Girls in the BSA: Going Beyond the Headlines

When the Boy Scouts of America fully opened all its programs to young women on Feb. 1, 2019, most observers were elated, some were concerned, and many were simply confused. In an attempt to clear up some of the confusion, Alumni Alive! has waded into the weeds to find clear answers to some common questions.

What’s the difference between Boy Scouting and Scouts BSA? Scouts BSA is the new name for the Boy Scout program, Scouting’s iconic program for youths ages 11 through 17. Dropping ‘boy’ from the name made it clear that girls are welcome in the program.

So the Boy Scouts of America is now called Scouts BSA? No. Despite what you may have read in some news reports, the name of the organization remains the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Scouts BSA (formerly Boy Scouting) is a program offered by the BSA, along with Cub Scouting, Venturing, Sea Scouts, Exploring, STEM Scouts, and Learning for Life.

Is it correct to say that the BSA is now co-ed? Not exactly. Although girls are now welcome in all BSA programs, only Venturing, Sea Scouts, Exploring, STEM Scouts, and Learning for Life are truly co-ed. Cub Scouting and Scouts BSA use a unique hybrid model that offers families convenience while preserving the value of single-sex programming. In this model, boys and girls can learn and grow at the pace that is unique to their development.

How does this model work in Cub Scouting? Chartered organizations (the religious, civic, and other groups that provide Scouting in their local communities) may choose to serve only boys, only girls, or both boys and girls. If they choose to serve both boys and girls, they form separate boy dens and girl dens within the same pack. (So Pack 123 might have one Wolf den for boys and one Wolf den for girls.) While dens meet separately, pack meetings and outings involve all pack members.

How does this model work in Scouts BSA? Boys and girls join separate gender-specific troops. However, a chartered organization may choose to have both a boy troop and a girl troop that share a common troop committee but have different Scoutmasters; these are called linked troops and can share

the same troop number. Linked troops could hold their opening and closing ceremonies together, depending on space and the desire of the chartered organization and unit leadership, but the other components of the Scout meeting run separately. Joint courts of honor and outings are permissible, and council and district events may involve both boy troops and girl troops if they follow the Guide to Safe Scouting and all Youth Protection Guidelines.

What about the Girl Scouts? The Girl Scouts of the USA is and always has been a separate organization. The BSA applauds the work of all youth-serving organizations that serve our nation’s youth and believes that there is an opportunity for all such organizations to serve girls and boys in our communities. I think Chief Scout Executive Mike Surbaugh said it best: “The reality is that most families in this country are not currently engaged with any character-building youth development program. There are over 70 million children in America that could benefit from our programs, and today, organizations like ours and others only serve a fraction of them. That is a huge unmet need, but one we can help address.”

Can a girl participate in both Scouts BSA and Girl Scouting? Of course. Just as many kids choose to play two sports, many girls are choosing to participate in both Scouts BSA and Girl Scouting.

Is it true that girls can become Eagle Scouts? Yes. The Scouts BSA program, including the advancement program, is identical for boys and girls.

But I heard the BSA was making exceptions to the requirements. The only exception is that new Scouts BSA members in 2019 (both boys and girls) who are 16 or 17 when they join may petition the National Council for a time extension. The logic is that they would otherwise not have the 19-20 months that are the minimum period of time to complete all the requirements.

Will there be a race to become the first female Eagle Scout? There shouldn’t be. The BSA announced earlier this year that it won’t identify the first female Eagle Scout. Instead, it will officially recognize the inaugural class of female Eagle Scouts in the fall of 2020.