Eagle Scout project venue

[wbbear]

What do you think about an Eagle project being done at Family Night during Summer Camp? The project that a Scout brought to the Committee is to hold an informational booth and he wants to do it at summer camp.

Is this an appropriate venue for an Eagle project when the only folks that will encounter the booth will be scouts, scouters and their parents?

[jhawk]

Information on what? It can't benefit scouting.
My main concern is--where is the leadership and sufficient depth to be more than just a simple, everyday service project?

[wagionvigil]

A project cannot be for the council,troop or district. Read the requirements in the Eagle Project Workbook.

[gwd-scouter]

This from the Eagle Scout Leadership Service Project Workbook:

While a Life Scout, plan, develop, and give leadership to
others in a service project helpful to your religious institution, school, or your community. (The project should benefit an organization other than the BSA.)

Note it says, SHOULD, benefit an organization other than the BSA, not that it COULDN'T. Hurray for the English language!

But then it states: Work involving council property or other BSA activity is not permitted.

So, on the one hand a project CAN actually benefit the BSA, but on the other it CANNOT be done on Council property or during a BSA activity.

In any case, from your description of the project, I don't see how the Scout would be providing leadership.

[FrankJ]

Should in this case is pretty close to shall. I think it would be a rare case that actually would get the required approvals.

[gwd-scouter]

FrankJ - you're right. I can't myself imagine a project that would actually test the wording difference between SHOULD NOT and COULD NOT. But as so many others on these forums are so quick to point out wording can be subject to appeal.

For myself, if I have a Life Scout starting to look for ideas for an Eagle Project, I recommend it be to the benefit of our community in some way.

That said, I've had one Scout this past year whose project did not in any way benefit our community, it benefitted poor people in Honduras, but he showed extraordinary leadership and it was approved both before he began and after. I know, nothing to do with the topic, but I did want to point out that sometimes the projects proposed don't fit in a nice neat little - build a handicap ramp at the retirement home - type box.

[Hubert]

My project is also one of a kind. I wanted to venture away from the building type. They are all good, and have great outcomes, but, they are done a lot. They are all too common.

My project is collecting money donations and smoke detector donations to provide all 186 students and staff at my school with one.

I like it, and its having a huge impact on my community.

[Mrw]

What kind of information is he wanting to pass out at his booth?

My experience with family night at our camp suggests that he will have few people come up and see what he has. The parents are being dragged around the camp by excited boys who want to show them EVERYTHING.

I would be encouraging the boy to expand that project a bit. A booth at the town "home days" festival or at school open houses would not be much more effort, but would reach many more people.

[Lynda J]

Here again. What type of information. If it is information related to Boy Scouting I doubt if you would get it approved. I know in our District it wouldn't fly.

[wbbear]

The project would not benefit scouting, but raise awareness for Breast Cancer. The information booth would be set up and run by scouts during Family night at summer camp. The committee has suggested that he chose another venue such as a health fair at the local mall, etc. so that he would have a better chance of getting the word out to more than just scouters, scouts and their parents.

[Mrw]

I would agree that he should find a better venue for passing out information on breast cancer or any other health topic.

Family night at scout camp would not reach very many people at all.

[FrankJ]

Not to minimize the importance of breast cancer, but adolescent boys (scouts for the most part) would not be a good target audience.

I talk talk to some one on the district advancement committee. They after all would have the final say.

Do you have an organization it benefits? (another signature on the project application)

[Hubert]

This is a great topic to raise awareness about, but others have stated, scouts is not the place.

I liked the idea of maybe at the "city days" or maybe, even he made one. Make a new day, organize a day where he goes to the mall or some other place, and does this. He can organize for other places to come in and set up, possibly make a "Health Day" or "Awareness Day". It would be a great way to show leadership. He could invite The Red Cross and a couple others to it and they can help.