Eagle Scout Rank Patch wear after age 18

[FScouter]

Ahh, good point.

Another point: Why do some folks get offended by the existence of the "guides"?

[OldGreyEagle]

Rules, Guidelines, Policies, Laws, Requrirements are all easy when you agree with them, not so much when you don't

[Marykelly]

Abosolutly we allow our Eagle scouts to wear the eagle badge they earned until 21. we have had many boys finish their E/P just prior to turning 18. There Eagle Court of Honor was held after they turned 18, with this old rule that would mean they never even get to wear it . thats absurd. They are still in high school. The younger scouts look up to them. They can not become a scoutmaster until the age of 21, so the BSA policy makes no sense, they obviously dont think they are ADULT enough to be an ADULT leader (21)or to form a Troop!! Its like alot of absurd rules, 18 year olds can go in the army and kill or be killed but they cant rent a car until theyre 21. I would like to see this old BSA policy changed. This is an old rule that years ago was fine because alot of B/S earned there E/B younger. But now adays with all that school offers and working, and all the many activities todays youth are involed in, more and more scouts are earning it later. We need to keep up with the times. Let these YOUNG adults proudly wear the badge they worked so hard for. The tiny knot that only scouting people would notice is ok for later.

[HICO_Eagle]

1. No

2. Yes, 1984.

 

My COH was held after my 18th birthday so I never got to wear my badge. I nonetheless wear the knot and occasionally the belt buckle and/or neckerchief (the latter usually only on special occasions). I would like to point out that you can wear the belt buckle and other accoutrements out of uniform as well as in uniform.

 

Our scouts all know what the knot means. I explain the knots to adults and new scouts when they visit. The Eagle and AOL knots are the only ones I put on my uniform shirt -- my Scouts, my troop committee, everyone I deal with in Scouting can determine my quality as a Scouter by my actions rather than what's on my uniform.(This message has been edited by HICO_Eagle)

[HICO_Eagle]

One additional point (mainly since I mistakenly double posted): 18 year olds are only NOT considered adults because society has recently gotten warped into a nanny state. I keep harping on this with my Scouts who think they are somehow limited in responsibility or capability because they're "not adults" -- boys of 18, 16, even 13 were frequently the primary breadwinners or held positions of authority in times past.

 

An 18 year old is an adult, he needs to act like an adult and be treated like an adult. He can vote, he can get a driver's license without parental permission, etc. They can also be an ASM -- I don't see what the issue is about having secondary criteria of 21 for full SM, we have different age criteria required for being a member of Congress, Vice-President and President.(This message has been edited by HICO_Eagle)

[Eagle92]

HICO,

 

The 21 YO rule for SMs and committee members actually goes back to the federal charter. I was reading about this in the 3rd ed. SM HB and it gave the exact section on the leader guidelines.

 

Now grant you those guidelines have been amended, i.e. women can now serve on committees and as SMs, ASM, Webelos leaders etc., but the age policy hasn't been amended.

[fleetfootedfox]

> 1. Let us know if you would be in favor of an 18-21 Year old Adult Leader being allowed to wear his Eagle Badge (and only the Eagle Badge).

 

No. Nobody is telling a boy he has to wait until just before his 18th birthday to finish his eagle. If he registers as an adult after that instead of joining a Venturing crew, then he should follow the same uniform rules as the other adults.

 

> 2. Are you an Eagle Scout.

 

No. I was not in Scouting as a youth.

 

"18 year olds are only NOT considered adults because society has recently gotten warped into a nanny state."

 

B-P refers to a Rover Scout as an "older boy". Boys had to be at least 17 to join a Rover crew. I think that B-P would have said that different people mature at different rates and that some boys have not grown into manhood by the time they are 18.

 

I think it also depends upon what your definition of "adult" is. If by "adult" you mean "fully grown", then it would be true to say that adults don't get growth spurts. However, according to Merck Manuals Online Medical Library, "At age 18, almost 2.54 cm of growth remains for boys and slightly less for girls, for whom growth is 99% complete." Notice that this medical reference refers to 18 year olds as "boys" and "girls".

[Eagle732]

No

 

Yes, 1972

[scoutldr]

What the Merck manual says is irrelevant. The BSA has defined "adult" as age 18 or over for the Boy Scout program. And adult leaders have a prescribed uniform which does not include youth rank badges. NOw if the BSA changed the rule, I would be more than happy to sew the Eagle patch (that I never got to wear as an Explorer) on my left pocket. But until that day, I will wear the knot and expect all other "adults" to suck it up and do the same. I gotta wonder what other "absurd" BSA policies we encourage our Scouts to ignore if they don't agree with them....is that the example we want to provide?

[hendrickms24]

I earned my Eagle at 18 years plus a couple of days. I wore my Eagle Rank patch once at my ECOH and thats it. You still earned Eagle even if you can't wear the patch. Heck, If the 18 year old wants to be treated like an adult, then he needs to act like and follow BSA rules for adults plain and simple.

 

Mark M.

[Chattahoochee Chief]

1. No

 

I recieved my Eagle at the age of 18, and even though I waited until then, it meant so much more to me than a badge. I proudly wear my knot on all of my tan uniforms and then my badge on my venturing uniform.

 

2. Yes, 2008

[CA_Scouter]

1. Yes. ( blasphemy, heresey, hang him from the yardarm, off with yer head )

 

I have one scout who earned his Eagle just before 18 and is now an ASM until he goes away to college in August. I don't have the heart to tell his mom, who waited patiently all these years, that the patch has to come off.

 

2. Yes, 1975.

 

[eagle77]

1. No

 

I earned my eagle just before my 18th and was moved to the adult position of ASM.

 

2. yes 1977

[Eagle69]

1. No

 

2. 1969 - at least two years before my 18th bday

[fleetfootedfox]

scoutldr, the discussion was not about encouraging Scouts to ignore the rules. I think it is telling that you referred to them as "Scouts" when in fact by 18 they are supposedly now Scouters and not Scouts, which makes me question if at some level you do not consider them to be adults. Anyway, if I expressed the opinion that the speed limit on a particular road is too slow it doesn't follow that I am encouraging people not to observe the posted speed limit. It's a free country. People can have whatever opinions they want, right or wrong.

 

I pointed out the medical fact of 18 year olds not being fully grown because somebody else said that it is only recent society that has said an 18 year old is not an adult. I pointed out the medical fact, and I pointed out the fact that B-P created the Rovering program for this age group and referred to them as "older boys". I thought B-P's opinion might carry a little more weight than mine, but maybe not with the BSA. Regardless of that, I don't see how anybody could say that medical facts could be irrelevant to a discussion of how we should define who is an adult and who is not. You are free to ignore the medical facts if you choose, but that doesn't mean they are irrelevant to the discussion.

 

The BSA rule is what we have to follow, but that doesn't mean that it is written in stone and will never change. Presumably people with decision-making powers sometimes monitor these forums and might be influenced by the opinions expressed here.

 

Personally, I don't think allowing an 18-21 year old to wear an eagle patch would in anyway change his status as a registered adult leader for a boy scout troop. 18-21 year olds are also allowed to vote in OA elections and for OA are considered youth. So, there is already this gray area.

 

However, I also stated my opinion that if they are registered as an adult leader they should probably follow whatever rules the other adults follow. If the BSA wants to make an exception though, that's fine with me too.