Since inception in 1910, over 130 million people have participated in Scouting America (formerly known as Boy Scouts of America). However, only 4% have reached the highest rank. Christopher Kirkland (12) joined this group March 18 of this year.
Kirkland started in fifth grade as a Cub Scout, the Scouting program for kindergarteners through fifth graders. The following year, he became a Boy Scout, which is now called Scouts BSA.
“My older brother and my dad were both Boy Scouts,” Kirkland said. “They were both also Eagle Scouts. And, you know, I saw them and I saw what they were doing. I saw what my older brother was doing in particular. He was having a lot of fun on campouts, and I just saw that and I want to do that myself.”
A key aspect of achievement in Scouting America is the rank system, which intends to help scouts develop their citizenship, personal growth and leadership abilities. The seven ranks are as follows: Scout, Tenderfoot, Second Class, First Class, Star, Life and Eagle.
“The first couple of ranks all the way up to First Class — they focus more on scout skills, so you’re tying knots, you’re learning first aid, you’re learning how to cook and all that kind of stuff,” Kirkland said. “But then, Star, Life and Eagle are a lot more about community service and leadership and just becoming a better leader and that kind of stuff.”
To earn the Eagle rank, scouts must be active in their troop for at least six months after earning the Life rank and serve as a leader in their troop for at least six months. Scouts also have to obtain at least 21 merit badges, 13 of which come from a list designated by Scouting America, like citizenship in the community, first aid and personal management. There are over 135 merit badges available for scouts to earn. Kirkland’s troop — Troop 81 Independent Presbyterian Church — meets for about an hour and a half each week, partially to help scouts advance their ranks.
“We can do any number of things [at meetings],” Kirkland said. “We can work on merit badges. We may prepare for an upcoming trip by making a meal plan and clearing out the trailer, making sure we have anything that we need for that. We could be working on a merit badge, anything from search and rescue to weather to pioneering. [It] can really be anything.”
In addition to the other requirements for the Eagle rank, scouts must also complete a service project. The project must benefit “any religious institution, any school, or your community” according to the 2023 Boy Scouts of America Eagle Scout Service Project Workbook.
“So with an Eagle Scout project, the very first thing you do, is you’ve got to find an organization or person you want to help,” Kirkland said. “And then you want to work with them and figure out, what do you want to do with them … and once you have your proposal signed, you’ll make a detailed plan where you lay out your budget, how many people you want, what everybody’s going to be doing and your general timeline of your project. And then you do your project, and then you submit, and then you make a report on your project that you get signed … and then you’ll submit your Eagle application to the district.”
For his Eagle Scout project, Kirkland worked in White Station High School’s Army Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (AJROTC) building to renovate the marksmanship range, where AJROTC students on the marksmanship team shoot air rifles. Kirkland, along with 10 to 11 others, repainted the range and repaired the back canvas. The project took about 14 hours across three days to complete. Only he, his father and his grandmother worked for the second and third days.
“I needed a whole lot of paint,” Kirkland said. “I used drop cloth to create a new fabric backing for the air rifles that shoot pellets, and that’s really the only materials we needed, but we also used staple guns to secure the fabrics. We used paint rollers and a whole bunch of tape and paper to cover up the area.”
While scouts can choose to start fundraisers for their project, Kirkland opted to cover the expenses himself. The total cost was about $805.
“So I made a budget containing all the things we needed,” Kirkland said. “I was able to borrow some tools for my grandmother, and we also had a lot of tools and the necessary materials on hand at my house … The biggest things were paint and the drop cloth … and everything else was just like tape.”
Despite an over 115-year history, there are still many misconceptions about what scouts do. Many people, according to Kirkland, assume “it’s just about camping.” However, it provides many opportunities past that.
“You can learn any number of things through scouting,” Kirkland said. “They’re even special sections of scouts where you can learn how to sail a ship or you can learn how to fly a plane. And there’s just really so much to scouting that I think people miss out on … I just think Scouts is such a great opportunity for anybody. And I think it’s something that you should look into if you’re curious about anything, any kind of subject that you want. Because I can guarantee you that there is someone who can help you with it.”