Carmen Ross
Baylor junior Carmen Ross has been named a recipient of a Congressional Award Gold Medal, the highest award presented by the United States Congress. The Congressional Award program is non-partisan, voluntary, and non-competitive and honors young Americans across the nation.
Carmen earned Congressional Award Bronze, Silver and Gold Medals as well as Bronze, Silver and Gold Certificates. She registered for the award as a Middle School student and worked toward the achievement for nearly four years. Participants earn medals and certificates by setting and reaching goals in four program areas: volunteer public service, personal development, physical fitness, and expedition/exploration.
She achieved her public service goal by volunteering her time to tutor Baylor Middle School students, coaching UPWARD basketball at her church, and working with LaPaz Chattanooga. She met her personal development goal by improving her musical abilities on the guitar, and reached her physical fitness goal by clearing 9’ 6” in the pole vault as a member of the Baylor track team last spring. To meet the expedition/exploration goal, Carmen planned a trip to St. Simon’s Island, Ga. for her friends and family and, not surprisingly, added an educational/service element to the trip as the group helped with beach cleanup and aided a local agency with management of the island’s sea turtle population.
Carmen will be presented her award at the annual Gold Medal Ceremony in Washington, D.C. in June. She and other Gold Medal winners from across the country are invited to spend the entire week in the nation’s capital, touring the city with Congressional Award hosts.
At Baylor, Carmen takes three AP courses and is a member of the National Honor Society, Peer Support Network, Red Circle, and the Baylor Concert Choir.
She is the daughter of Gordon and Susan Harrelson Ross.
Here is the official news release from the Congressional Award office:
Baylor School junior Carmen Ross of Hixson, Tenn. will receive the highest honor bestowed upon America’s young people at a ceremony in the nation’s capital next June. Congressman Chuck Fleischmann (TN03) will present Ms. Ross with the honor in recognition of her acts of service and personal development in the local community.
Her activities exemplify the cornerstones of The Congressional Award: initiative, service, and achievement. The Congressional Award is open to all young people ages 14-23 in America. To earn the Award, young people must set and achieve goals in the four program areas: Voluntary Public service, Personal Development, Physical Fitness and Expedition/Exploration.
The Congressional Award was established in 1979 by Public Law 96-114, The Congressional Award Act as a non-partisan platform to recognize youth achievement. The program currently supports over 45,000 participants nationwide with over 68,000 awards earned since the program’s inception, representing well over 7.5 million volunteer hours.
The Congressional Award is non-competitive. Recipients do not win the Award; they earn it. Bronze, Silver and Gold Medals are presented to all young people who meet the requirements, regardless of physical, mental, or socioeconomic circumstances. The Congressional Award teaches participants to set and achieve personally challenging goals that build character and foster community service, personal development, and citizenship. The only other medal awarded by the United States Congress is the Medal of Honor.
A public-private partnership, The Congressional Award Foundation is an IRS-designated 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that receives no federal funding.
For more information about the program visit our website at www.congressionalaward.org.
To learn more about Carmen’s pursuit of the Award, direct all press inquiries to Director of Communications, Derek Doyle, at doyle@congressionalaward.org or (202) 226-0130. If you are under deadline, please call Derek at (301) 676-3882.