Citizenship: Scouting a Better World
Preparing Young People for Lives of
Citizenship
Scouting A Better World
The Scouting program teaches kids of all ages to recognize bullying and gives them tools to find the courage to be an upstander, not a bystander.
It teaches kids how to make good decisions and stay safe online, whether that’s on social media, chatting with friends or gaming.
Scouting America’s four citizenship-related merit badges — Citizenship in Society, Citizenship in the Community, Citizenship in the Nation, and Citizenship in the World — teach young men and women how to make their world a better place for others. And other merit badges teach them to be better communicators, to be sensitive to those with disabilities, to stay in good physical condition, and much, much more.
And by simply reminding kids at every meeting to follow the Scout Oath and Law, Scouting teaches young people to be kind and trustworthy in all aspects of life.
Scouting Is For Everyone
In Scouting, all youth are welcome, and everyone has a path forward. Since its founding in 1910, Scouting America has had fully participating members with physical, mental, and emotional disabilities
In 2023, a Georgia boy who was born without sight earned the rank of Eagle Scout. “I had the same opportunities as everyone else,” he says. “I had a lot of people along the way who worked with me and made sure I knew everything I needed to know.
In Edmond, Oklahoma, a 65-year-old man earned the rank of Eagle, thanks to Scouting America’s rule that allows individuals with severe permanent disabilities to continue to participate in Scouting as a youth even after they turn 18. “What he loves about Scouting is parallel with what most members love about Scouting,” says the man’s Scoutmaster. “It’s being with his friends and all the fun stuff they get to do together.”
In Seattle, Washington, there’s a Scout troop that has been serving young people with special needs for nearly 30 years. “I was struck by the ability to take the Scouting program and accommodate it for a child with special needs,” says the troop’s Scoutmaster. “It just works so fabulously.”
Abuse in Scouting: We Will Never Forget
In 2023, Scouting America emerged from bankruptcy, assembling one of the largest trusts in U.S. history to compensate victims of abuse in Scouting. These cases deeply sadden us and also strengthen our resolve to protect youth in Scouting from predators.
The work of continually upgrading our barriers to abuse to safeguard youth will always be evolving. Scouting America is constantly improving and refining its prevention programs and training to empower leaders, parents, and youth to protect each other and themselves – inside and outside of Scouting. Just this past year, Scouting America hired a youth protection executive reporting directly to the CEO and established a youth protection committee made up
of experts in child protection and survivors of abuse in Scouting. Their stories and insight are powerful, and their voices are heard.
There are places of remembrance being built at each of Scouting America’s national high adventure bases to ensure that we never forget the pain of the abuse, the victims, or our commitment to safeguarding youth and families.
