Anonymous
Post 02/02/2025 12:00     Subject: Eagle Scout Project Issue
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Most Food banks are happy to have kids run a food drive for them. City of Rockville public works always has a list of projects for Eagle Scouts. Maybe you town has one too. Surprised his troop is not given suggestions.


An Eagle Scout project is much more robust than organizing a food drive.


My son as in HS 2015-2018 and they were very accceptable then. Food drives, book drives, eye glass drives. We saw them all. I am not sure why construction would be considered a requirement. A drive requires very similar leadership skills IMO. My neighbors son did a food drive and the organization said it was the largest drive donation they had ever gotten. My son was involved in packing and driving and unloading. Other kids passed out fliers, collected the food sorted it per the orgs preferences. This was not just a kid picking a couple of cans out of his moms basement.


Because planning and running a drive is not that challenging. There is a reason that they had been a go to project for so many Scouts. My Scout is First Class and organized a book drive to collect books for a local ES as part of his Librarian Role. He spent maybe 8 hours total and collected close to 200 books. He found an ES, made a flier, had other Scouts help distribute the flier, had other Scouts help pick up books, and sorted the books. If the project is doable by a 12 year old First Class Scout then it is not really an Eagle Project. That is why our District has said that drives need to be a part of a larger project.

Different Districts may accept a drive but they are falling out of favor in many places.
Anonymous
Post 02/02/2025 10:49     Subject: Eagle Scout Project Issue
I have a gold award Girl Scout child and 3 Eagle Scouts in my family. It sounds like he needs to figure out what he wants to do first - then identify the partners. What is his project? Or is he just calling around?
Anonymous
Post 02/02/2025 10:43     Subject: Eagle Scout Project Issue
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Most Food banks are happy to have kids run a food drive for them. City of Rockville public works always has a list of projects for Eagle Scouts. Maybe you town has one too. Surprised his troop is not given suggestions.[/quote

An Eagle Scout project is much more robust than organizing a food drive.


My son as in HS 2015-2018 and they were very accceptable then. Food drives, book drives, eye glass drives. We saw them all. I am not sure why construction would be considered a requirement. A drive requires very similar leadership skills IMO. My neighbors son did a food drive and the organization said it was the largest drive donation they had ever gotten. My son was involved in packing and driving and unloading. Other kids passed out fliers, collected the food sorted it per the orgs preferences. This was not just a kid picking a couple of cans out of his moms basement.
Anonymous
Post 02/02/2025 10:33     Subject: Eagle Scout Project Issue
Anonymous wrote:PP is correct. There are standards for an Eagle project and something like a one time food drive is not sufficient.


Our District has flat out said that they want to diminish the number of Eagle projects that are drives of any sort. They were allowed during COVID because of COVID restrictions and difficulties but seemed to continue well after COVID. Today the District is only allowing drives if they are a part of a larger project. So a book drive is not considered acceptable but renovating a reading space at an ES and including a book drive as part of that is acceptable. Blood drives need to be more then just a blood drive, mainly because the Red Cross and Hospitals have that all planned out for the supporting organization.

Fairfax Parks and Rec has projects that deal with invasive species removal and replanting that are pretty cool. Our District has said that such a project needs to be more then lots of invasive plant removal so maybe ask about an area where you remove and replant and help with the purchase of the plants needed for replanting. There are also erosion projects that a Scout could look at.
Anonymous
Post 02/01/2025 22:55     Subject: Eagle Scout Project Issue
PP is correct. There are standards for an Eagle project and something like a one time food drive is not sufficient.
Anonymous
Post 02/01/2025 21:26     Subject: Eagle Scout Project Issue
Anonymous wrote:Most Food banks are happy to have kids run a food drive for them. City of Rockville public works always has a list of projects for Eagle Scouts. Maybe you town has one too. Surprised his troop is not given suggestions.[/quote

An Eagle Scout project is much more robust than organizing a food drive.
Anonymous
Post 02/01/2025 19:28     Subject: Eagle Scout Project Issue
OP. Do not give up. My son is an Eagle and finished up last year. I was committee chair for about 6 years. The absolute hardest part of the project is finding a sponsor. My son tried his hardest and finally let me email a number of people for ideas and one put us in touch with someone who followed through after talking to my son.

Also, DC is a really hard area for this. I think there are too many organized volunteers. Outside of DC, there are even Eagle project liaisons at National Parks. Not here.

Anyway, contact the Audubon Society (I think it might be Nature Forward Woodend Sanctuary now). They have had good projects for our Troop. American University has a botanical garden and has had projects. Also, friends of parks in DC. (You have to find the friend of the park as they are the way to liaise with the city.)

You also need to talk to the Scoutmaster or the Eagle Coordinator if your Troop has one along with all the former Eagle Parents for ideas. If you have a throw away email address you want to post, I bet some here would be willing to email you directly with some contact information for places they know would work with you.
Anonymous
Post 02/01/2025 19:21     Subject: Eagle Scout Project Issue
Where did he go to preschool? The preschool my kids went to almost annually has an alum do a project for this. They meet with the director and she gives a few choices on areas of need. Some I remember are building a composting center, new animal cages, building something specific on the playground, making some type of sign, making something handicapped accessible, etc.
Anonymous
Post 02/01/2025 19:17     Subject: Eagle Scout Project Issue
I thought you had to build something for an Eagle scout project.

You do not have to build something for an Eagle project. While most do, the goal is not to show you can building something. It is a capstone project to show leadership.
Anonymous
Post 02/01/2025 18:20     Subject: Re:Eagle Scout Project Issue
Not sure how old your son is but I know there is a shortage in the blood banks. The Red Cross has information about how HS kids could organize a blood drive if you are old enough, just an idea.
Anonymous
Post 02/01/2025 17:35     Subject: Re:Eagle Scout Project Issue
Does his troop have a Life to Eagle Coordinator he can work with? Maybe he can call an animal shelter and ask them what they need done but have a list of suggestions. We have a bunch of Scouts who have completed projects for their local school, like helping to put together a quiet room or a math lab or starting a tutoring program. The project raised the money to decorate and supply the rooms in question.

Good luck!
Anonymous
Post 02/01/2025 16:48     Subject: Eagle Scout Project Issue
I thought you had to build something for an Eagle scout project.

Your local rec leagues might need something--benches? tables?
Anonymous
Post 02/01/2025 16:47     Subject: Eagle Scout Project Issue
If he did all that work and made a detailed plan, can he shop it around to other shelters?

For those with younger scouts, this is a good example of the importance of volunteering early and developing relationships with different organizations so you're more of a known quantity.
Anonymous
Post 02/01/2025 15:44     Subject: Eagle Scout Project Issue
My son did his project with the Oyster Recovery Project by doing a day of service making oyster cages and helping them be distributed in the community.
https://www.oysterrecovery.org/

You can also try Montgomery county parks which have an actual process in place:

https://montgomeryparks.org/support/volunteer/eagle-scout-candidate/

Catoctin Parks:

https://www.nps.gov/cato/getinvolved/eagle-scout-projects-and-opportunities.htm

Anonymous
Post 02/01/2025 14:56     Subject: Eagle Scout Project Issue
We live in Vienna and my son just completed his project for his former not for profit preschool. Other boys in his troop have recently done projects at Turner Farm (a Fairfax County park, so check there or other county parks) and another one just did a huge clothing drive and donated the clothes to a number of shelters. Another recent one was a bike collection where the Scout collected 100+ bikes and donated them to an area charity. For these collection drives, scouts help advertise by putting out fliers and then helping on collection day. Hope this helps and he can find a project he’d enjoy doing!