Re: Eagle Advancement Information (Summary)
(no name) ((no email))
Mon, 14 Sep 1998 19:12:49 +0000
Hi Scouters!
There seems to be a whole lot of confusion on the issue of the Boy
Scout Advancement program and what's the deadline for this or that
or the other...
ALL of this information is based upon fact sheets provided to me by
professionals whom have attended the recent All Hands Meeting in
Nashville, along with the information from the USSSP's Scouting
Center (which are identical, by the way; Paul Wolf has done a
terrific job with those pages and the content) and the
CURRENT editions (the 1997 versions) of the BSA's Boy Scout
Requirements Book and the Advancement Procedures booklet.
Rather than to divide this posting into "Boy Scouts", "Venturers",
and "Explorers", I've done the division by date:
----------------------
August 1, 1998:
Venturing, BSA is launched. By this date, all Exploring units will
have been catagorized in one of two "groupings". Those units that
have been chartered as anything except outdoor, seamanship,
religious education, high adventure, arts and hobbies, or sports
and those related have become "Learning for Life/Explorers" and
have been taken OUT of the BSA's programming.
Also by this date, those other units remaining become "Venturing
Crews" instead of "Explorer Posts" with the exception of Sea
Exploring Ships. They become Sea Scout Ships.
--------------------------------
August/September 1998:
The National Office and local Councils announce to volunteers and
members the changes to the Boy Scout advancement program along with
information on how current Venturers and former and present
Explorers may complete requirements toward the Eagle Scout Boy
Scout rank.
The changes for Eagle is a removal of some of the leadership
positions from Boy Scout units to Varsity Scout Teams and a change
in the required Eagle Scout list. Safety has been replaced by
Personal Fitness; Cycling and Hiking become required options merit
badges to earn toward Eagle. Sports and Safety has been moved
from the required to the non-required merit badge list.
Current Boy Scouts and Varsity Scouts will transition between the
current requirements and the new ones. The transition period will
begin 1 January 1999 and end April 1, 1999. An information period
to alert Scouts and Scouters about the changes start 1 October 1998
and end at the end of that year.
Former Explorers that have been moved to Learning for
Life/Exploring will be able to continue to work toward Eagle using
the CURRENT requirements until 31 December 1999.
Former Explorers that have been moved to Venturing will be able to
continue to work toward Eagle using the CURRENT requirements until
1 April 1999; afterwards, they must work toward Eagle using the NEW
requirements.
----------------------
October 1, 1998:
The "information period" begins. This is a 90-day period geared to
inform the membership about the change in requirements. While
Scouts CANNOT use the new requirements yet, they can use the
EXISTING ones listed in the 1998 Boy Scout Requirements booklet to
complete their paths toward Eagle. As Scouters, we should be
encouraging those on "the fences" to get going (again) toward
Eagle.
---------------------------
November 1, 1998:
The new requirements for Bronze, Gold and Silver Awards and the
Ranger Award *should be released* to local Councils, and Venturers
may start working toward those awards immediately upon release.
The Venturer advancement plan runs along three tracks; Venturers
may choose to advance along all three tracks or one or two of them
as they choose:
TRACK ONE: for all Venturers less Sea Scout: This consists of
earning the Bronze Award, the Gold Award and the Silver Award,
meeting requirements listed in the Venturing Manual and other
publications. There will be five versions of the Bronze
Award, corresponding to each of the five major groups of Venturers.
A Venturer may earn ALL FIVE of the Bronze Awards: (Arts & Hobbies,
Youth Ministries, Outdoor, Sports, Sea Scouting).
TRACK TWO: for Sea Scouts: This consists of earning the Ordinary,
Able and Quartermaster Awards, meeting requirements listed in the
Sea Scout Manual and other publications.
TRACK THREE: for all Venturers: This consists of working along
either of the two tracks, and earning the Ranger Award after
completing or while working toward Silver or Quartermaster. The
Ranger Award is geared for Outdoor/"High" Adventure Venturers, but
according to the materials I have here, and those I've read online,
ANY Venturer may earn the Ranger Award.
(there's also the fourth track, the subject of this post....Male
Venturers may earn Eagle by meeting the requirements listed in the
current Boy Scout Handbook and Boy Scout Requirements book.)
Note that it will be possible for male Venturers to earn Eagle,
Silver and Ranger Awards as well as the Quartermaster Award before
they turn 21 years of age; and for female Venturers to earn Silver,
Ranger and Quartermaster before they turn 21 years of age.
-----------------------
January 1, 1999:
The transition period starts. Scouts, Venturers and Explorers may
continue to advance toward Eagle Scout using the current
requirements from the 1998 Boy Scout Requirements booklet; OR they
may choose to use the new requirements which will be released in
the 1999 Boy Scout Requirments book and later in the new version of
the Boy Scout Handbook. This is an individual
Scout/Venturer/Learning for Life-Explorer's decision on which set
of requirements that he will use to complete Eagle by.
The new Eagle Scout Applications will be released during the month
of January and new versions of the Life to Eagle Booklet required
as part of the requirements for Eagle will also be released by or
around this month.
Female and Male Learning for Life/Explorers working toward the old
GOLD (Growth Opportunities for Leadership Development) Award must
transition to the new requirements (which has not been released
presently) by this date.
Male Learning for Life/Explorers working toward Eagle (or Star or
Life Scout) can continue to work toward those ranks until the end
of 1999 using the old 1998 requirements; or they can register as a
Boy Scout, Varsity Scout, Venturer or Sea Scout and meet the Eagle
Scout requirements as listed in the next paragraph.
Male Venturers working toward Eagle (or Star or Life Scout) as a
former Explorer as well as any male Venturer that have earned First
Class rank as a Boy Scout or Varsity Scout can continue onward to
Star, Life and Eagle Scout up until his 18th birthday (these were
the previous rules used for male Explorers). Male Venturers
must meet the requirements as listed in the new Boy Scout Handbook
and the Boy Scout Requirements Book (the 1999 versions).
Leadership in the Crew or Ship will be considered on the same basis
as leadership within the Troop or Team would. There are key
leadership positions acceptable for Venturers, which will be
published. The "Scoutmaster conferences" as required for each
advancement will be conducted by the Crew Advisor or the Ship's
Skipper; and boards of review for Star and Life Scout will be
conducted by the Ship or Crew's Committtee. Naturally, the way the
Eagle Boards of Review are conducted are a matter of Council
procedure and in line with the current BSA Advancement Procedures
booklet.
--------------------
April 1, 1999:
The transition is complete, and only the new versions of the Eagle
Scout application and Life to Eagle booklets will be honored; and
ALL Scouts must use the new requirements toward Eagle. Local
Councils will be reminded that if a Scout has completed all
requirements for Eagle using the present (1998) requirements, he
may participate in a Board of Review and be reviewed using
those existing requirements after 1 April, 1999.
---------------------
May 30, 1999:
Summer camps will be reminded through National Camping Schools and
other resources of the changes to the Boy Scout and Venturing
advancement programs and the changes to key merit badges required
for Eagle (Cycling, Hiking, Environmental Science)
---------------------------
December 31, 1999:
The Eagle advancement trail ends for male Learning for
Life/Explorers working toward Eagle (or Star or Life Scout). After
this date, Learning for Life/Explorers can only continue to work
toward Star, Life or Eagle by being a registered member of the BSA
(as a member of a Boy Scout Troop, Varsity Scout Team, Venturer
Crew or Sea Scout Ship).
--------------------
--------------------
I hope that this information is of use to those Scouters that are
looking to find how to translate a variety of information posted
into a summarized form. I want to thank those that have posted
information dealing with the Boy Scout advancement program, for
it's helped me in sifting...and thanks to Paul Wolf whom along with
Bruce Coburn, have done much of the "leg work" for us all by
confirming what they have read here, with what they've received
from their local Council and from the BSA's National Boy
Scout/Advancement Division.
If there's any updates to this information, PLEASE POST THEM so
that I can also keep abreast too!!
Settummanque!
(no sig due to lenght of posting)
Settummanque!
Terry Howerton Sakima Group, Inc. SCOUTER Magazine Kansas City |
