A revised Eagle Scout Service Project Workbook has been issued, which should now be used by all Scouts who are just starting their Eagle projects.  A Scout who has already started with an older version of the workbook may continue to use that workbook.  There is no need to transfer information from the older workbook to the 2023 version.

The new workbook may be identified by the “2023a” version, which is printed in the lower left corner of the first page.

There are two minor changes to the workbook.  The first one changes the Risk Management paragraph on page 5.  The “Sweet 16 of BSA Safety” is replaced with the “SAFE Checklist,” which can be found here.  The second change adds the Scout’s name to the lower right corner of all the fillable pages.  Speaking as a coach who reviews a lot of workbooks, this is a nice feature!

“Oh, the possibilities!”

Coach Hunt

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I have revised the Eagle Coach checklist that our District uses in coaching Eagle Scout candidates.  It has been updated with added material, minor procedural changes in the last two years, and a more enhanced discussion of Youth Protection requirements in our new age of Zoom communications.  If you are new to Eagle coaching, this a great tool to get you started.  And even an experienced coach can benefit from a checklist!

Some of the procedures are very specific to our District and Council, so you will want to crosscheck some of them in your own locale, e.g. Council or District approval of fundraising applications.

The checklist is located here, or in the Miscellaneous section of the Downloads tab on this website.

“Oh, the possibilities!”

Coach Hunt

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As of July 1, 2022, Citizenship in the Society is a required merit badge for Eagle Scout rank.  The new Eagle application reflects the new required merit badge, and brings the total of required merit badges to 14.  You can download the new Eagle application here, or from the Downloads tab of this website.

Citizenship in Society is a departure from typical merit badges that have a merit badge pamphlet.  Counselors received specialized training, and the merit badge is conducted in a small group session.  It is much more of a discussion and reflection experience, as opposed to knowledge-based merit badges.

Per National BSA guidelines, It may not be offered at summer camps. Eagle applications without Citizenship in Society will be rejected, so if a Scout is getting close to an 18th birthday, it is time to get this done!

The feedback that I have received from Scouts and Counselors has been positive!  You may need to contact your District Advancement Chair, or Council to obtain information merit badge sessions available.

“Oh, the possibilities!”

Coach Hunt

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A new Eagle-required merit badge has been introduced by National BSA, bringing the total required to 14 merit badges. It is called Citizenship in Society.  In an unusual move, BSA is giving relatively short notice for a new Eagle rank requirement.  The merit badge requirements are here.

You will be required to have this merit badge to earn Eagle Scout rank after June 30, 2022.

Counselors must take special training, and there will be no merit badge pamphlet (this is the first time that one will not be published.)

“Oh, the possibilities!”

Coach Hunt

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The 2021 version of The Guide to Advancement has just been released, and you can download it here.  This is the first revision in two years.

Of particular note to Eagle Scout candidates, an Eagle Board of Review may now be conducted up to two years after the Scout’s 18th birthday.  The same time limit in the past was 90 days, which could be a real challenge for Scouts leaving for college a far distance from home and their unit.

Another change is that the process for the application and approval of time extensions for Eagle Scout rank has been changed.  The Guide now has three tests to determine whether an extension is merited.  They are:

1. The member joined or rejoined (or became active again after a period of inactivity) in time to complete all requirements before turning 18.
2. Through no fault or choice of the Scout, “an unforeseen circumstance or life-changing event with severe consequences has come to exist that now precludes completion of the requirements before the deadline.”
3. “The circumstance is beyond the control of the Scout, could not have been anticipated or planned for, and was not or cannot be resolved in time to complete the requirements.”

Also, an ambiguity has been finally cleared up with the requirement of a certain number of months of service for service or leadership.  It has nothing to do with the number of weeks or days.  Instead, the time is measured from one calendar date to the same day months letter.  As an example, if a Scout begins a leadership position on April 15th, six months of service will be completed on October 15th.

There are many other changes large and small, and well worth a reading, particularly if you are coaching Eagle Scout candidates.

“Oh, the possibilities!”

Coach Hunt

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I have coached hundreds of Scouts to Eagle Scout rank, and over the years have assembled procedures and checklists to make sure I am thorough in my assistance and approval of Eagle service projects.

The District checklist that I use is now available on the Downloads tab, or here.  While the form is very specific to the requirements of our Council and District, it can certainly serve as a template for Eagle Coaches everywhere.

Learning all the best practices in helping youngsters achieve this monumental goal took me years.  Hopefully, this checklist will remove some of that burden for both experienced and new Eagle Coaches.

“Oh, the possibilities!”

Coach Hunt

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A new 2021 Eagle Scout Service Project Workbook has been published, and this workbook should be used going forward.  You can download it here.  This version and the previous 2019 version are essentially the same from a content point of view.

However, there are a number of mechanical changes since this version was constructed as a “pure PDF,” as opposed to the Adobe LiveCycle version of earlier years.  This means that fields do not expand as you enter more information, and spreadsheet features such as adding or multiplying numbers has disappeared.  And you can no longer add photographs, diagrams or plans.  You will need to supplement your workbook with exhibits, plans, etc. as well as separate word document pages for those sections in the workbook where there is not enough room to contain your information.

The benefit of the new workbook, however, is that this PDF workbook can be accessed on more platforms, and there is no longer a need for separate PC and Mac versions.

To emphasize the need to record planning hours in addition to execution hours, the Project Report section now asks the candidate to provide a subtotal of each.

There is also a warning that inserting digital signatures will cause the entire document to lock, and therefore become a document that you cannot edit.  My recommendation:  Never add digital signatures.

If you have already started your Eagle project with the older version of the workbook, please check with your District or Council Advancement Committee as to their policy on older workbooks.  They may want you transition to the new workbook, or they may accept the older version if you already have an approved project proposal.

“Oh, the possibilities!”

Coach Hunt

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You are ready to start your Eagle Scout service project.  Congratulations!  It took a lot of hard work just to get to this point.  Nevertheless, you may be a little overwhelmed in looking over a 28-page Eagle Scout service project workbook!

OK, take a deep breath and we’ll work through it one step at a time.  Trust me, you can do this.  You just have to want it strongly enough.  And I know you already have that desire, or you wouldn’t be reading my advice now!

It may seem that the purpose of the Eagle Scout service project is to provide the world with more benches, fences, memorial gardens and other worthwhile benefits for organizations whose mission is to help others.  While that is certainly a desirable result, it is not the real purpose of your service project.  The purpose of the Eagle Scout service project is for a young person to demonstrate his or her ability to lead others in the accomplishment of a worthwhile objective.  You will do this by using all the lessons of Scouting that have already led to the achievement of Life Scout rank.  In the last three to six years in Scouting, you have learned how to communicate, organize, teach and guide others.  The Eagle Scout project is the capstone course of everything that you have learned.

From the dawn of human history, young people have been eager to prove themselves ready to assume a position of adulthood.  Perhaps it was a boy killing a bear on his first hunting trip, or a young person going on a vision quest in solitude.   Adults today rarely kill bears, but the majority of them are responsible for some aspect of selling, proposing, planning, budgeting funds, leading others, executing projects, and reporting the results.  That neatly describes the Eagle Scout service project.  When you have completed an Eagle Scout Service Project, you have proven yourself worthy to all the adults in your life.

I tell all Scouts embarking on this adventure, “Nobody expects that you know how to do this.”  That’s why adults will coach you through the project.  “Coach” is the perfect word – like a sports coach who can teach and drill you, your Eagle coach cannot get out on the field on game day – you must do the work.  However, there are all sorts of people ready to help you to accomplish your daunting task.

Spend some time with a parent or guardian and read the instructions in the workbook.  This is NOT one of those cases where, “if all else fails, read the instructions.”  It is very easy to go down the wrong path or make incorrect assumptions with an Eagle project, both of which will cost you time and aggravation.  Please get off on the right foot by reading through the instructions and getting a good overview of what is required.

“Oh, the possibilities!”

Coach Hunt

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Welcome, Girls!  You now have the opportunity to earn the coveted rank of Eagle Scout in Scouts BSA!  All the requirements for Eagle Scout are exactly the same for boys and girls, so all the advice and instruction on this website can be used by all youth.

Your first assignment is to find a troop and join Scouts BSA!  Go to BeAScout.org, enter your zip code, and click the icon, Scouts BSA.  Troops in Scouts BSA are all-girls, or all-boys.  Since girl troops are just forming, you may have to call around to find the nearest troop.

And to all Eagle Scout candidates, there is new Eagle Scout project workbook and a new Eagle Scout application for 2019.  Go the Downloads page of this website to download either one.

“Oh, the possibilities!”

Coach Hunt

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I have coached many Scouts to Eagle Scout rank.  What is the number one quality that most of them exhibit in achieving their goal?  In a word, persistence.  This is the ability to keep going, no matter what.

Like our furry friend to the right, Eagle Scouts learned how to keep going…and going…and going.  The Eagle Scout Service Project is not easy, and I absolutely guarantee that an Eagle candidate will run into issues or problems.  The ability to persevere through those issues will not only help the candidate reach the finish line, it will give him or her a life-long lesson in overcoming the hardships that one invariably encounters in life.  Another word for this quality is grit.

Persistence, or grit, can be learned.  It can overcome the most challenging of handicaps.  I have coached hundreds of Scouts to Eagle, including those on the autism spectrum, and those with ADHD, Tourette’s Syndrome, learning disabilities, dyslexia and physical disabilities.  Each one of these Scouts found a way to victory, and the key was grit – the ability to simply one solve problem at a time, not get discouraged, and keep going.

Eagle projects, like most endeavors in a human life, will suffer setbacks.  I earned Eagle Scout rank when I was fifteen, and I remember vividly thinking at the time, “If I can do this, I can do anything that I put my mind to.”  It was a paradigm shift for me (that is, a new world view) and it is for many other Scouts who achieve Eagle rank.  With their Eagle service projects, most Scouts gain the confidence that they can handle life’s problems one way or the other through sheer persistence.

“Oh, the possibilities!”

Coach Hunt

(Would you like to receive an email every time there is a new post at EagleCoach?  Just send an email to CoachHunt@EagleCoach.org and request to be put on the subscriber list.  We promise your email will not be shared with anyone else.  Scouts honor!)