Thunderbird

Yes, I agree. If the merit badge college (virtual or otherwise) is not following the Guide to Advancement (for example: by having a single class with 900+ Scouts and only 1 MBC), then that should be reported to the council. What I am saying is that the Scout should not be punished at the end of the process. If the Scout intentionally did not follow the BSAs procedure or policies, then that would be a different situation, but the issue here does not appear to be with the Scout -- it appears to be with the council having virtual merit badge classes that have way too many Scouts.

If a council is sponsoring / running the virtual merit badge colleges, then that council is responsible for making sure that those merit badge counselors (MBCs) are properly registered in accordance with the Guide to Advancement. Any vetting of a MBC that is done, should be done at the beginning of the process -- not at the end (7.0.0.3 The Scout, the Blue Card, and the Unit Leader). At this point, however, the Scout has already completed the merit badge. It would be difficult to say no to the Scout now, assuming that the Scout has acted in good faith (I haven't seen anything in the posts so far indicating otherwise):

I am not sure what you mean by "install pre-ordered supplies". Depending on the answer, it might be considered "routine labor", which would not normally qualify as an Eagle service project. Routine labor is described in the Eagle Scout service project workbook and also in the Guide to Advancement 9.0.2.11 Routine Labor. Outside of that, I would recommend The Eagle Scout Service Project sections 9.0.2.0 - 9.0.2.16, which describes the process in detail.

You wouldn't even need to publish the results - just make claims about what the results are.

Me, too. We joined for the character building. Camping and other activities keep the youth interested, but if it becomes just a camping club, then we can do that much cheaper and with no "red tape" on our own.

Because the girls want to earn Eagle. All of the girls I know who are in troops are focused on earning Eagle, and most of them want to earn it ASAP.

Is that different from what is already posted on the BSA's COVID-19 FAQs page? https://www.scouting.org/coronavirus/covid-19-faq/

I think the answer is a little more complicated, and a Scout / leader / merit badge counselor should read all of section 4.2.3.6 before making a decision on whether to double-count an activity or not. For example: So this is why a kayaking merit badge counselor can make a Scout re-do the BSA swim test, even though the Scout might have already qualified as a swimmer the year before or even have earned the swimming merit badge. The paragraph above could also apply to the campout requirements for Second Class and First Class 1a. vs. the camping merit badge. The rank requirements for SC/FC 1a. were rewritten in 2016 in such a way that there might be times when a campout can count towards the camping merit badge, but not count as a campout for SC/FC 1a. For example, if a Scout goes to summer camp and stays in a tent that was pitched by the camp, then it could be counted towards the camping MB, but not be a campout for SC/FC 1a.. The intent seems to have changed a little bit, where SC/FC 1a. seems to be about the Scout gaining some experience putting up / taking down a tent or other shelter, but the camping MB seems to allow for some more flexibility by sleeping "under the sky" or in a tent pitched by the summer camp. So double-counting service hours / service projects for multiple BSA rank requirements, merit badges, or awards can be allowed, but seems to be discouraged. This is a good reminder, IMO. And Scouts / leaders / MBCs also have to be aware that some requirements are written in such a way that they cannot be double-counted. For example: So the 3 conservation service hours done as part of the World Conservation Award cannot be double-counted for rank. So the answer is yes, sometimes. But it depends on safety, the intent behind the requirements, and how the requirements are written.

I use Chrome, and the Organization Security Manager was working for me as of a couple days ago. Have you tried opening your browser in incognito mode? Or clearing your cache and cookies? Edited to add: I just tried it again, and it still seems to be working for me.

If you are using Zoom, there are some things that the host can do to reduce the potential of Zoombombing: Use Zoom's waiting rooms and only let people you know into the Zoom meeting Ask Scouts to use their real first name or nickname so that the host can recognize them Use meeting passwords Remove participants, if needed https://blog.zoom.us/wordpress/2020/04/08/zoom-product-updates-new-security-toolbar-icon-for-hosts-meeting-id-hidden/

You could also try asking why the Scout did not attend. Maybe the Scout had a conflicting event (Are some dates/weekends better than others?). Or perhaps the Scout was not interested in the particular activities (Are there other activities that the Scout would be interested in? Has the Scout communicated this to his/her PL?).

@fred8033 The Program Features are available online at: https://troopleader.scouting.org/program-features/ There might be some minor differences, but it's basically the same as the Program Features books. I wish more of the merit badge pamphlets were available as pdfs or Kindle.

BSA COVID-19 FAQ BSA Digital Safety and Online Scouting Activities

The BSA's Guide to Advancement outlines the merit badge process in part 7 - The Merit Badge Program. The discussion with the Scoutmaster is a part of the process, but it is not an approval - just an indication that the discussion took place. Please see section 7.0.0.3 The Scout, the Blue Card, and the Unit Leader. Section 7.0.3.0 outlines the Recommended Merit Badge Process. The BSA has put out guidance on how to work on rank advancements and merit badges in its COVID-19 FAQs. The Scoutmaster can sign the blue card in Scoutbook where it says: Initial Unit Leader Signature. Merit badges are for learning about life skills, sports, crafts, science, trades, business, and future careers. I think setting a goal of earning all merit badges is fine - as long as it's the Scout's goal.

Does this Scout have an approved time extension to continue working towards Eagle Scout rank? Or has he already earned Eagle Scout rank and has turned 18? The BSA requires all all Venturing, Exploring, and Sea Scouting participants 18 years old but not yet 21 years old to complete an adult application, criminal background check disclosure/authorization form, and Youth Protection Training. I believe they require the same of 18-year-olds in troops who have approved time extensions to continue working towards the Eagle Scout rank (although the registration position name and code might be different: Unit Participant vs. Venturing Participant). If the Scout already earned Eagle Scout rank, then I believe he has to register as an Assistant Scoutmaster or Unit College Scouter Reserve with the troop. But I would highly recommend that you talk to your council Registrar about this to make sure that you are following the BSA's YPT and registration rules. For YPT purposes, he cannot tent with a 16 or 17-year-old, because he is legally an adult. Going by the Guide to Safe Scouting, parents do not share tents with their children in older Scout programs (Scouts BSA, Venturing, Sea Scouts) because they are youth-led programs. You might be able to get an exception to this rule from your Scout Executive and Philmont, but I would ask and get it approved well before your trip.

It looks to me like Scouts can choose either push-ups or pull-ups. Push-up should be no problem if they don't have the equipment to do pull-ups. Personal Fitness MB at usscouts.org

Some advice from the National Park Service:

The closest I could find was from this Bryan on Scouting article: Read this list of do’s and don’ts before your next unit fundraiser And the Fiscal Policies and Procedures for BSA Units FAQs (revised November 2019) just says: Neither one really answers the question "why", they both just say "no".

And if there are some new crossovers who recently joined a troop, a partial is fine. They can visit a place listed as a NHL or NRHP after the stay at home restrictions are lifted. But now is a perfect time to work on the other requirements.

I also agree. There are lots of places listed as National Historic Landmarks or on the National Register of Historic Places. As long as the Scout visited one of them after joining Boy Scouts / Scouts BSA and could tell me what they learned and found interesting about it, I would count it. If the Scout needs to refresh his or her memory by looking it up on the Internet, I wouldn't see a problem with that.

@SteveMM We tried Zoom a couple days ago. We were not cut off after 40 minutes, so I think Zoom might have lifted their 40 minute time limitation for free accounts. Not completely sure, though, as I was not the host. Webex is another option that might be worth looking into.

While a merit badge counselor can determine that so much time has passed since any effort took place that the Scout must use the new requirements, this does not necessarily mean that the Scout has to start over from scratch. Any work already done by the Scout that meets the new requirements would count. As @T2Eagle pointed out, the 13 week tracking requirement for Personal Management is virtually identical to the old version - they have mostly just re-ordered the requirements. The tracking part of 2.a. was moved to 2.b.3., and a new 2.b.4. was added. New requirement 2.b.4 looks like a worthwhile discussion to me, but it could be a problem if the Scout no longer has the information that was used for the Scout's budget and income / expenses tracking. If I were the MBC, I would not force a Scout to switch to the new requirements in this particular situation, but that's JMO. And as other have pointed out, the Scout could also choose to find a new MBC who will allow him to continue using the old requirements.

Which merit badge? And how long ago did he last work on the merit badge? Because the Guide to Advancement also says: "There is no time limit between starting and completing a badge, although a counselor may determine so much time has passed since any effort took place that the new requirements must be used." And he wouldn't necessarily have to redo everything. Nights of camping since joining a troop, for example, would still count towards the Camping merit badge.

All I am saying is that if a Scout forgot to bring his or her handbook to the BOR, the board cannot reject the Scout just for that reason. That seems to be what the GTA says: "A Scout must not be rejected at a board of review for reasons unrelated to advancement requirements. For example, the Scout must not be rejected for not bringing a Scouts BSA Handbook or being tardy for a board of review, but the reason for the tardiness may certainly be a topic for discussion." It seems that it would be appropriate to go ahead and hold the BOR when the signoffs (whether in the Scout's handbook or in Scoutbook or perhaps the Scout has an older version of the handbook and is using the printed sign off sheets "Scouts BSA Rank Requirements" printed from this BSA page ) have already been verified prior to the BOR. On the other hand, it might be appropriate to postpone the BOR if the Scout forgot the handbook, and the signoffs have not already been verified.

A board of review cannot reject a Scout for not having his or her handbook at the BOR, so I don't know if it's correct to say that the handbook is the official record or not. However, we always sign the Scout's handbook (if the Scout brings it to the BOR). The members of the board of review are supposed to sign a unit Advancement Report as part of the process. Scoutbook and Internet Advancement 2.0 both use the same database, so it doesn't matter which one of them units use. If units use third-party software like Troopmaster, then I would double-check IA 2.0 after uploading the advancement import file to make sure that everything got uploaded correctly. Guide to Advancement: Electronic Advancement Reporting I view the handbook and Scoutbook / IA 2.0 as backups to each other. So if a Scout loses the handbook or if it gets damaged beyond usability, then Scoutbook / IA 2.0 can be the backup. I know some people who take pictures of the signature pages in the handbook from time to time. And electronic records can have their own issues with data being lost or corrupted, so the handbook can be used to correct the electronic record, if needed. As far as I know, the pocket certificates for rank are not required for anything, but are nice to have. However, if the handbook got lost / damaged and the electronic record in SB / IA was missing for some reason, then you could probably use the pocket certificate to get the date that the rank was earned. The blue card is the nationally recognized merit badge record. If the date doesn't match between the blue card and Scoutbook / IA 2.0, units can correct the date to match. The merit badge pocket certificate is nice to have, but not required.