Information

• WHAT IS THE SILVER KNIGHT AWARD PROGRAM?

  The Miami Herald Silver Knight Awards is one of the nation’s most highly regarded student award programs. The purpose of this award program is to recognize outstanding students who have not only maintained good grades but have also unselfishly applied their special knowledge and talents to contribute significant service to their schools and communities.

• WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO BE A SILVER KNIGHT?

  In order to qualify for Silver Knight a student must have:

  • 3.2 unweighted GPA or higher by the Fall of Senior year
  • Academic excellence or extensive leadership and service in one of the categories
  • Achievement in the school and community evidenced through awards, recognitions, leadership roles, and more
  • Major service project that has shown sustainability and benefits the school and community
  • Focus on community service spanning throughout all years of high school
  • Leadership shown through service, clubs, honor societies, community involvement and more

  Additionally, a nominee is to be open to meet with a mentor that can guide them in the right direction, meet strict deadlines, be open to coaching, and attend interviews and the ceremony in April and May of their Senior year.

• WHAT IS THE APPLICATION PROCESS?

  Students should actively work on the creation and execution of their service project throughout 9th-11th grade and check in with their counselor, mentor, and Silver Knight coordinator. Towards the end of junior year, there will be a preliminary application with a strict deadline that must be submitted with extensive evidence of the project. A panel may hold follow-up interviews and then select the nominee for each category. Nominees will be coached on how to apply, how to submit documentation, interviewing skills, and more throughout their Senior year. Award recipients are announced annually at the Silver Knight Awards Ceremony in May.

• CATEGORIES

  Art | Athletics | Business | Digital & Interactive Media | Drama | English & Literature | General Scholarship | Journalism | Mathematics | Music & Dance | Science | Social Science | Speech | Vocational Technical | World Languages

Students interested in applying for Silver Knight may contact mgarcia@colemancarroll.org for more information.

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Qualifications

The Silver Knight Awards program is open to 12th-grade students in public, private and parochial schools in Miami-Dade and Broward counties with a minimum 3.2 unweighted GPA. Class rank and/or percentile are no longer required. Only students with this academic requirement in addition to strong records of service to their school and community should be nominated.

The essential qualification for a Silver Knight nominee is service. A Silver Knight is one whose record of service to the school and community best exemplifies an unselfish and continuous use of one’s talents in helping others. Service does not have to be related to a nominee’s category, but some achievements both in and out of the classroom must be related to the category.

Judges evaluate community service especially during the full high school career, 9th through 12th grades. Nominees are evaluated based on the following criteria: service, achievements, character, leadership and interview skills. Two major factors to be weighed are consistency and lasting impact of service. Other factors include independent thinking, creative problem solving, leadership in getting others involved, and perseverance in overcoming challenges. Most nominees will have a wide range of service activities.

Nominations

A student wishing to become a Silver Knight nominee must apply through the school’s Silver Knight Coordinator appointed by the principal. The school’s Silver Knight Coordinator is encouraged to proactively seek qualified nominees, working with teachers, guidance counselors and parents in this effort. The coordinator is encouraged to also organize a committee to select nominees. Schools may nominate one student per category. Nominating students is the responsibility of each high school.

Upon nominee selection coordinators are required to enter the nominees into the website. Coordinators will be provided a username to complete the nomination and application process online.