute my success at W&L to this Gold Award project and my 13 years dedicated to Girl Scouting. When applying to W&L, I was told that being a Girl Scout of this level revealed a lot of other attributes about myself. This is because of the lessons Girl Scouts learn through community service, outreach, cookie/nut sales, budgeting and more. Especially with my Gold Award, I gained problem-solving skills and leadership skills that I would not have learned otherwise.”

Marvelli previously earned the Girl Scout’s Silver Award after completing a community service project that she coordinated with numerous organizations to bring more than a half-dozen new trees to her hometown.

The Girl Scouts of the USA is a youth organization for girls ages 5 to 17. Founded in 1912, the organization encourages girls to participate in varied activities to help them develop their full potential, become responsible and independent, and make the world a better place.

If you know a W&L student who has done great, accolade-worthy things, tell us about them! Nominate them for an accolade.