Suffolk Girl Scout Awarded $5k For Creating Mental Health Directory

SAYVILLE, NY — A college student from Sayville has been honored by the Girl Scouts of the USA for her efforts to help fellow teens struggling with mental health issues.

Sayville native Morgan Bissell, 19, was awarded a $5,000 Gold Award scholarship from the GSUSA for her project helping Long Island teens struggling with mental health find local counseling resources, a representative said.

According to the organization, "the scholarship recognizes one outstanding Gold Award Girl Scout per council whose project exemplifies leadership and sustainable impact and addresses an issue of national or global significance."

For her project, Morgan created a website that educates teens about mental health challenges and offers resources to get help. The website includes links to local organizations and services, definitions of a crisis and good habits for mental health.

She also created a brochure that's now available in schools and libraries around Sayville. The project, which took two years to complete, was created in coordination with a mental health professional.

The website also features Morgan's anecdotes about her journey with diagnosed depression.

“I struggled with my own mental health issues a lot because when I needed it, I didn’t know where to look for help. There was a lack of resources available to me. Nobody knew about them, and I created this hoping I could help people who were looking for it,” Morgan said. “These resources are also meant to help families and loved ones of the people who are struggling. My family, especially my mom, a social worker, has always been super supportive.”

Morgan, who will be a sophomore at the University of Albany this fall, hopes her resources will serve as a guide for others to develop their own local directory of mental health resources.

“We’re so proud of Morgan not just for her work but for how well she represents everyone who is part of the Girl Scouts of Suffolk County,” said Tammy Severino, CEO of GSSC. “Girls who earn this recognition set themselves apart from their peers through their perseverance and grit.”

The Gold Award is the highest award in Girl Scouting. Close to 3,000 Girl Scouts in the 2024 Gold Award Class—including 42 on Long Island—found meaningful ways to address some of the most pressing issues facing their communities.

The Gold Award class of 2024 contributed more than a quarter of a million hours and invested over $1.6M toward creating long-term solutions to community issues they’re passionate about. Gold Award Girl Scouts across the world completed Gold Award projects focused on education, children’s issues, health, environment and sustainability, life skills and more.