Re: Last on young Eagles
Amick Robert (amick@SPOT.COLORADO.EDU)
Wed, 11 Sep 1996 13:20:13 -0600
The common fallacy seems to be that if you can delay a Scout from getting
Eagle, he will, of necessity, stay in the program longer. This
regrettably is absolutely the wrong approach. Each Scout should be
encouraged to advance at a pace that they are comfortable with; some will
race and some will plod, and some will do both; we have had Scouts race to
the life rank and then stay there for up to several years, because they
had other interests, and then, when it became apparent that the age 18
deadline was looming, get back into "gear" and finish their Eagle. There
are Eagle Scout candidates who are "13 going on 25" and conversely there
are some who are "17 going on 11." But if they have the enthusiasm and
desire to do what is needed, then they should be given every opportunity
and encouragement available to achieve their goal; not be diverted from
their quest.
One thing that really helps is to be sure the younger Scouts in particular
get lots of opportunities to sample many different experiences while they
are advancing. These might include attending a National OA conference, or
a "mini-adventure" backpack or canoe trip, work on summer camp staff as a
counselor in training (CIT), attend National or World Scout Jamborees, go
to a National High Adventure base such as Philmont or Florida Sea Base, or
when they join Explorers, attend a National Explorer Leadership
Conference. This tends to provide
them with the "rounding" and experiential development that tend to
contribute to the character development of "the right stuff" to which
Eagle Scouts aspire. It might be too, that if they are doing all of these
things, they will not concentrate solely on advancement, so a "natural"
delay in their progress toward Eagle will occur, but on their terms and by
their decision.
The "yes, but..." comment, followed by alternatives important more
to the leader than the Scout, (and often used with the best of intentions)
may have subtle, but devastating results which seriously impede the
progress of the Scout (who will seldom challenge the presentation).
It is so important to let the Scout speak freely and formulate his
thoughts and decisions. Lots of open-ended questions such as
"what do you think about this..." or "what is really important to you.."
or "what would you change in the troop if you were in charge.." will get
you some very frank, and surprisingly candid, insightful and productive
answers which if the leaders are really listening and paying attention can
be invaluable in meeting the needs of the Scouts.
Ranks are important only if they are important to the
Scout. Scoutmasters and Advancement committee members, with the best of
intentions, or mom and dad, may be "pushing" the Scout and he really
doesn't want to be pushed; so you may wind up with an unhappy Scout and
the end result may be that he will not get his Eagle just to spite the
leaders and/or mom and dad. I have seen this happen and it is really
unfortunate.
I have known Scouts who made a conscious decision not to get their Eagle,
even though they were virtual "shoo-ins" had nearly all the work done, and
would have "sailed through" a board of review. At the time, one even
said, I know I may regret this decision in five or ten years, but it is my
decision, and I have thought about it for a long time.." What could
anyone say or do?" It was the Scout's educated decision, and to this day,
he has not expressed reservations or regret; and if anyone ever
exemplified the principles of the Scout Oath and Law in their daily life,
this young man certainly does! He is well on his way to being a
physician.
One Scout's parents told him he could not get a driver's
license until he got his Eagle. Guess what? He never got his Eagle,
waited until he was 18, and then got his driver's license because the
parent's could no longer restrict his ability to do so. I think that had
a different approach been used, the Scout might actually have been
encouraged to get his Eagle.
Some times, if Scout leaders and/or mom and dad just bow out, and say
to their Scout, "if this is important to you, we will help and encourage
you all we can to get it, but you have to want it, and be willing to do
the work and participation that it requires." Then it is his decision.
A lot of times, you can also point out to Scouts the "elephant-eating"analogy
that although the work for merit badges and leadership looks overwhelming,
it all happens "one bite at a time," and before you know it, all that's
left are a few "morsels" to tidy up. Older Scouts, and especially Eagles
can be especially helpful in conveying this message. They also can be a
powerful driving force in encouraging younger Scouts to get their Eagle,
where parents and Scoutmaster's staff may not have the same credibility.
If the older Scout is one who is respected and admired by the younger
Scouts, and they usually are, often a few personal words of encouragement
to the younger Scouts are more than sufficient. Many Eagles have told us
that their decision to get Eagle was based primarily on the night that
they attended an Eagle Court of Honor for one of the older Scouts they
really admired, and their resolve to get Eagle was "sparked" then and
there. We often have a new Scout present the Eagle Badge to the mother of
the Eagle Scout at a court of honor. This is quite an honor when the
Eagle personally invites the young Scout to do this, and helps "spark" an
interest in being there himself one day.
If you want to keep an Eagle Scout in the program, see that he has
meaningful and exciting things to do, such as join a venture unit or an
Explorer Post, or hold an important junior leadership position such as
JASM, Troop Guide, etc.; these folks are gold
mines of talent and are highly admired by younger Scouts; don't lose them
under any circumstances. Respect them and treat them as colleagues, and
for the superb resources that they are; and make sure that they have
continuing opportunities for development such as the activities mentioned
above (e.g., high adventure, jamborees, responsibile leadership
positions).
Our Explorers do their own high adventure activities, but
because we are associated with a Troop, they also hold leadership
positions, wear the dark green explorer shirts, and in the words of one
parent, "...are ten feet tall to my son..."
Explorers are also a major incentive for younger Scouts to stay active
because in their own words, "I can hardly wait to turn 14 and become an
Explorer...they really do some neat stuff.." The Explorers occasionally
invite younger Scouts to do some of their less challenging activities, and
this also gives them a taste of what the Post is about, so they even feel
more excited and enthusiastic about joining when they become eligible.
Some years ago, an outstanding Eagle Scout came back to a troop
and wanted to be a part of it, but because he was never really given
anything meaningful to do, and because he had more than a "full plate"
with all his athletics and school involvement, stopped coming. The adult
leaders never really picked up on this in time to see their mistake, and
by the time they tried to fix it, it was too late. What a waste of
talent.
Bob Amick, Explorer Advisor, High Adventure Explorer Post 72, Boulder, CO
Terry Howerton Sakima Group, Inc. SCOUTER Magazine Kansas City |
