Boy Scouts of America changing its name. Here's why
Boy Scouts
The Boy Scouts of America, which is one of the largest youth organisations in the United States, is changing its name for the first time in its 114-year history. It will now be known as Scouting America, the organisation announced Tuesday (May 7). The name change will go into effect on February 8, 2025 - a date that will mark the organisation's 115th anniversary.
The change is a significant shift aimed at being more inclusive in Scouting America. This happened five years after the organisation started to include girls in scout programmes. The organisation said it has more than 176,000 girls in its programmes, including 6,000 who have earned the rank of Eagle Scout. It also allowed gay youth.
The organisation implemented significant changes. It began admitting gay youth in 2013 and lifted its blanket prohibition on gay adult leaders in 2015. In 2017, it made the historic news that girls would be allowed as Cub Scouts in 2018 and into the flagship Boy Scout programme, renamed Scouts BSA in 2019.
The organisation noted that the rebrand reflects the "ongoing commitment to welcome every youth and family in America to experience the benefits of Scouting."
Roger A Krone, president and chief executive officer of Scouting America, said, "Though our name will be new, our mission remains unchanged: we are committed to teaching young people to be Prepared. For Life. This will be a simple but very important evolution as we seek to ensure that everyone feels welcome in Scouting."
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In an interview before the announcement, Krone said that in the next 100 years, we want any youth in America to "feel very, very welcome" to come into our programmes.
The change is also followed by a series of scandals and upheavals inside the organisation, including lawsuits from former scouts alleging sexual assault.
"Scouting America provides a welcoming, safe environment where youth can become the best version of themselves by learning from and respecting each other," Krone said.
(With inputs from agencies)