Thirty-three students from Lafayette, Oxford and Water Valley High Schools received their Bronze Medal from His Royal Highness, Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh, in Jackson at the Museum of Art May 23 with guests including Gov. Haley Barbour and Miss Mississippi Kimberly Morgan.
The international award, which is a worldwide self-development program that is available to young people between the ages of 14 to 25, consists of three levels of achievement - bronze, silver and gold - with each level having a certain age group that progressively demands more commitment.
The award includes four sections the participants must achieve, including service, adventurous journey, skills and physical recreation.
Water Valley High School Principal Glen Kitchens thinks the award is an overall great experience for the children and teachers involved.
"The students were complimentary of the program and had very positive things to say," Kitchens said.
"They were in awe that this was about them, and they wore those medals with pride. For some of those kids, it was their first encounter with something that big. It was a real eye opener for them."
One of the many great things about the program was that it invited a diverse group of students and gave them an opportunity to make new friendships, Kitchens said.
Started in 1956 in the United Kingdom by Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, the award has been granted to almost 6 million young people from more than 120 countries.
Today, Prince Edward Earl of Wessex is the international director of the award on behalf of his father.
Ole Miss Alumnus Sam Haskell III, former executive vice president and worldwide head of television for the William Morris Agency, Inc., brought the Duke of Edinburgh's award, Young Americans' Challenge, to the U.S. in 2006.
It was Haskell's close friendship with Prince Edward that got him involved with the award.
Prince Phillip and Prince Edward asked Haskell to become the president of the Duke of Edinburgh's Young Americans' Challenge in the U.S.
Two years later, the award was first given in California; Mississippi is the second state to give the award.
It was Haskell's love of Mississippi and the strong pull of his roots that were the driving force behind bringing the award to the sate, he said.
"I'm from Mississippi originally," Haskell said. "I grew up in Mississippi. I love everything about it. This was an opportunity for me to put it front and center in the U.S."
Joann Edwards, who works with the Trent Lott Leadership Institute and the Duke of Edinburgh's Young Americans' Challenge as a local contact for the local high schools, said because it is a leadership award, it seemed appropriate that the Trent Lott Leadership Institute facilitate the award.
Lafayette County High School Principal Adam Pugh thinks the award is a great thing for the kids to work toward because it is something they do that they cannot get paid for.
Haskell, who is also the chairman of the Miss America Foundation, is planning to link the two organizations together in the future.
"I believe that basically all of us want to do something good," Haskell said.
"Sometimes we don't have the infrastructure to do that. I'm providing a platform for people to step up and do something good - not just kids, but mentors and teachers as well."
