Eagle BOR

[EagleWB 10]

Does anyone know specific questions asked at your boys Eagle BOR? How are they conducted in your Council? Here we have a Council Eagle BOR. It is run every month for boys in all the Districts.

[evmori 11]

I've sat on numerous Eagle Boards. We always focus on the Scout's leadership in his Troop & during his Eagle project. The questions regarding this usually come from the responses the candidate give.

 

Some of the "stock" questions we use are:

 

What was your favorite merit badge?

What merit badge did you like least?

What's going on in the world?

Why do you want to be an Eagle?

Tell us what you did to earn the ____ merit badge?

What did your service hours for rank consist of?

Are you going to college?

What are you thinking of majoring in? Why?

What are your hobbies?

 

These are just a few.

 

Ed Mori

Scoutmaster

Troop 1

1 Peter 4:10

[OldGreyEagle 5]

In the ones I do as Advancement Chair for our Disrict I am most apt to ask some of the following:

 

Which of the 12 points of the scout law would you delete

What would you replace it with

 

What was you most memorable scouting experience, good or bad?

 

Who is a hero/role model to you and why/

 

Finish this sentence, Boy Scouts would be so much better if they only did (blank)

 

What role does your faith play in your life,

 

Where do you see yourself in 10 years in 20 years, will you still be active in scouting?

 

Did your Eagle Project turn out as planned?

What would you do different in your project?

What did you learn form your project?

 

What advice would you give a new scout, just crossing over on how to best succeed in scouting?

 

Do all your friends know you are a scout?

 

If I told your friends you are an Eagle Scout, would they expect it or be shocked and amazed, and why?

 

These are some, and I think its noteworthy that all of my and Ed's questions are rather open ended with few right or wrong answers and do not touch on scouting skills (even knots !!!)

 

 

[Bob White 20]

Hi EagleWB,

Certainly the way you decsribe the process in your council is one way to do Eagle Boards. In the Council I serve they do it differently. Each unit holds it's own Boards with a representative of the Council or District Advancement Committee as one of the members.

 

Some of the common questions during Boards I have participated in include.

 

"When you consider the points of the Scout Law, which one or ones do you think describe you the best and give us some examples."

 

"When you consider the points of the Scout Law which one do you think you have grown better at or gained a greater appreciation of over the years, and give some examples."

 

"The Scout Motto is 'Be Prepared', what has scouting helped yo to be prepared for?" Give us some examples.

 

"The merit badge program is designed to expose you to activities that could interest you in a career or hobby. Which merit badge topics have done this for you? give us an example."

 

"What activities in scouting do you remember themost and why?"

 

"You've had opportunities to make plans, set goals, and follow through on them. What goals do you have set beyond Eagle Scout, both in and out of scouting?"

 

"Who do you look up to as a hero or mentor and why?"

 

"What has scouting taught you about leading or following others?"

 

"If someone were to ask you about joining scouts, what you tell them was the best reason to join your troop? What would you warn them about?"

 

"Are there any scouting skills you feel you could not instruct others in? Do you think people will expect an Eagle Scout to be a competent camper and instructor? What are things you could do to improve your scouting skills?"

 

"Over the years you have performed many service hours. What project(s) have had the biggest impact on you and why?"

 

"If you could give the adults any piece of advice to make the troop better, what would you tell them?"

 

"If you could share one piece of advice with new scouts to make their scouting experience better, what would you tell them."

 

Questions that encourage the scout to look inside himself and converse with you will give you far more information than questions that can be answered in two words or less.

 

Hope this helps,

Bob White

[mk9750 11]

Open ended questions that have no right or wrong answer are certainly the most valuable in any BOR. One question that our District Advancement Chairman always asks is "Is it more imortant to meet your goals or maintain your integrity?" During the wrap up, he always explains that this was the one question that for him DOES have a right and a wrong answer. I am pleased to say all of the Scouts in our Troop get it right.

 

When I have served, I have always concentrated on Troop leadership and what the Scout has given to the younger guys coming up in the Troop. I also tend to ask alot of questions about Citizenship.

 

OGE mentioned a great question I think I am going to start using in all the BORs I do: "Do your friends know you are a Scout?" What a great question! Again, no right or wrong answer, but it certainly gives a terrific indication about the boy, one way or the other. It has always amazed me how often my son has come home from this or that saying "You know what I just found out? Jim Smith just made Eagle. I didn't even know he was a Scout!" (Jim Smith is a fictitious name, BTW). It seems that most of our guys make it pretty well know they are Scouting. And noe of them, as far as I can tell, are "nerd" types.

 

Mark

[eagle90 125]

As usual, what great responses. As SM, I cannot serve on the Eagle BOR, but I have copied the above and will pass it along to our Advancement Chairman for his use. Our council gives us an option of having a council wide BOR or an in-house BOR.

[red feather 10]

Excellent questions.

 

Only a couple of others come to mind and they may be variations of some of those listed:

 

Of the merit badges you have earned which one(s) did you gain the most from... which ones do you wish you had taken... and which one(s) do you feel you really did not earn? The answers are sometimes suprising.

 

As a scout and a possible Eagle Scout, how have your responsibilites to the community and the people in your communtiy changed from your being a scout? The younger scouts answers sometimes have to led out of them but the older scouts give pretty interesting answers

 

yis

 

 

[jbroganjr 10]

Our district chair once or twice a year lets all the SM at RT know a compliation of answers to one question that is asked

What would you change about scouting

The number one answer is (drum roll please) "less adult involvement" which is a common thought on this forum.

Maybe this is a thought that should be shared in more districts?