For Eagle Scout Max Plessinger, learning skilled trades within Scouting opened doors to a fulfilling, profitable career. His merit badge sash displays the Automotive Maintenance, Farm Mechanics, Plumbing and Welding badges. The 21-year-old now works as a diesel mechanic, doesn’t have any school debt and is saving to buy a house next year. It’s a

The Scouts BSA program works best when it’s guided by adults who implement the program as it was designed to be implemented. The official Scouts BSA Troop Self-Assessment tool is designed to help ensure that you’re doing just that. The Troop Self-Assessment program is a series of questions on a variety of Scouts BSA-related topics.

Almost as soon as it began, Scouting America’s merit badge program began to evolve to better meet the needs of the Scouts of the time. There are no longer merit badges for Master-at-Arms, Citrus Fruit Culture and Farm Arrangements, but there are merit badges for Digital Technology, Environmental Science and Multisport. Now the latest evolution

Three Scouts from Montville, New Jersey, have brought an international rocketry championship to the United States. Makayo Cheung, 15, Thomas Jenkins, 15, and Chase Eagan, 17, from Troop 74 in Montville took first place in the 2025 International Rocketry Challenge in Paris, France, last month. They had previously qualified for the event by winning the

Do you know a Scouts BSA member who wants to influence the future of Scouting America? Make sure to send them this blog post! The Scouts BSA National Youth Council is the platform for passionate youth leaders to help shape decisions across the organization, and applications for the next term are now open. Empowering youth

One of Scouting America’s oldest merit badges has undergone a major update to make it more accessible to today’s Scouts. Chemistry, one of the original 57 merit badges offered when the organization was founded in 1911 and one of the 11 that have used the same logo continuously since then, has a whole new set

Some council camps boast more than a century in operation, a few dating back to the 1910s, just a few years after Scouting America incorporated. This week, Camp Tahquitz, a Long Beach Area Council camp, adds its name to that list of camps that have hit the 100-year mark. The camp’s all-volunteer staff, nicknamed the

A few years ago, Chris Vargas noticed an evening news story about the rise of veterans experiencing homelessness. He wondered why they weren’t being helped. “Veterans have done so much for this country, and I just want a turn to help them out when they are in need,” Chris says. Chris Vargas So the Life

For 115 years, Scouting America has helped shape this country’s youth to be leaders in their communities, nation and world while learning valuable skills and exploring the outdoors. Incoming national commissioner, Devang Desai, envisions opportunities to retell the organization’s incredible century-long history as well as showcase the many ways today’s youth can grow and have

In 2010, a catastrophic earthquake rocked Haiti, causing billions of dollars in damage and leaving more than 220,000 people dead – with some estimates soaring to more than 300,000 dead. It was one of the deadliest natural disasters in recorded history. Among those pulled from the rubble was 2-year-old Jamesly Jesse. Jamesly Jesse, 2, after