Eagle Rank Requirements - A Reminder

As a troop, we have quite a few Life Scouts who are working on their Eagle Rank.  Now would be a good time to remind everyone what it takes to earn the Rank of Eagle.

Lets review the requirements:
*** these are the task requirements, nothing to do with the recent time requirements announced by Scouts BSA***

• Be active in your troop for at least six months as a Life Scout. If you have interpreted this requirement as being a Life Scout for a couple of years, and being active for the first 6 months of your Life Scout tenure and then never to be seen again, you should schedule a scoutmaster discussion to see if you have actually satisfied this requirement.

• As a Life Scout, demonstrate Scout spirit by living the Scout Oath and Scout Law. Tell how you have done your duty to God and how you have lived the Scout Oath and Scout Law in your everyday life, and how your understanding of the Scout Oath and Scout Law will guide your life in the future. List on your Eagle Scout Rank Application the names of individuals who know you personally and would be willing to provide a recommendation on your behalf, including parents/guardians, religious (if not affiliated with an organized religion, then the parent or guardian provides this reference), educational, employer (if employed), and two other references. This requirement is pretty straight forward.

• Earn a total of 21 merit badges (10 more than required for the Life rank), including these 13 merit badges: (a) First Aid, (b) Citizenship in the Community, (c) Citizenship in the Nation, (d) Citizenship in the World, (e) Communication, (f) Cooking, (g) Personal Fitness, (h) Emergency Preparedness OR Lifesaving, (i) Environmental Science OR Sustainability, (j) Personal Management, (k) Swimming OR Hiking OR Cycling, (l) Camping, and (m) Family Life.

     You must choose only one of the merit badges listed in           categories h, i, and k.  Any additional merit badge(s)               earned in those categories may be counted as one of             your eight optional merit badges used to make your total         of 21. This means you can earn for example, Swimming         and Hiking merit badges, but only one of those count as         an Eagle required merit badge. This is because                       Swimming OR Hiking OR Cycling are all part of                       requirement k and only one counts as eagle required.             The others, if you earn those as well, can count as part of       your optional merit badges or eagle palms.

     While a Life Scout, serve actively in your troop for six             months in one or more of the following positions of                 responsibility:

• Scout troop. Patrol leader, assistant senior patrol leader, senior patrol leader, troop guide, Order of the Arrow troop representative, den chief, scribe, librarian, historian, quartermaster, junior assistant Scoutmaster, chaplain aide, instructor, webmaster, or outdoor ethics guide.
• Venturing crew. President, vice president, secretary, treasurer, den chief, historian, guide, quartermaster, chaplain aide, or outdoor ethics guide.
• Sea Scout ship. Boatswain, boatswain's mate, purser, yeoman, storekeeper, crew leader, media specialist, specialist, den chief, or chaplain aide.
• Lone Scout. Leadership responsibility in your school, religious organization, club, or elsewhere in your community.

I'm not at all sure you can mix and match leadership positions between the BSA groups. For example, if all your time and merit badges were gained in a troop setting, I'm not sure you can be a crew secretary to pick up the final leadership requirement.  You would be wise to have a discussion with your scoutmaster to ensure you meet this requirement.

  5. While a Life Scout, plan, develop, and give leadership to others in a service project helpful to any religious institution, any school, or your community. (The project must benefit an organization other than Boy Scouts of America.) A project proposal must be approved by the organization benefiting from the effort, your unit leader and unit committee, and the council or district before you start. You must use the Eagle Scout Service Project Workbook, BSA publication No. 512-927, in meeting this requirement. (To learn more about the Eagle Scout service project, see the Guide to Advancement, topics 9.0.2.0 through 9.0.2.16.)

   6. While a Life Scout, participate in a Scoutmaster conference

   7. Successfully complete your board of review for the Eagle          Scout rank

It can be tricky to make sure you have successfully met all the Eagle Rank requirements.  You do not have to go it alone.  You have received the Troop 376 Eagle Rank Process which explains practical steps to completion of your trail to Eagle.  You should line up an Eagle mentor - also explained in your process documentation. All your adult support system is rooting for your success. But you still have to do the work and cutting corners is not part of the process. Your job is to hit all the dance steps.  It is good to ensure you meet the letter AND the spirit of the rank requirements.

Good luck to each of you.  We are on your side, rooting for your success.