The Gold Star Award is a prestigious award recognizing those outstanding individuals that exemplify the mission of South Dakota Master Gardeners and honors their continuous dedication, enthusiasm, and service to the SDSU Extension Master Gardener program.
2026 Nominations are due August 15, 2026.
Nomination Guidelines
- Nominations for Gold Star Awards must be submitted by a fellow Master Gardener(s) familiar with the nominee’s length of service, involvement, and dedication to the program.
- If you choose to nominate someone for a Gold Star Award, you are encouraged to inform them about the nomination. This will help ensure that the nominee’s volunteer hours are up to date in the Better Impact Reporting System and gives the nominator the chance to ask questions about their activities and service.
- Nominee must be an Active Master Gardener as defined in the SDSU Extension Master Gardener Program Policy Guide
- Nominees must have at least 5 years of active service as a SDSU Master Gardener to be nominated.
- Active status, years of service, and hours of volunteer service will be verified by SDSU Extension.
- Gold Star Award nominations will be rated by the Gold Star Committee, made up of fellow SDSU Extension Master Gardeners. Recipients will be determined by criteria scores.
- Gold Star Awards will be presented at the annual SDSU Extension Master Gardener Update Conference.
- The Gold Star Committee will determine the number of Gold Star Award recipients selected each year. This should be around 6 recipients, however the Gold Star Committee can award a few more or a few less based on the quality of applicants.
- Nominee’s name is to be included in the filename. Email nomination form and any accompanying narrative to: SDSU.sdmg@sdstate.edu
