Digital badges are web-enabled tokens of accomplishment that contain specific claims and evidence about learning and achievement along with detailed evidence supporting those claims. Badges traditionally consist of an image and relevant metadata (e.g., badge name, description, criteria, issuer, evidence, date issued, standards, and tags). This column features findings from recent research examining the design principles for open digital badges that emerged across the 30 organizations awarded grants to develop badge content in the 2012 Badges for Lifelong Learning Initiative. The column focuses this inspection of the principles identified in the research (recognition, assessment, and motivation) on one student in the MOUSE outreach program. Results from this column provide guidance for educators in and out of traditional learning contexts.