Guardian Opens Entries for 2011 Girls Going Places® Entrepreneurship Award Program

NEW YORK, Sept. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America (Guardian) today announced the opening of the application season for the 2011 Girls Going Places® Entrepreneurship Award Program, a national competition designed to reward enterprising and community-minded teen girls, ages 12 to 18.

"As we enter the second decade of the program, it is extremely gratifying to see how many girls have benefited from Girls Going Places®," said Kathy Readinger, national manager, Girls Going Places® Program, Guardian.  "Many of them have launched the beginnings of their financial success and independence from this competition, and we look forward to the new 2011 award applicants telling us about their business leadership skills."

During this annual competition, a panel of 6 - 7 judges that consists of business professionals, business owners, scholars, and prior Girls Going Places® Award Program winners will review the award nominations and identify 15 finalists who will share prizes totaling $30,000.  "Last year, we had nearly 5,000 applications and the judges were really impressed with the growing popularity of the program and the quality of businesses presented by these teenagers," said Readinger.  

According to a recent survey of the 2010 Girls Going Places® Award Program applicants, three out of four girls participating in the program plan to pursue business ownership as a career, and more than half of the award applicants say they are driven to run their own business by the desire to be independent.  This survey also found that 60% of the girls did not have parents who were business owners and, in fact, their business ideas came from their own inspiration.

"I was grateful to be a part of a program and have an opportunity to be recognized as a successful entrepreneur," said Chelsey Schlosnagle, 18 year old owner of Chelsey's Gourmet Pasture Eggs and the top winner of the 2010 Girls Going Places. "Business ownership is not something you can learn in a classroom environment and by participating in Girls Going Places® it helped me polish my presentation skills, refine my business plan and achieve some marketing visibility for my company."  

From its inception in 1999, Girls Going Places® has received more than 45,000 submissions from teen girls throughout all 50 states, awarding 150 young women with approximately $300,000.   To be eligible, a nominee must be a girl between the ages of 12 and 18 as of December 31, 2010; be enrolled in middle school or high school; and be a U.S. legal citizen. Submission deadline is February 28, 2011. For more about this competition and its application requirements, visit:  www.GirlsGoingPlaces.com.

About Guardian

A mutual insurer founded in 1860, The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America and its subsidiaries are committed to protecting individuals, business owners and their employees with life, long term care insurance, disability income, group medical and dental insurance products, and offer 401(k), annuities and other financial products. Guardian operates one of the largest dental networks in the United States, and protects more than six million employees and their families at 120,000 companies. The company has more than 5,400 employees in the United States and a network of over 3,000 financial representatives in more than 80 agencies nationwide. For more information about Guardian, please visit: www.GuardianLife.com.

SOURCE The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America