Student Ambassadors Honored with Six Awards!
Members of the 4-H / Middle Earth Student Ambassadors for Community Health club have been recognized at the New Jersey county and state levels for their impressive accomplishments. The Student Ambassadors are the recipients of six awards for their 2018 project in Bound Brook that addressed traffic safety and enhanced the walkable community through creative placemaking.
The Student Ambassadors for Community Health are honorees of the following awards:
- The NJ Association of Extension Agents Program of Excellence Award
- The Somerset County Rotary Award
- The 2018 Somerset County Land Development and Planning Award in the Excellence in Planning category.
- 2019 Excellence in the Arts Award from the Somerset County Cultural and Heritage Commission in the Arts in the Community category.
- The National Association of 4-H Agents Denise Miller award for New Jersey (this recognition includes automatic regional and national award consideration)
- The National Association of 4-H Agents Excellence in Teen Programming for New Jersey (this recognition includes automatic regional and national award consideration)
In 2018, the Student Ambassadors partnered with graduate students from the Rutgers Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy to survey and collect data to determine community locations in need of intervention. The findings revealed unfriendly crosswalk locations, a lack of pedestrian access around schools, and isolated benches with no shade.
In response, the Student Ambassadors painted crosswalks with the intention of slowing drivers, and also painted beautiful street murals outside schools and downtown areas. Additionally, they built a parklet — a structure for the public to gather and rest at township events.
The Student Ambassadors were presented with the 2018 Somerset County Land Development and Planning Award in the Excellence in Planning category during a ceremony earlier this spring.
A second ceremony was held for the 2019 Excellence in the Arts Award by the Somerset County Cultural and Heritage Commission on May 23, 2019 at the Green Brook Middle School Auditorium.
Stay tuned for more good news from the Student Ambassadors, as the two National Association of 4-H Agents awards are currently being considered for both regional and national recognition.