19-year-old Alanah Angus of Baldwin updates internet safety tips through Gold Award project

While looking over old assignments from when she was a student at Baldwin Middle School, 19-year-old Alanah Angus,  noticed that internet safety tips then have become outdated in the ever-evolving digital world.

“I recalled being like, ‘Wow, this is outdated,’ she said. “The internet doesn’t work like this anymore, and there are things I wouldn’t advise someone to do, especially at a young age.”

Some of the tips she read included avoiding the internet, not creating social media accounts, and not interacting with others online. However, since  middle school, she believes the internet has evolved significantly becoming an essential part of life for people of all ages, including young users.

A Girl Scout since third grade, Angus dedicated her Gold Award project during her senior year at Baldwin High School in 2022 to internet safety education in Baldwin and neighboring communities like Hempstead and Roosevelt.

In an Aug. 20 news release, her project earned her recognition as one of 51 Girl Scouts in this year’s Gold Award class—the highest honor in Girl Scouts.

“Every Girl Scout who achieved their Gold Award this year demonstrated remarkable resilience, dedication, and passion in developing and implementing a plan to tackle a societal challenge.

We are immensely proud and impressed by each one of them for achieving their goals and making a lasting impact on their communities,” Rande Bynum, CEO of Girl Scouts of Nassau County wrote in a news release. “Their commitment is undeniable, and their efforts have positively affected countless lives.

“This year, our Girl Scouts addressed critical issues such as environmental justice and sustainability, mental and emotional health, gender equality in sports, and more. We applaud each of them for their significant contributions,” she added.

From March through the end of her senior year, Angus led presentations to students at the elementary schools in Baldwin, Hempstead, and Roosevelt about safe internet use, creating interactive materials and launching a YouTube channel to highlight the issue further.

The YouTube channel, focused more on topics such as practicing smart internet habits—such as recognizing when someone online is seeking personal information—and avoiding malicious websites.

Recalling her senior year, she remembers working on her Gold Award project while taking five Advanced Placement classes. Ultimately, the project taught her valuable time management skills that proved essential for undergraduate studies.

Angus is now a sophomore at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in upstate Troy.

“What I learned from this experience was time management and how to manage my time,” she said. “One way I did that was scheduling when I was going to do things. I made sure I kept on top of my grades as well, and I was able to accomplish both.”

Although she received recognition a year later for her project, it helped serve as a reminder of her time as a Girl Scout and her upbringing.

“It has impacted me as a person because there’s so many skills that I’ve taken from my Gold Award and from Girl Scouts in general,” she said. “I’ve learned to become a leader and was able to do things that I was interested in.”