My son is going for Eagle Scout

[SCP]

He just turned 11 and bridged over to Boy Scouts. He wants to have his Eagle by 14 so he can enjoy high school years without being ridiculed by peers.  I'm proud of him and support him 100% because I quit that poo after one pinewood derby. This looks like one hell of a time commitment for not only him, but for me and his mom.  Anybody else have a son go through the Eagle Scout process?

[thefuzz]

I am one.

Tell him not to force/rush it, the older he gets the more cool things he will get to do.

If he is an athlete/cool in school already no one will pick on him, and it will most likely be prized even more so than his college degree when he is older.

Being an Eagle gets you places in the workforce that many have never heard about, I have had it brought up at quite a few job interviews.

[SCP]

Just now, thefuzz said:

I am one.

Tell him not to force/rush it, the older he gets the more cool things he will get to do.

If he is an athlete/cool in school already no one will pick on him, and it will most likely be prized even more so than his college degree when he is older.

Being an Eagle gets you places in the workforce that many have never heard about, I have had it brought up at quite a few job interviews.

He is in the "cool" crowd now and is an athlete. Right now most of his bro's are in Scouts as well.  Achieving Eagle is quite the accomplishment. Didn't realize that it's the only non-military pin that can be worn on a military uniform.  

[thefuzz]

4 minutes ago, SCP said:

He is in the "cool" crowd now and is an athlete. Right now most of his bro's are in Scouts as well.  Achieving Eagle is quite the accomplishment. Didn't realize that it's the only non-military pin that can be worn on a military uniform.  

If he is with the "cool" guys already, then do what my Dad did.

Get together with the other Dads and see how committed they are to pushing their boys to get their Eagle, if they are receptive and will push them along, make sure you do the same.

In my case, there were 5 of us who started cub scouts together, and got our Eagle together...at the same ceremony, very odd thing to see.  4 of us played football and baseball together, we all had 4 wheelers and camped out together, even when we weren't camping with the Boy Scouts.  We are still lifelong friends, and any of them would take a bullet for me.

Our Dad's pushed the hell out of us, minimum 2 weekends per month in the woods, and 2 full weeks per year.  We loved it, and it has helped all of us to grow up to have great careers and families.

[SCP]

Good idea.

[PandaPancake]

Not to discourage but I saw this:

http://www.troop97.net/t97faq2.htm

Quote

Question #2—Is T97 an 'advancement mill' or 'Eagle factory'?

Answer—Not at all. But our Scouts advance regularly, and earn Eagle Scout at 12 times the national BSA average.

Why do we have so much advancement, and such a high percentage earning Eagle? If you know teenagers, you know you can't 'push' them to do anything they don't want to do (at least not for long). And while we have a very small number of 'fast burners' who earn Eagle in under 3 years, the average T97 Eagle takes almost 5 years to earn the award. And some will use the full 7 years. The secret is providing fun and rewarding activities. Boys remain active in T97 about 3 times as long as the average troop. They stay because they are having fun. Our average (median) Eagle has camped 79 nights, including 4.8 week-long summer camps and 2.7 one- to two-week high adventure treks. When Scouts are active for that long, advancement happens; it doesn't have to be forced.

 

[Pejorative Miscreant]

7 hours ago, SCP said:

He just turned 11 and bridged over to Boy Scouts. He wants to have his Eagle by 14 so he can enjoy high school years without being ridiculed by peers.  I'm proud of him and support him 100% because I quit that poo after one pinewood derby. This looks like one hell of a time commitment for not only him, but for me and his mom.  Anybody else have a son go through the Eagle Scout process?

I bailed on boy scouts and my kids are not interested.  I think eagle scout/boy scouts get branded and it sucks.  Its a big commitment and there's a lot cool things that you can takeaway from it.  Good for you, your wife and your son.

[Lumps]

Weird I can relate and I'm 30. I am an Eagle Scout and I got made fun of big time in school for it. That was in the 90s/00s though I guess kids haven't gotten any better.

 

I don't really bring it up much and it doesn't give me any special privileges but it was fun to do and it gives you know-how and work ethic like no other program at that age.

 

 

[KendrickPanther]

If you guys are up for the work involved, great. I quit scouts because it interfered with various sports practices. High School athletics generally practice or play every week night and many weekends. Maintaining BS attendance would be a challenge.

[Anybodyhome]

I joined Scouts when I was about 12, made Eagle when I was almost 16- during the late 60's. I made Order of the Arrow before Eagle, which I thought was much cooler than Eagle, to be honest.

I was one of those tweener kids, too. Playing varsity hoops, American Legion baseball, Scouts, getting high in the parking lot and protesting the Viet Nam War. Needless to say, I learned how to prioritize at a young age... lol. 

Anyway, I never saw the Eagle thing as a major accomplishment and I definitely didn't gain any advantage from it in my future. Hell, I was in the Navy within a couple years of making Eagle and they sure didn't give a poo about it. Does it teach self-discipline? Yes. Does it require commitment? Absolutely. 

But in the grand scheme of things, I made Eagle, was recruited by a major ACC hoops school (at the time) in the 70's, joined the Navy and made it a 20-year career, earned 3 undergrad degrees and did a lot of other cool stuff in my life. What's opened the most doors, made many opportunities available, and is the foundation of my professional successes since? My Navy career. And I have to think that the commitment and desire to excel I learned while a Scout probably contributed to my success in the Navy.  

[SCP]

17 hours ago, KendrickPanther said:

If you guys are up for the work involved, great. I quit scouts because it interfered with various sports practices. High School athletics generally practice or play every week night and many weekends. Maintaining BS attendance would be a challenge.

That's my concern. The leadership already gave the "Scouts or sports" talking point.

[Anybodyhome]

1 hour ago, SCP said:

That's my concern. The leadership already gave the "Scouts or sports" talking point.

I don't have kids, but I'd be concerned that one program demands so much time that my kid wouldn't be able to enjoy so much more of his/her teenage years doing different things.

When I played varsity hoops in SoCal we practiced 2x weekly outside of the hour everyday and game time was Tuesday and Friday nights. Now, I guess, if your kid is playing an HS sport, aside from school that's all they have time for and that sucks because there's so much more out there.  

[Hotsauce]

On February 25, 2016 at 9:49 AM, SCP said:

He just turned 11 and bridged over to Boy Scouts. He wants to have his Eagle by 14 so he can enjoy high school years without being ridiculed by peers.  I'm proud of him and support him 100% because I quit that poo after one pinewood derby. This looks like one hell of a time commitment for not only him, but for me and his mom.  Anybody else have a son go through the Eagle Scout process?

That's pretty awesome. My cousin made Eagle Scout before high school too. Smart move to do it early. 

My parents wouldn't let me join the scouts for some unknown reason. I was always jelly of the kids that were in it. My son is 2, and I am def planning on enrolling him, if he is interested. 

[pstall]

17 hours ago, SCP said:

That's my concern. The leadership already gave the "Scouts or sports" talking point.

My two teen girls have lots going on but i don't like the in or out stuff. Variety is the spice of life.

My youngest, 14, just started golf. She gets better the old man will play again but i try to let her make her choices but follow thru.

I coached middle school baseball and would nevet tell kids to cut themselves off from other chances to learn or have fun.