All Cooped Up: A Gold Award Project for the (Chicken) Masses

Gold Award Girls

The following entry is about Kelli Robertson's Gold Award Project--a chicken coop for the students at Travis Heights Elementary School. In it you'll read about the idea behind the project, the benefits it will bring and a shout-out to those who helped her accomplish her goal. Thank you, Kelli!

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"The Coop" is Kelli Robertson's finished Girl Scout Gold Award project, which can be found at Travis Heights Elementary. 

Kelli has been a Girl Scout for 12 years and dedicated her project to the students at Travis Heights Elementary School, where her father is the principal. She had many advisers on this project and they are cited on the blue plaque on the side of the coop. 

They include: Krista Ernst, Gail Laubenthal, Veronica Arispe, Tonya Penney, and Andee Knutson. Also, wonderful family friends, Gene, Karen, and Mike Sanders supported Kelli in this project by sharing their expertise since the small space has a 2.5 foot drop from one end of the coop to the other. 

The project was funded through Kelli’s Girl Scout cookie sales, fall product sales, and donations from the following businesses: McCoy’s Building Supplies, Home Depot, Viking Fence, and Callahan’s. 

This spring, The Coop will welcome chicks raised by 2nd graders from Travis Heights Elementary and students in the specialized units under the watchful eyes of Ms. Arispe and Mrs. K! 

Through raising and caring for the chicks, students will learn about life cycles, caring for animals, and the role they play in a habitat. In addition, as the residents of The Coop continue to grow and produce, future groups of students will understand the phrase “farm to table”, the elements of business and finance, as well future planning for an urbanized world.

Thanks to Kelli's project, dozens of students will have access to a real-life, hands-on farm experience.