Welcoming Girls into the Scout Program - Part 3

Welcoming Girls into the Scout Program - Part 3

CBS Sunday Morning did a long piece on the subject, starting with the girls who are now officially registered Cub Scouts in Portland Oregon Pack 203.

Click here to see the CBS Sunday Morning segment. What you'll see:

•  The girls in Pack 203 are clearly having a great time, while some of their older brothers look pretty unhappy. But they're willing to go with the change.

•  Switch to older Boy Scouts in Salt Lake City Troop 1262. These guys are having a great time building an igloo and getting a winter campfire going. This is the kind of activity that have defined Boy Scouts for over a century. Chief Scout Exec Michael Surbaugh said, "Kids want what we have. Outdoors and camping and hiking -- this is what we do!"

•  A little history and a plug for Eagle Scouts, citing Michael Bloomberg, President Gerald Ford, and astronaut Neil Armstrong.

•  Declining membership in the Boy Scout organization is a real problem. Scouts lost two thirds of the numbers they had in the 1970's. Surbaugh said that changes to the American family were a big factor in the decline, such as more moms in the workforce. Meanwhile, the Scouts did not adapt.

•  Switch back to Salt Lake City Troop 1262, which has mostly Burmese refugees. Their leader is a refugee from Cambodia. They were already familiar with the outdoors, since they had to hunt and fish just to stay alive. One of them said, "If not for Scouts, I would have joined a gang, because that's where all my friends are."

•  Pushback from the Girl Scouts: "We were really taken aback," said Sylvia Acevedo, Chief Executive Officer. She said that the Girl Scouts also offer the same high adventure programs that the Boy Scouts offer, plus they have "the best leadership program designed and developed for girls." She said, "We know what it takes to get girls to succeed."

•  Switch back to Troop 1262 with five new Eagle Scouts, "An honor their sisters may soon pursue as well."