2023 – 2024 Fraternal Year
The Star Council Award recognizes outstanding achievement in membership, insurance and programming. In order to achieve the Star Council Award, a council must earn the Father McGivney, Founders’, and Columbian Awards. Additionally, the council must submit both the Annual Survey of Fraternal Activity (#1728) and Service Program Personnel Report (#365). In the United States and Canada councils must also be fully compliant with applicable safe environment requirements.
Prior to the end of the fraternal year on June 30, make sure that your council achieves the requirements to qualify for your awards. To view your quota and/or progress towards earning the Star Council Award, please log on to Officers Online regularly.
COLUMBIAN AWARD
This award recognizes excellence in your council’s programming and charitable outreach. To earn this award your council must conduct and report programs in each of the four program categories (Faith, Family, Community, and Life) for a total of 16 program credits, with four in each category. A completed Columbian Award Application (#SP-7) must be received by the Supreme Council office by June 30 in order to earn this award.
Virtual/remote programs will be counted in the same manner that they would have been if conducted completely in person. Please note that hybrid events should only be counted once (not as both an in person AND virtual/remote event).
There are no required programs.
Featured Programs
The Supreme Council has designated certain programs as featured programs in each of the program categories. When your council conducts a featured program and satisfies the associated requirements it will receive two credits towards that program category on their Columbian Award Application (#SP-7). The featured programs for each category are listed below.
Faith – Refund Support Vocation Program (RSVP), Holy Hour, Spiritual Reflection, Into the Breach
Family – Food for Families, Family of the Month, Family Prayer Night, Family Fully Alive
Community – Coats for Kids, Habitat for Humanity, Global Wheelchair Mission
Life – March for Life, Special Olympics, Ultrasound, Pregnancy Center Support (includes Aid and Support After Pregnancy – ASAP)
FATHER MCGIVNEY AWARD
This award recognizes excellence in your council’s membership growth. To earn this award your council must meet or exceed its yearly membership quota. The quota is 6% increase in the council’s membership as of July 1 (intake only, minimum of five and maximum of fifteen). Your specific council quota can be found under the Membership tab in Officers Online. There is no application for the Father McGivney Award. Eligibility is automatically determined by the Supreme Council.
Councils that attain Star Council status and achieve 200 percent of their gain goal will receive the Double Star Council Award. Councils that achieve 300 percent of their gain goal will receive the Triple Star Council Award.
All membership transactions must be received, processed, recorded, and released at the Supreme Council office by June 30.
FOUNDERS’ AWARD
The Founders’ Award recognizes excellence in the promotion of our insurance and fraternal benefits. All councils must host / promote at least two Fraternal Benefit Events during the fraternal year. The required sum total attendance of members, or member eligible men, at these events must equal or exceed:
• 10 for councils with 99 or fewer members
• 14 for councils with 100 or more members
These events are coordinated in conjunction with your local field agent. In order for the council to receive credit, the grand knight must submit the new online form #11077 within seven days of the seminar.