Two Alameda County Girl Scouts Earn Prestigious Gold Awards and National Alcoa Chuck McLane Scholarships

OAKLAND, Calif.—The Girl Scouts of Northern California congratulates two Alameda County Girl Scouts for earning the pinnacle of achievement in Girl Scouting along with recognition from a major scholarship foundation.

Uma Mahajan, 17, of Union City and Zahara Hajee, 17, of Fremont are recipients of the Girl Scout Gold Award and the Alcoa Chuck McLane Scholarship for their exceptional Gold Award projects in the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) category. Open only to girls in high school, the Gold Award provides college scholarships to girls for outstanding projects that positively change their communities.

In 2013, Girl Scouts of the USA partnered with the Alcoa Foundation to establish an exclusive scholarship available to recipients of the Girl Scout Gold Award who complete a STEM focused project. The Chuck McLane Scholarship granted Uma and Zahara $10,000 each for continuing education in STEM, in addition to mentorship by an Alcoa employee during their freshman year of college this fall.

By the time a Girl Scout puts the final touches on her seven-step Gold Award project, she will have solved a community problem—not only in the short term, but for years into the future.

Uma’s Gold Award project, science2day42morrow: Nature’s Fury, focused on the lack of access and interest in science among children. Uma created an event at NASA Ames Research Center for over 700 people and 15 companies to help teach children about the FIRST Lego Leagues robotics program, science and natural disasters. Uma also established a robotics team at Guy Jr. Emanuele elementary school, the first one in the school’s history, which is now in its third season.

“I’m excited to have an Alcoa mentor as I begin the first chapter of my adult life, and the funding will help cover my expenses and allow me to be more involved in community activities or lab research,” said Uma, a freshman at Case Western Reserve University majoring in Data Science, and eventually Medicine. “As a Girl Scout for more than 10 years, I’ve gained so much from this organization in terms of opportunities to explore technology, leadership skills, and instilling in me the value of giving back. I know I want to be forever involved in this organization, which is why I’m becoming a Girl Scout lifetime member.”

Zahara’s Gold Award project, Camp Evergreen, focused on educating students on the neglect of natural resources for technological advancement through a camp experience. In a pilot program, Zahara created a five day camp immersion experience with each day focused on a different theme of environmental sustainability. Students learned how to reduce their carbon footprint, how to incorporate “green” thinking into their activities and how to reconnect with nature to ultimately protect the natural world. Zahara’s camp was developed into a full curriculum and enrichment program hosted by 135 YMCAs across California and the community-based environmental organization Going Evergreen.

“As a college student and innate entrepreneur, I will have the experience of being at the helm of my education while taking risks, learning from failure, and making a unique and lasting contribution to the local and global community,” said Zahara, a soon to be freshman at University of California, Los Angeles majoring in Neuroscience. “Programs like the Girl Scouts and Alcoa Scholarship provide the resources for students to explore the best ways to impact themselves and their communities. With this scholarship and my entire college career ahead of me, I am ready to learn, innovate, and show the world what I am made of.”

Marina Park, CEO of Girl Scouts of Northern California had additional words of encouragement for the honorees.

“Uma and Zahara’s Gold Award projects are big and audacious. It’s what Girl Scouts is all about – building girl leaders who are poised to make the world a better place. We are proud of Uma and Zahara and appreciate Alcoa’s support of their continuing education. We all know about the need to build a diverse pipeline for STEM careers. Uma, Zahara and Alcoa are taking action to make that happen.”

Concluding a 40-year career with Alcoa and Reynolds Metals Company, the scholarship honors Chuck McLane, a retired Alcoa Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. McLane, a GSUSA Board member, championed this program in support of young women pursuing a STEM education. Alcoa and Alcoa Foundation share McLane’s commitment to inspire girls, women, and other under-represented groups on the journey to STEM-related careers.

About Girl Scouts
Founded in 1912, Girl Scouts of the USA is the preeminent leadership development organization for girls, with 3.2 million girl and adult members worldwide. Girl Scouts is the leading authority on girls’ healthy development, and builds girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place. The organization serves girls from every corner of the United States and its territories. Girl Scouts of the USA also serves American girls and their classmates attending American or international schools overseas in 90 countries.

In Union City and Fremont, Girl Scouts are served by Girl Scouts of Northern California which serves a diverse membership of 50,000 girls and over 32,000 adult volunteers in a 19-county area from Gilroy to the Oregon border. To learn more visit GirlScoutsNorCal.org

About Alcoa Foundation
Alcoa Foundation is one of the largest corporate foundations in the United States, with assets of approximately $480 million. Founded 63 years ago, Alcoa Foundation has invested more than $615 million. In 2014, Alcoa Foundation contributed more than $22 million to nonprofit organizations throughout the world, building innovative partnerships to improve the environment and educate tomorrow’s leaders for careers in manufacturing and engineering. The work of Alcoa Foundation is further enhanced by Alcoa’s thousands of employee volunteers who share their talents and time to make a difference in the communities where Alcoa operates. Through the company’s signature Month of Service program, in 2014, 58 percent of Alcoa employees took part in more than 1,000 events across 24 countries, benefiting more than 700,000 people and 500 nonprofit organizations. For more information, visit www.alcoafoundation.com.

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