The Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 1 million youth, including 176,000 female participants. The BSA was founded in 1910; about 130 million Americans have participated in its programs. Served by 477,000 adult volunteers. BSA became a founding member organization of the World Organization of the Scout Movement in 1922.
Advancement and recognition in the Boy Scouts of America is a tradition dating from the inception of the Scouting movement. A fundamental purpose of advancement is the self-confidence a young man or woman acquires from his participation in Scouting. Advancement is one of the methods used in the "Aims and Methods of Scouting"– character development, citizenship training and personal fitness.
Cub Scouting is part of the Scouting program of Scouting America, formerly known as Boy Scouts of America (BSA), available to boys and girls from kindergarten through fifth grade, or 5 to 10 years of age and their families. Its membership is the largest of the five main BSA divisions. Cub Scouting is part of the worldwide Scouting movement and aims to promote character development, citizenship training, personal fitness, and leadership.
Sea Scouts is a program of the Boy Scouts of America for young men and women ages 14 through 20.
Varsity Scouting was a program of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). It was an alternative available to boys ages fourteen to eighteen until the end of 2017. It used the basic Boy Scouting program and added high adventure, sporting, and other elements that were more appealing to older youth to accomplish the aims of character development, citizenship training, and personal fitness. Varsity Scouts were organized into teams; separate chartered units from a Boy Scout troop.
The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) use uniforms and insignia to give a Scout visibility and create a level of identity within both the unit and the community. The uniform is used to promote equality while showing individual achievement. While all uniforms are similar in basic design, they do vary in color and detail to identify the different membership divisions of Cub Scouting, Scouts BSA and Venturing. Many people collect BSA insignia such as camporee and jamboree emblems, council shoulder strips and historical badges.
National Youth Leadership Training, often called NYLT, is the current youth leadership development training offered by the Boy Scouts of America. The program is conducted at the council level over six days for Scouts, Venturers, and Sea Scouts. The program has been open to all genders since 2010. This training is a part of the national organization's leadership training program and is designed to mirror themes found in Woodbadge, which is the BSA program for adult leadership training.
Kodiak is the second level leadership development course for Venturers in the Boy Scouts of America's Venturing program.
A Scout leader or Scouter generally refers to the trained adult leader of a Scout unit. The terms used vary from country to country, over time, and with the type of unit.
Scouts BSA is the flagship program and membership level of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) for boys and girls between the ages of typically 11 and 17. It provides youth training in character, citizenship, and mental personal fitness and leadership and develop the skills necessary to become successful adults.
The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) was inspired by and modeled on The Boy Scouts Association, established by Robert Baden-Powell in Britain in 1908. In the early 1900s, several youth organizations were active, and many became part of the BSA.
The Ranger Award is an award available to youth in the Venturing program of the Boy Scouts of America, to encourage and recognize proficiency in skills.
The advancement program for Scouts participating in the Scouts BSA program of the Boy Scouts of America is symbolized by the earning of seven ranks. The advancement program is often considered to be divided into two phases. The first phase from joining to First Class is designed to teach the scout Scoutcraft skills, how to participate in a group and to learn self-reliance. The Scout badge is awarded when the Scout demonstrates a rudimentary knowledge of the Scouting ideals and program. Tenderfoot, Second Class, and First Class have progressively harder requirements in the areas of Scoutcraft, physical fitness, citizenship, personal growth and Scout Spirit.
The BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Award Program is a series of awards presented by the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) for service in conservation and ecology. Created by William Temple Hornaday as the Permanent Wild Life Protection Fund Medal in 1915, the program is designed to encourage learning about natural resource conservation and the environment, teach sound stewardship of the natural resources and the environment, and recognize those who are outstanding in this field. After Hornaday's death in 1937, the program was renamed in his honor to the William T. Hornaday Awards in 1938 and officially became a BSA award program. In October 2020, after a review of Hornaday's life, the BSA changed the name of and significantly modified the program, stating that some of Hornaday's beliefs went "against the BSA’s values," and determined that "the conservation award should no longer bear his name in order to uphold our commitment against racism and discrimination."
The Quartermaster Award is the highest rank attainable in the Sea Scouting program of the Boy Scouts of America.
High Adventure Bases of the Boy Scouts of America are outdoor recreation facilities located in several locales in North America operated by the Boy Scouts of America at the organization's national level. Each facility offers wilderness programs and training that could include wilderness canoeing, wilderness backpacking trips, or sailing, and provide opportunities for Scouts to earn the 50-Miler Award. These bases are administered by the High Adventure Division of the National Council of the Boy Scouts of America.
Leadership training in the Boy Scouts of America includes training on how to administer the Scouting program, outdoor skills training for adults and youth, and leadership development courses for adults and youth. Some of these courses like Youth Protection Training are mandatory. Most of the courses are offered by the local council, while a few are hosted at the national level, currently at Philmont Training Center in New Mexico. They are available to members of all of the Boy Scout programs, including Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, Explorer Posts, and Venturing Crews.
The Scouter's Training Award is an adult recognition of the Boy Scouts of America. This award is available across several different program areas and can be earned more than once.
The Venturing Summit is the highest rank for youth in the Venturing program of the Boy Scouts of America. It requires Venturers to earn the Pathfinder Rank, participate in adventures, and demonstrate leadership, service and personal growth.
In the Boy Scouts of America, a Scout leader refers to the trained leaders of a Scout unit. Adult leaders are generally referred to as "Scouters," and the youth leaders are referred to by their position within a unit. In all Scouting units above the Cub Scout pack and units serving adolescent Scouts, leadership of the unit comprises both adult leaders (Scouters) and youth leaders (Scouts). This is a key part of the Aims and Methods of Scouting. In order to learn leadership, the youth must actually serve in leadership roles.
