Reason for scoutmaster not to sign a bluecard to begin..

[John-in-KC]

Northbell,

 

Uhhhhh.... NO!

 

Allow me to quote from Advancement Committee Policies and Procedures #33088, p25:

 

"The Scoutmaster must be in charge of advancement in the troop. It is necessary that the Scoutmaster understand the purpose of the advancement program and the importance it has in the development of the Scouts in the troop. The troop's program must provide advancement opportunities. By participating in the troop program the Scout will meet requirements for rank advancement."

 

Sidebar text box p 26:

 

"The steps to follow in the merit badge program are outlined in the current Boy Scout Requirements. This book lists the requirements a scout meets to earn each of the the more than 100 merit badges that are available."

 

From Requirements #33215 as posted on the Scouting.org website:

http://www.scouting.org/BoyScouts/AdvancementandAwards/MeritBadges.aspx

"Pick a Subject. Talk to your Scoutmaster about your interests. Read the requirements of the merit badges you think might interest you. Pick one to earn. Your Scoutmaster will give you the name of a person from a list of counselors. These counselors have special knowledge in their merit badge subjects and are interested in helping you.

 

"Call the Counselor. Get a signed merit badge application from your Scoutmaster. Get in touch with the merit badge counselor and tell him or her that you want to earn the merit badge. The counselor may ask to meet you to explain what is expected of you and to start helping you meet the requirements.

 

So as you can see, even delegating the responsibility to sign out a merit badge application is a dilution of the Scoutmaster's responsibility, let alone pushing the matter down to the SPL.

 

As I said earlier, the MB program supports both the Advancement and Adult Association methods. We have tools to broaden the horizons of our youth beyond the leaders in our Troops. It's called District functions, such as Roundtable, Camporee, and Klondike, where Scouters have a chance to visit with each other and discover strengths and weaknesses.