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Hey guys,

 

I'm hoping I can get some help for my son. Since I myself am an immigrant, I don't have much experience. The problem is my son is currently working on his Eagle Book. The problem is he doesn't have much awards or honors. So I made him put in the awards from Boy Scouts such as, 300 mile backpacker, 60 nights, and various awards from camps. Do the board focus alot on this? I'm thinking this can hurt him at his Eagle Board of Review. Any experience scouters out there who can help me out? Thank you. (He does have some awards but compared to the other scouts from out troop, he doesn't have that much)

Also another quesition,for letters of reccomendations, do coaches count as educators?(This message has been edited by ChingKao)

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Hi ChingKao! Welcome to the forums.

 

You must be very proud of your son. Please pass along a "Scout Salute" for us, eh? We will all look forward to welcoming him to the distinguished rank of Eagle Scout.

 

I think you can relax and let your son proceed according to his best judgment. There's no need to "pad" a resume, and in some cases padding a resume can be taken as a lack of character. Mostly, the Board will use the document as a conversation starter, to talk about leadership and values learned in Scouting that a boy has used in other places.

 

I always tell boys to put on their resume all of the activities, teams, and awards that they're proud of, whether inside or outside of Scouting. Participation as a regular team member, too, not just as a leader or captain. I think it would be fine if your son included special BSA awards he was proud of (ex. 300 miles backpacking), but not every camp patch.

 

As for whether a coach should be used for the educator reference, that's a good question for your son to ask his Scoutmaster. I think most Boards would be just fine with it, but it can vary a bit in different places. More importantly, taking the initiative to ask questions of leaders and adults is a good skill for your son to have down before he goes off to college!

 

Be sure to let us know the results after your son's Board of Review!

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I have counseled over 20 scouts on the Eagle process. Not one of them brought an "Eagle Book" to the Board of Review.

 

I would not be too worried about it. There is no requirement for an "Eagle Book". The Board of Review cannot base its decision on such a book.

 

I do like the idea as it would make a good conversation starter but it should only be optional.

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I currently serve the district in conducting BOR's for Eagle Candidates, that question has not been asked.

 

To me the awards are not that important, his experience in scouting, his personal goals and leadership qualitys.

 

If would like to actually talke PM me a phone number

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Yah, NealonWheels, I reckon he's talkin' about a combination of things, eh?

 

Da Eagle project workbook for the project, and Eagle Application Requirement 6 (on the old form, anyway!):

 

"Attach to this application a statement of your ambitions and life purpose and a listing of positions held in your religious institution, school, camp, community, or other organizations during which you demonstrated leadership skills. Include honors and awards received during this service."

 

I think ChingKao is concerned about the length of this list. It ain't optional, but it also isn't somethin' to fret over.

 

B

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Ahh, I bet your right Beavah. When I read "Eagle Book" I was imagining an "Eagle Scrapbook" that many scouts make for their Court of Honors.

 

And your right. ChingKao should not worry too much about the length - just make it accurate.

 

With the application, project workbook, letters of reference, ambitions and life purpose, etc. I can see why ChingKao called it a "book".

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Hello ChingKao.

 

I was an Eagle advisor for our troop. All that your son has to do is to complete all of the eagle requirements as indicated below. The Eagle Scout Leadership Service Project Workbook is a BSA publication (no. 18-927) is used to document his eagle project (namely the details and all approvals). Once he completes all requirements through #5 below, he then requests a Scoutmaster Conference and then a Board of Review (BOR) where the District Advancement Chair or his/her rep will participate. The BOR questions will vary depends on the members. Sometimes, they would ask about his project, his scouting experience, his religious belief, his advice on how to better the processes, procedures, experiences for other scouts, what are his future plans, his aspirations, any lessons-learned from scouting/life/schoo, etc. It could be anything other than a re-test of the knowledge that he has learned and earned. Of course, some BOR members will not adhere to this and ask the scout the "technical" questions. The one thing that will cause the BOR to reject a scout outright is when the scout declares himself as an aetheist. You can read a lot of debate on this subject on this Forum (and folks ... this is not a thread on that so relax!).

 

My oldest got his Eagle recently. He was not decorated with all of these awards and achievements such as the ones you mentioned. These awards that you mentioned are simply awards that allow a scout to go after to enhance his scouting experience and sometimes can be used to satisfy a requirement (such as the requirements in Camping merit badge where one of its requirements requires him to have camped a total of at least 20 days and 20 nights; -Hiked up a mountain, gaining at least 1,000 vertical feet or - Backpack, snowshoe, or cross-country ski for at least 4 miles or -Take a bike trip of at least 15 miles or at least four hours or ... etc.)! He can list them on his application (item #6 as Beavah pointed). If he listed his award(s), then they'll more than likely ask him about his experience in terms of how he enjoyed it, what he learned from it, how he can improve on it, etc. I agree with others, it's not a "make it or break it" item that you son should worry about if he did not earn a lot of or any at all.

 

For our troop, a coach can be considered as an educator for reference purpose.

 

Best wishes and luck to your son and congratulations!

 

1Hour

 

ps:

 

Here are the Eagle requirements and as you can see there are no requirements for the 50-miler, mile swim, etc.:

 

1- Be active in your troop and patrol for at least 6 months as a Life Scout.

2- Demonstrate Scout spirit by living the Scout Oath (Promise) and Scout Law in your everyday life. List the names of individuals who know you personally and would be willing to provide a recommendation on your behalf, including parents/guardians, religious, educational, and employer references.

3- Earn a total of 21 merit badges (10 more than you already have), including the following:

First Aid

Citizenship in the Community

Citizenship in the Nation

Citizenship in the World

Communications

Personal Fitness

Emergency Preparedness OR Lifesaving

Environmental Science

Personal Management

Swimming OR Hiking OR Cycling

Camping, and

Family Life*

4- While a Life Scout, serve actively for a period of 6 months in one or more of the following positions of responsibility:

 

Boy 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, or

instructor.

 

Varsity Scout team:

Captain,

cocaptain,

program manager,

squad leader,

team secretary,

Order of the Arrow team representative,

librarian,

quartermaster,

chaplain aide,

historian,*

instructor,or

den chief.

 

 

Venturing crew / Sea Scout ship:

President,

vice president,

secretary,

treasurer,

quartermaster,

historian,

guide,

den chief*,

boatswain,

boatswain's mate,

yeoman,

purser, or

storekeeper

*Den Chief is not listed as an eligible position for Venturers in the 2008 edition of Boy Scout Requirements, but is listed on the current Eagle Scout Application. We have confirmed with the staff of the BSA National Director of Boy Scout Advancement that this position is acceptable for advancement to Eagle.

 

 

 

5- While a Life Scout, plan, develop, and give leadership to others in a service project helpful to any religious institution, school, or community. (The project should benefit an organization other than Boy Scouting.) The project idea must be approved by the organization benefiting from the effort, your Scoutmaster and troop committee and the council or district before you start. You must use the Eagle Scout Leadership Service Project Workbook, BSA publication No. 18-927, in meeting this requirement.

 

6- Take part in a Scoutmaster conference.

 

7- Successfully complete an Eagle Scout board of review.(This message has been edited by OneHour)

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