personal finance or family life were required when I was going for Eagle...Personal Fitness was my FIRST merit badge !! Earned as a 2nd Class at Summer Camp as well as basketry...the BIG one back in the day was Conservation of Natural Resources !! You literally had to write a novel on Conservation !! Not counting the conservation projects...This was a BIG Summer Camp merit badge...it was "sold out" faster than the Rifle / Shotgun Merit badge !!! Bless you , Stan for your wealth of honest simple information !! I wish you were MY Roundtable Commissioner !!! hahahahaha !! I was once a Beaver !!!
Got my Eagle just over a month ago. I was fortunate enough to get Personal Fitness, Personal Management, and Family Life 3 month requirements during the summer between my Sophomore and Junior years of high school. I age out in a few months, so as my Troop’s newest Eagle, I’ve been giving them all the mistakes I’ve made regarding merit badges but more importantly the project. I’ve even been driving my friends who are currently Life Scouts to finish their Eagle.
Keep up the good work. When you say “age out” that just means you're leaving the youth part and becoming an adult leader. You can still give back to the scouts even after turning 18. Eagle Scout mentoring and coaching should continue even if you are not part of the youth running the Troop. “Paying it forward” has good benefits for everyone. YIS⚜
I’m so nervous for my Eagle Scout Board of Review! 🥶 My Eagle Scout Application and Project Workbook have been approved by my council, but I have a knack for being too verbose, when they’ll expect me to be quick with my answers at the BOR… 🫠 If the Eagle Scout me from the future is reading this comment, let me just say congratulations, buddy! 👍 You were a nervous wreck in the past, but it paid off
@The_Paradigm - Don’t worry you will be just fine. Take your time and think about your answers to all questions. Remember to include the Scout Oath & Law in your responses. You got this, just breathe. YIS⚜
@@ScouterStan how did you do? My son started not too long ago and is currently a wolf. Any helpful hints to help guide him through his scout journey? I personally came from a high poverty area and i wanted to be in the scouts so bad when I was a kid! It’s been a blessing to raise my son in a much different area with the financial means to do so. From extreme poverty to an engineer has been a quest in itself. God bless you all!
I love how you highlight a Scouters role as a mentor to Scouts. As a former Scoutmaster and current ASM I find this the most important thing we can do.
Your comment means a lot to me. It's always great to connect with fellow Scouters who understand the importance of mentoring. Together, we can make a positive impact on the lives of these young Scouts. YIS⚜
I am of firm opinion that the first 3 Eagle Scout merit badges a scout should earn are first aid, swimming and personal fitness. There are so many overlaps between those badges and Tenderfoot, Second Class and First Class requirements. It makes their advancement go so much smoother. In fact, we're doing a troop swimming MB night before summer camp this year trying to make sure all of our scout have this badge before we go to camp this summer. My scout made life at 12.5 y/o and is on track to make Eagle by his 3rd summer camp (He started his project last month and it should be finished by mid-May). One of the smartest things he did in his scouting career was earn Personal Fitness merit badge his first summer as a scout. What this allowed him to do was not only knock off the requirements for the badge, but also the physical fitness requirements for Tenderfoot, second class and first class at the same time. (The other was taking pioneering at his first summer camp which knocked out a ton more.)
Hey Scouter Stan! I know that there are no dumb questions, but I'm an inquisitive idiot😆! How soon can the Scout begin to earn the Eagle Required Badges? Should I encourage my soon-to-be Scout (he's a Webelos now and will be an AOL next year) to start working on them as soon as he ages into Scouting or do they have to wait to earn them once they become a Life Scout? How soon should they start to do the "Thinking about/Planning" phase for their Eagle Project? Thanks for continuing to put out great content and taking the time to answer!
A scout can technically start a merit badge as soon as they join a troop. Of course, the first step in obtaining a merit badge is meeting with the Scoutmaster to start the blue card process. Merit badges can be earned before Scout rank. Everything leading up to First Class is all about scout skills. Star, Life, and Eagle it's all about merit badges and leadership. One of the big mistakes a lot of Life scouts make is focusing on the Eagle Project and not on who is receiving it. Time should be better spent developing a good relationship with the recipient of a future project. The scout and the recipient can then define a project that is really needed. Sometimes the recipient will even fund the project. Thank you so much for the questions. If you have any more let me know. Also thank you for your continued support of our channel it is really appreciated. YIS⚜
Family Life and Personal Management wee not required when I went through...Personal Fitness WAS..It was my FIRST merit badge earned in my FIRST BS Summer Camp...The BIG one back in the day was Conservation of Natural Resources MB...TONS of writing !! The rest were all "common sense " MBs...Waaaay back in the day Personal Management was REQUIRED , then was dropped in the 1930s due to lack of any money for the kids to even earn or save !! Great video !
Interesting discussion. People often ask if I think the Eagle Scout rank in as meaningful today or if it has been "watered down" since I earned mine in 1973. I share my opinion unequivocally that I beleive the program asks and expects more of the Scout today than in my day. For example; the detail, planning, organization, leadership , and documentation expectation of the Eagle Project is much higher than what was expected of me. And particularly relevant to this discussion, in my day there were only 11 of 21 MB required for Eagle. There was no Personal Management or Family Life MB. I do not recall an extended physical training program for Personal Fitness which I remember as having specific physical activity qualifications based on age and size. Further when I read the MB requirements of today I question whether I had the maturity and intellectual development as a 15-16 year old to meet some of the current MB requirements. Granted I was perhaps the most unsophisticated adolescent to ever don a neckerchief but still I am convicted the expectation level in the BSA advancement program : at least as written, is higher today than 50 years ago.
I totally agree. It is hard to become an Eagle Scout. Recently on an Eagle Board of Review, I was amazed at the maturity level of the Scout. It is a true credit to the troop leadership that create such great Eagle Scouts in these trying times. YIS⚜
Luckily, despite the trials and tribulations on my road to Eagle, I had two mentors come to me at Star, saying that I had to focus on the PT, PM, and FL merit badges as they were the hardest due to the time constraint requirements. So I absolute agree there with Stan. Now my "make or break" merit badges were swimming/life saving... I already started the swimming merit badge and so on my last BS summer camp before turning 18, I had to get my LS merit badge. I remember it not being easy, but it was done.
I remember dreams being crushed in my first troop 8005 for these very reasons. Being on Scott AFB you'd think we'd never have that issue. Would of made eagle they were a very inspiring troop being military brats and all. It was just bad timing unfortunately. But I moved away at first class, and my next troop just spun thier wheels never getting any further. My third gen scout gets to start where i did quite literally in north Tampa as a Webelos slightly ahead of my bear. Even better armed to get eagle and who knows AO fingers crossed due to your insight. Unlike the other video eagle won't be the minimum requirements around here she's already a go getter. I'm not the best scout in old age but it's in my mental tape and a big part of who i am regardless. It's refreshing to relearn alot of what I use to live and breathe for her benefit. Just happy times changed and mine has a chance to get the same values and grit BSA gave me so many years ago. Would be pretty cool if at some point you came to the west coast to her meeting you have so much insight.
Thank you so kindly for your insight. The primary goal of all Scouts is First Class. Everything after that is up to the Scout. The troop environment and experience can have a great deal of influence on mentoring Eagle Scouts. Scout leaders need to be aware of timing issues regarding their requirements. Keep up the good work and remember that more Eagle Scouts are helped by non-Eagle Scout leaders. YIS⚜
My son just completed these three merit badges. His troop basically requires you work these three merit badges at the same time. These badges are time consuming. Took him over 5 months to complete everything. My son is a 12 year Star Scout with 33 merit badges complete. He has completed 12 of the 14 eagle required badges. His goal is to get his Eagle rank.
Got my Eagle in 87. I received by eagle when I was 17, 2 months before I turned 18. My parents pushed me hard to finish it. Family life did not exist, cooking was not a eagle required badge when I was in scouts. Personal management was on of my last badges to get.
I never thought of Family Life as a supremely difficult badge. But it does require an extended period of time consistently doing chores. It also requires some kind of family "project." But it's really not especially tough. Personal Fitness and Personal Management are the classic ones that delay scouts. I know from personal experience.
As a Scouts BSA Roundtable Commissioner, every few years I have a break-out for all Trail to Eagle Scouts (scouts who have earned First Class) and their parents. Our district advancement chair runs it and this is some of the information that he goes over.
lol, when I just got my Scout rank, I had already completed those 3 eagle required badges. Although, I already have those merit badges, I will be retaking them to refresh my memory.
Who really keeps track of that stuff to maintain that the scout is doing what is required? I was in BSofA as a youth, ended up getting Life, and also ended up quitting on my own accord right after my Eagle project was completed (I can't quite remember what else I needed to do, think I needed just a couple of merit badges, but was certainly doable at the time). My parents were disappointed, but this was many years ago, I've been doing just fine without that Eagle rank. But I do very much remember parents just lying about things (such as mile times for the personal fitness badge), so that their son could earn it. Some badges take time, which is exactly what this video is pointing out, but there's also zero real accountability (in my experience). Just start these ASAP and have your parents check off all the boxes; that seems to be commonplace. I feel like it's almost too easy to earn said badges if given enough time, you might as well start now.
Thank you so much for adding to our discussion. You brought up some points that weren't made in the video. In Scouts BSA merit badge counselors are the only ones who ensure that the requirements have been completed, not the parents of the scout. The merit badge counselor is accountable and trained to make sure that the requirements are completed as required. Often this adds additional time to the process as they are the only ones who can work with the scout in getting the requirements met. As the advancement chair in my district, I was amazed that the average age of scouts working on Eagle Scout projects was 17 years old. That leaves very little time to get a lot of things done, especially when most Eagle projects take an average of 220 days. Something to additionally consider when working with older scouts heading towards their goal of becoming an Eagle Scout. YIS⚜
Personal Fitness was my son's 1st Merit Badge. He plays travel sports and works out constantly with his team so he found it easy. He crossed over Feb 2021 and is currently a Star Scout with 17 Merit Badges (4 Eagle) with 4 Eagles in various stages of completion. He turns 13 in May 2023 so he has time. He set his goal to Eagle before he starts School Baseball and Showcase Travel because he knows that will be very time consuming.
It sounds like you and your son have a plan. Don’t forget that Scouting teaches leadership along the way. Continue with your plan but be flexible. Scouting should not be a type of “scavenger hunt”. Keep the fun and adventure at its core on your path to Eagle. Do high-adventure camping along the way. Get into the OA and experience all that Scouting has to offer. This makes better leaders of tomorrow's America. You have a short time to build the foundation of a lifetime. YIS⚜
@@ScouterStan it's his plan I am just support staff. We told him he had time, but he knows several former Scouts who never made it passed Life once the fumes hit (perfumes and gas fumes) and set his goals . He is hoping to get elected to the OA soon. He has been an Assistant Patrol Leader, currently is an Instructor and has plans to run for Patrol Leader in our next election in a few weeks then next will be ASPL then SPL. He said once he gets Eagle he will stay active but won't have to stress over it. He will just have fun. Do merit badges that interest him, high adventure, hit some of the mountain man programs at summer camps etc. He also mentioned JASM once he is a little older. I got lucky with this kid. His head is screwed on straight. He has plans, works hard. He maintains a A average, plays travel baseball, on the YMCA Swim Team and is busting his can at Scouts. Proud papa..
I think that once a scout earns First Class, that is when they are best served by seriously discussing a plan for earning Eagle Scout. Do they want to do it in the minimum amount of time for their circumstances? When is it best for them to do certain requirements? That sort of thing.
@markbrown2640 - I'm a big believer in Eagle Scout Mentors. Just last week I was asked to give a class on mentoring for adults. Whenever the Scout is ready to work on becoming an Eagle Scout it's time for a Mentor. All too often Life Scouts tend to wait till the last minute, and that's not good. The sooner the better to get some of the Eagle Scout Slayer Merit Badges done. *_Eagle is not the EXIT from Scouting!..._* I encourage Eagle Scouts to stay active in their troop as an example and Mentor some of their Life Scout peers. Thank you so much for the question. YIS⚜
Encourage scouts to do all three at the same time, using the one calendar. Also encourage them to do these three early on and not wait until they are Life. Are they on a sport team or take pe in school? Great place to start.
That's unfortunate but there are many difficult merit badges out there. I know of a Life Scout who quit over finishing the last requirement of the Cooking merit badge. It made his parents quite angry with him. The required merit badges that have timed requirements cannot be rewritten to accommodate the procrastination of a scout. Physical requirements can be altered to accommodate physical limitations or disabilities. Having a good mentor toward achieving the goal of Eagle Scout is important. They act as an advocate for the Life Scout and can look into issues before they become a problem. Thank you so much for adding to our discussion. YIS⚜
I don't think it's a matter of avoiding these merit badges. It's more of a question of timing. These merit badges have long duration requirements and if you are not able to complete them before you run out of time it can be unfortunate. Thank you for the question. YIS⚜
Personal Fitness is a tough merit badge. The best thing to do is to find Life Scouts and help them do that merit badge now before it's too late. Thumbs up 👍 for volunteering to be a mentor. YIS⚜
@@ScouterStan Serving as Assistant Cubmaster of my son's pack. Will move up to the troop with him as Assistant Scoutmaster. Will definitely encourage that to be an early merit badge to get it done with before the distractions of high school (which is what happened to me). Love the videos. Keep them coming.
Mr. Stan I looked through your channel I couldn’t find anything on your Eagle project. If your alright with doing so please can I be informed of it because I find it rather interesting learning about other’s who did great things
My Eagle project happened back in the early 80s. I was living north of Chicago at the time in the Northeast Illinois Council. North Chicago Forest Preserve had an area that needed clearing so that they could build the world's largest mousetrap. Turning the woods into a prairie environment for the Massasauga Rattlesnake that would feed on the rats that infested the surrounding woods and attacked Chicago regularly. For the longest time, you could see it on Google Earth. Unfortunately, the forest has been developed and the mouse trap is gone. Very few Eagle Projects last. Even my son's Eagle Project was last seen burning on the local TV news station. His project repurposed a swimming dock into a fishing dock at a local private camp. Five years later they had a forest fire that burned it. Not all projects are the same in scope but they do have one thing in common. Someone that wants the project that qualifies. That is far more important than anything else. Sometimes they even have the plans and money for the project they just need the labor. YIS⚜
