Community Service.....

Frequently Asked Questions about Community Service hours requirements.

1) What is the Community Service requirement in Scouting?

National BSA community service requirements are stated in the Scout Handbook and they are also listed below. Service Hours are required for earning the ranks of Second Class, Star, and Life Scout. A boy-led Service Project is required for Eagle rank. All service projects must be approved by the Scoutmaster (see Q-7 below also).

A summary of Service requirements are:

Second Class: One hour service project.
Star: Take part in service projects totaling at least 6 hours of work.
Life: Take part in service projects totaling at least 6 hours of work.
Eagle: The Eagle candidate must "plan, develop, and give leadership to others" in a substantial service project. This is probably the most challenging requirement for Eagle. The service project must be for the good of the community, a religious institution, or a school. It cannot be for the benefit of a Scout facility or a business. It involves completing the requirements in the "Eagle Scout Service Project Workbook" (available on-line from the national BSA website) and is to be an example of service "worthy of an Eagle". When choosing an Eagle Service Project, appropriateness and safety must be considered. The key to the Eagle Scout Service Project is the demonstration of planning and leadership. The proposed project shall be pre-approved by the Scoutmaster and Troop Committee. The proposed project must then be approved by a BSA Council District Advancement Committee representative before any implementation work begins.

2) Does working at the tree lot count? How about working at Troop 11 wood splitting or delivery?

The Scout Tree Lot is an important fund raiser for the Piedmont Council and wood splitting is an important fund raiser for Troop 11. We ask scouts and their families to help out in these fund raisers as part of helping to cover the overhead costs of the scouting program in Piedmont. Dues for scouting are quite low and some of the cost of the program is covered in these fund raisers. The scouts themselves benefit from these fund raising efforts as they are the participants in the scouting program. In other words, in these programs we are helping ourselves. So volunteering at these programs does NOT COUNT as Community Service because the purpose of Community Service is to help other people.

3) Does helping on a fellow scout Eagle Project count?

Again, the answer is no. Every troop in Piedmont has a policy that eagle projects do NOT COUNT as Community Service hours. The idea is that we want our younger scouts to help older scouts on their eagle projects out of good will and to simply carry on the troop tradition of "helping our own."

But keep in mind that if you do work on another scout’s eagle project, you CAN count that for school community service hours. Both PMS and PHS have a policy that they don't want the service hours you are crediting towards your school record to also be for the same activity/service that has earned you scouting advancement (i.e. “no double dipping” is their official policy). So this is a case where even if it won’t count for scouts, it will count for school.

4) So what CAN I do for Community Service Hours?

Here are some suggestions that are clearly OK for Scout Service Hours:

Working at Harvest Festival
Scouting for Food
Volunteering to work or help at a daycare, retirement home, or helping at your church/temple (this means something other than attending services and your youth group meetings - more like cleaning or teaching younger kids, or doing community service with them)
Volunteering to help at Webelos Woods or the Bicycle Rodeo (but they didn't have the rodeo this year because Havens playground is under construction). (This is scout-organized but still counts).
Mrs Caruso helps lead a High School Venturing Crew that specializes in doing community service (that's all they do!). Perhaps she may be of more assistance. [indirect link to her email to come].
See list and links at right for more ideas.

5) What is the national Boy Scout program: “Good Turn for America”?

The BSA has a national program to promote community service by scouting units and individual scouts. The BSA already has established partnerships with lots of organizations such as the Red Cross and Habitat for Humanity. The scouts can earn special patches and other forms of recognition for their involvement. The web site below has lots more information. http://www.goodturnforamerica.org/index.html

http://usscouts.org/servicetoamerica.asp This is a web site with links and programs and ideas.

6) How do I let Troop 11 know about my organization and/or community service opportunities?

We would be happy to post info about qualifying programs. Just let us know, email to the Webmaster and we will post your info.

7) The answer to Q-1 above says that a community service project requires prior Scoutmaster approval. How do I get this approval?

Our troop meetings are usually lively and busy; the room can be noisy and the Scoutmaster is often dealing with various people at once, so a verbal pitch in the middle of a busy meeting is often not the best option. If your project is not one that is "clearly OK" from the list above, please jot down some specifics in writing (email or paper) and provide it to the SM so that he can review it first and then discuss it with you.

8) How do I go about getting credit for my service hours?

We want a written record so we can keep track of your hours. So, guess what? We have a form! Download this FORM (PDF), fill it out with the specifics for your volunteer time and also get it signed by the responsible person at the organization where you have volunteered. Then give it to the SM.