Scoutmaster

Eagle Project Guidelines - Avoid the Maze!

Eagle Scout Projects are actually very simple; any Scout can complete a project without a lot of fuss if he avoids the maze.

There is a whole lot of opaque, misdirected and downright wrong advice out there. Much of it may come from district or council level Advancement Chairpersons. Despite their best intentions these folks have erected a maze of confusing, contradicting directions that can leave Scouts and Scouters feeling frustrated.

One major way to avoid the maze is to ignore (that's right ignore) anything but what is said in two documents - The Eagle Project Workbook and the Advancement Committee Policies and Procedures book.

For some reason many Councils and Districts have issued an annotated version of the Eagle Project Workbook with oft times misguided information. In effect they have added (hardly ever subtracted) to the simple verbiage that describes an Eagle Project. A clean,current copy of the manual is always available at the National Eagle Scout Association website. If it is not in this manual it is not National Policy - enough said.

The 2008 printing of the Advancement Committee Policies and Procedures book is available here as a PDF document. Eagle projects are discussed on page 27-28.

A careful, literal reading of this section will dispel many myths and urban legends. Here are three persistent questions that have simple answers:

Must Eagle Projects be conducted under the two-deep leadership rule? Answer; no.

The Eagle Scout service project provides the opportunity for the Eagle Scout candidate to demonstrate the leadership skills he has learned in Scouting. He does the project outside the sphere of Scouting. As a demonstration of leadership, the Scout must plan the work, organize the personnel needed, and direct the project to its completion. ACPP Pg. 28

There are a few instances, such as patrol activities, when no adult leadership is required.
Guide to Safe Scouting Pg.12

Are there a minimum number of hours for the project? Answer: no.

There is no minimum number of hours that must be spent on carrying out the project. The amount of time spent must be sufficient for the Scout to clearly demonstrate leadership skills.
ACPP Pg. 28

Can the District or Council make special rules or amend the requirements for projects? Answer: no.

The project must also be reviewed and approved by the district or council advancement committee or their designee to make sure that it meets the stated standards for Eagle Scout service projects before the project is started
ACPP Pg. 28

No council, district, unit, or individual has the authority to add to or subtract from advancement requirements.
ACPP Pg. 3

If, in the course of planning, executing or reporting on an Eagle Project you are told something that does not make sense it probably is not official policy. Ask, politely, to see the policy any document published by the BSA- if it isn't there it isn't true.

More Eagle Scout Thoughts

Andy at "Ask Andy" writes:

In 1931, Jane Addams, founder of Hull House, received the Nobel Peace Prize; she was 91 at the time.Former US President Jimmy Carter is also a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize; he was 78 when he received it. Theodore Roosevelt, the only US President to receive this recognition while in office, was a mere 48 on receipt. But he wasn't the youngest. Lech Walesa was a mere 40 in 1983, when he received it; and Martin Luther King, Jr. was a babe of 35 when he received it. Should the NPP committee have held these latter three recognitions back for another two or three decades, so that the recipients' ages were more in line with others? The answer is, of course, No. Why? Because they'd "done the work."

I know a young man who will graduate from a major Ivy League university with a Masters degree at age 19.  Shouldn't the university have tried to slow him down, to make him wait, to stall him, till he turns 24 or 25 or so?  Of course not!  Why?  Because he' done the work.

There are, in the military, young generals and old generals, and in some cases very old generals.  How does this happen?  It happens when they are considered qualified by dint of having done the work, regardless of their age.

But what sets all of these apart from the ranks in Scouting's advancement program is that, in these cases, someone else must decide that the work's been done; in Scouting, this is virtually entirely up to the individual Scout.  This is perhaps why there's only one Eagle Scout Rank Application, and not separate applications for "Young Eagle" or "Old Eagle." When the work has been done, it's the work that is evaluated; not the age.

The Boy Scout advancement program is unique in several ways.  First, as stated, it is based on individual effort and is achievable by one's own vision and energies.  Second, it is not mandatory in any sense of the word: If a Scout wishes to earn this rank, there is nothing in the Scouting program that can stand in his way; if he doesn't, Scouting says that that's OK.  Third, no one "confers" or "bestows" the rank of Eagle (or any other rank, for that matter) on a Scout: He receives what he has earned.  Fourth and perhaps most significant, receiving of any rank in Scouting by one individual is not determined by the judgment of others: If the work has been completed, the rank has been earned.

It is the responsibility of a troop's adult volunteers to encourage all Scouts to advance in rank; it is not the responsibility of anyone to decide who shall advance and who shall not, or what their respective timetables will be.

Certain ranks have tenures.  Some people think these are to slow the Scout down (so he can "mature," etc.).  Actually, the purpose of the tenures is to give the Scout the opportunity to put into practice what he's learned, in a significant way.

Some people also think that "Eagle" is the pinnacle of Scouting, the end of the road, the finish-line, in a manner similar to earning a college degree.  But, when pressed, these same people will (perhaps reluctantly) agree that even college degrees go beyond Bachelor, and even go beyond Doctor.. Yes, there are "Post-Doc" educational opportunities!  When we think of Eagle as the end of the road, the tendency is to couple this thinking--however wrong--with the fact that one's 18th birthday ends the Boy Scout experience as a youth, and so we have young men who are encouraged to plan a seven-year program from Tenderfoot to Eagle because of a misguided connection founded on an inaccuracy. Now there's nothing inherently wrong with a seven-year program of progress, but neither is there anything inherently wrong with a two-year program of progress!  It's all up to each individual Scout.  The Boy Scout Handbook says so!

So much for age.  Let's move on...

Is rank advancement important?  Yes it is, because this is one of the ways boys become men: They steadily expand their knowledge, skills, and outlook on life.  However, advancement is but one-eighth of the methods Scouting employs to accomplish the ultimate goal of imbuing boys with the fiber of responsible, ethical manhood and citizenship.  There are seven other equally important methods by which Scouting attempts to do this, from the outdoor program to association with positive adult role models. Is the rank of Eagle important?  Yes it is, because it's an achievable goal for every boy who enters the Boy Scout program.  We are taught in management that, when we set gaols for ourselves or the group we're responsible for, those goals must be achievable.  Eagle is achievable.  But, historically, only two in a hundred boys reach this level.  Is this OK?  Of course it is, because even though not necessarily achieved by all, it nevertheless represents a target to be aimed for. The earliest Boy Scout Handbook called those who earned Eagle "all-around perfect Scouts."  This may have been a mistake.  "All-around" certainly, but "perfect"...?  I'm not so sure about "perfect."  In today's world, I think "all-around" works just fine.  In fact, I've never yet met an Eagle Scout who wasn't "all-around."  Eagle Scouts aren't "Scout nerds," largely because what is required of them inherently expands their world.

On "coronations"...

A Court of Honor recognizes advancements that Scouts have earned since the last court. Courts of Honor, in my opinion, need to remain this way.  I don't personally accept the notion of "EAGLE Courts of Honor," because while this rank is significant, so are Life, Star, and, Yes, Tenderfoot. Each one marks progress; each one deserves to be acknowledged. Besides, from a purely practical point-of-view, many fewer Scouts and parents attend "Eagle Courts" than do troop-wide Courts of Honor, and without these Scouts and parents, how can this rank be used to help promote the idea of advancement overall?  The plain fact is: It can't.

Moreover, the specialized C-o-H tends to be more a coronation than an acknowledgment of a rank earned.  (Even with the Motion Picture Academy Awards, Oscar winners are given 90 seconds to make their acceptance speeches, whether it's a single award or a group award.)

On what Eagle means...

I knew a man--president of a multi-million dollar corporation--who made a point of hiring men who were Eagle Scouts.  When I asked him why, here's what he said: "I know when I hire a man who is an Eagle that he knows how to set a goal and then figure out how to get there." On conclusion of a successful Eagle board of review, I share this thought with the new Eagle Scout: "The three best things about being an Eagle Scout are these: You've pleased and honored your parents, you've learned how to make good decisions for yourself, and you're going to absolutely delight the parents of your date."

Associated posts at Scoutmaster
Eagle Court of Honor
Eagle Projects
Holding Scouts Hostage - The 13 Year Old Eagle?

Holding Scouts Hostage - the 13 year-old Eagle?

The delightfully plain-spoken author of Ask Andy answers a question about "delaying the earning of
Eagle till Scouts are older and more mature… If a Scout earns Eagle by age 13, what’s left? "

A bit of ancient history:  I made Eagle at 15; my brother at 14; both of us stayed active in our Troop and in Scouting right up to 18, and then became ASMs (I went on to become Scoutmaster of the same Troop I'd earned my Tenderfoot badge in!).  More recently, I've sat on Eagle boards for 17 years olds who drop out right after their Court of Honor, and 13 year olds who stay in and active for the next 4 or more years, and everything in between.  In other words, something other than merely earning Eagle is operating here, and I'll tell you from experience exactly what it is:  It's the myth that "Eagle is the 'end of the trail'."

Too many of us who should know better are out there telling Scouts (and their parents) that Eagle is "The Ultimate," that "Making Eagle is a Life Goal," that "This is the PINNACLE of Scouting."  Horsepucky.  Eagle is a rank, pure and simple.  Yes, it's the highest (we're not counting "Palms" here because Palms aren't ranks), but advancement is just one of eight methods of Scouting.

Now I'll go further... To artificially and arbitrarily hold a Scout back from his own advancement goals is a form of hostage-taking.  In doing this, in purposefully delaying a Scout by throwing up roadblocks, so that he "stays in the troop longer" is a complete and total miscarriage of the Scouting program itself, to say nothing of the advancement plan.

Want Scouts to stay active in your troop?  Simple: Give 'em a program that enriches their lives, turns 'em on, and is fun.  When it works, it works magic.  I've seen troops that "get it."  There's one, in particular, that I have in mind:  It's older Scouts drive to their troop meetings! Got that?  Drove!  THAT is what you call a troop program that's a MAGNET. That's what Scouting's supposed to be.

To anyone harboring the misguided notion of holding a Scout hostage by stalling his advancement in order to keep him in the troop, I have but one response: SHAME ON YOU!

If you haven't discovered Ask Andy take a moment and look over his 100 + columns that serve as one of the best FAQ's on Scouting. Got a Scouting problem? After a nearly a hundred years here isn't anything new out there - ask Andy.

Associated posts at Scoutmaster
Eagle Court of Honor
Eagle Projects

Standards

In the past I have been guilty of griping about Scouts who 'don't know their skills' and troops that were 'Eagle Factories'. This put me on a mission to fix whatever I saw as wrong, to tighten things up and be darn sure that my Scouts earned their way.

I couldn't have been more wrong.

I spent a few years discouraging Scouts by throwing every possible impediment in their path. I was the worst kind of Scoutmaster- a self appointed guardian of an unattainable standard of perfection. What I became was a grumpy old man ready to swat any hand that reached for my holy awards.

Thankfully things have changed. Scouts need only encouragement, empowerment and a bit of kindness to reveal the potential they have within. Once they catch on there is really no stopping them. I have ceased to worry about the quality of their skills, their commitment or their honesty. My job is to put them in the right place at the right time - the rest they do themselves.

Dictating a standard of behavior, of skill, commitment or honesty to Scouts is frustrating. Getting them to find these things within themselves is a piece of cake.

Prepared or Product?

The mission of the Boy Scouts of America is to prepare young people to make ethical and moral choices over their lifetimes by instilling in them the values of the Scout Oath and Law. - BSA Mission Statement

If Scouting's goal were to produce a product - a model citizen of some sort, a leader- production efficiencies and quality control would make sense. But that is not our mission - we do not produce a product. Note too that the mission statement does not say a word about leadership (almost heretical isn't it?).

What we do is play a game. The gist of the game is to offer a set of circumstances that challenge scouts to think for themselves, make decisions and develop skills. This process prepares them for a lifetime of challenges. When they leave us prepared we have completed the mission. There is no test to measure results - only anecdotal evidence that we have succeeded.

I harp on this subject because it is one of the toughest things to 'get' about Scouting. Most of us are involved in the business of production, the science of management and are used to having some demonstrable result. When we become Scouters we are eager to make good and apply the principles of our professional work to our Scouting job. We seek to impose efficiencies, quality control, and optimum production practices on our Scouts and are frustrated when they don't behave like widgets on a production line.

Liberate yourself from results and concentrate on the process. Learn and maintain the game, protect its integrity, keep it open and vibrant. Give your Scouts a safe place to play win or loose. Don't look so much for measurable results as for the somewhat intangible growth that results.

Associated posts at Scoutmaster
Hoop Jumping
Standardization
Scoutmastership - Leadership - Development

Top 10 Reasons Eagle Applications are Rejected

Here's a list of the most common reasons that Eagle applications are rejected once they reach the national office. Most of these problems should be weeded out at the Troop, District and Council levels but apparently some applications make it to the national level with errors that result in delays:

• No Council Number on Application This requires the application to be removed from the daily work stack and placed in a special file until time is alloted to perform council lookups.
• Signatures Missing This requires the rejected application to be mailed back to council. This oversight will cause a delay of at least four weeks because the postal service will be used.
• No Boy Scout joining date or wrong date Failure to indicate Boy Scout joining date requires us to reject the application to request the proper date. This is because all requirements must be met after a boy joins Scouting.
• No Board of Review Date We must have a board of review date to ensure all requirements were completed prior to the board of review. This date is also necessary since it is printed on the Eagle Scout credentials.
• Duplicate Merit Badges on application A total of 21 separate merit badges must be earned. Any application that requires a correction to merit badges that are listed twice on the application will be rejected.
• Explanation for delay in board of review not furnished. We will ask for a letter when this time frame as described on the application is not met.
• Proper badges are not indicated in merit badge numbers 6 and 9.
• If  six months leadership between Life Scout and Board of Review does not indicate sufficient time, we must return for correction.
• Valid leadership position between Life Scout and Board of Review The only valid leadership positions are those listed on the 2000 printing of the Eagle Scout Rank Application. if it is not listed on the 2000 printing, it is not a valid leadership position. (NOTE: WE RECEIVE A LOT OF APPLICATIONS FOR ASSISTANT PATROL LEADERS).
• New Eagle Scout Rank Requirements (as of 1 April 1999) have not been met. Scouts having completed any Eagle Scout rank requirements after 1 April 1999, must earn the Personal Fitness merit badge and Cycling, or Hiking or Swimming merit badges. We must reject the application if it does not meet this new requirement.

Via Lone Star Scouter

Keeping the Trail to Eagle Clear.

Reaching the rank of Eagle Scout is a laudable and challenging goal for any boy. In many instances the process has been clouded by a self-appointed priesthood pledged to 'maintain standards' and 'the integrity of the award'. They most often do this by unethically and incorrectly adding to the requirements in subtle and not so subtle ways.

Perhaps it is a local anomaly but we seem to have an inordinately difficult time with the approval of projects, conduct of boards of review and a high degree of nit-picking pissery and BSification. Precious little of our advancement program is a single uniform standard; 'six months tenure', for example, is always 'six months tenure'. (That is unless one scout's tenure included the month of February and another's didn't - the first would have served several day's less.) Most requirements towards Eagle involve an unquantifiable measure (demonstrating leadership, for example) that are best judged by a group rather than a single person - thus the Board of Review.

Scoutmasters should monitor (from a respectful distance) the relationship between a District Advancement Chairman and their scouts working towards Eagle. If the District Advancement Chairman is making unfair demands outside of the clearly written procedures and policies than it is wholly appropriate to call these demands into question. A scout working towards Eagle is new to the process, Scoutmasters are not and they should keep an eye on things. Should a Scoutmaster be inexperienced with the process they may want to call on a colleague who is.

I have seen project ideas rejected for capricious reasons that have nothing to do with the actual requirements: demands of a certain number of hours for projects, a benchmark for the number of of people involved, unreasonable expectations of the way the project report is to be written and presented and other additions to the process that are absolutely forbidden by policy.

The heart and genius of Scouting is that individual Scouts are not assessed against a single standard, but according to the personal effort they have extended in meeting the spirit of the requirement. Judging one Eagle Project against another, the elegance of one project report against another, adding expectations, benchmarks or suggested standards is not only innimical to the Spirit of Scouting, it is just plain wrong.

The Dump

The Dump is a massive collection of manuals, handbooks and stories 'written long ago' for scouts. Some patient soul has created a treasure trove of Scouting Literature like;

The Scout and His Axe - John Thurman's booklet of axe use and care.

The Patrol System and Letters To A Patrol Leader - The 1917 book by Capt. the Honorable Roland Philipps regarding the most important topic in the Scout section - the Patrol.

Scoutmaster's First Year - The 1948 edition of this popular and informative manual for new Scout Leaders

And this just the tip of the iceberg, there is lots, lots more. Be sure to visit The Dump

Advancing to Eagle; a Parable

A young man built a shed in the backyard. He saved the money, designed the shed and wanted to build it by himself.

Over time he learned how to use a saw and a hammer, collected his own set of tools, built smaller projects. He was having fun pursing something interesting, building skills and accumulating knowledge of his craft.

He learned to draw plans, estimate costs, where to buy his materials. His parents like the idea of a shed, they are very supportive: they're pleased that their son has developed into a decent carpenter but know little of the subject themselves. They asked that someone who knows more than they do review the plans with their son just to make sure he was building the shed properly. He called a friend of the family who was a builder and showed him the plans. He had to tweak this plans a bit and got some good advice.

One weekend he dug the foundations and poured cement; the next he set up his rim and floor joists. When he went to frame the walls he realized that he had made a miscalculation and would have to change his plans. He was discouraged and didn't work on the shed for a week or two.

His parents held him to the commitment and he started building again. There was an argument, but they insisted and the boy returned to his work. Soon the prospect of finishing the shed overcame his reticence and the moved the project forward.

Within a few weeks the shed was finished; fresh paint, shiny hardware, it looked great. His parents joined him in the back yard to admire his work. They hadn't driven one nail, cut one stud or so much as lifted a paintbrush. Not that wouldn't have; they offered help a few times but he said he was fine. Early on they had decided, despite how much they wanted to be involved, to wait until they were asked for help but that request never came.The boy was righteously proud of his work. That he had built it himself made the accomplishment all the sweeter.

His parents were proud too. When the boy first asked if he could build a shed they didn't go out and buy him a finished shed, nor did they tell him how to build it. They made sure it would properly built, they kept him to his commitment and in the end were as pleased with him as he was with his work.

I needn't explain how the is story relates to a scout advancing towards Eagle. Sometimes parents get overly involved in their children's lives. It may be that we want to delay the inevitability that our children will grow up and live on their own, that we fear they may fail more than they do. We all made mistakes when we first had our own independence and autonomy, and it is difficult to see our children make the same mistakes.

Our boys need to stand on their own two feet; indeed this independence is required of an Eagle Scout.

Eagle Court of Honor

Ken Ryan was scoutmaster of Troop 12  for thirty years and decided to retire the year I became scoutmaster.

Ken visited a troop meeting once or twice a year and maintained his registration with the troop until he died a couple of years ago. When invited to attend our Eagle Courts of Honor Ken demurred.  I pressed him on it and he said:

" When I was a boy and got my Eagle (that would have been in the nineteen thirties) I went to a troop meeting, my scoutmaster handed be the badge and shook my hand.. " At this point Ken raised both hands as if in  benediction and concluded with; "... that was it."

I think Ken's sense of decorum and respect for the award was offended by overblown presentations that obscure its simple meaning.

The web is replete with advice and programs for elaborate Courts of Honor for Eagles, someone even wrote a book on the subject. From what I can tell there are no official rules and regulations concerning what can and can't be done at a Court of Honor. Courts of Honor can be tiresomely long, sappy and just plain awful. Well intentioned adults are usually the reason why.

Understand that I value the achievement of Eagle; I just don't see why that moment should be overloaded with pomp and circumstance. A simple, meaningful presentation is more poignant than a elaborate pageant of florid theatrics.

Associated posts at Scoutmaster
Eagle Projects