Event Day
Set up
Before anyone arrives, set up the check-in station and assign the rooms, marking each one for project proposal reviews or final boards. If you use the scheduler software, add the rooms to it before the doors open, because it can’t seat a board without one.
Check-in
Scouts and adults sign in as they arrive. At the desk:
- Proposal reviews. Confirm the proposal is already signed by the beneficiary, the unit leader, and the unit committee. The only approval it should be missing is the district’s.
- Final boards. Confirm the Scout has everything on the pre-check checklist with them.
- Walk-ins. Decide ahead of time how you’ll treat a Scout who arrives prepared but never signed up.
A Scout whose paperwork isn’t complete can’t be seated at this event. They can come back next month.
A walk-in who shows up prepared for either kind of review gets worked into the schedule, even without a SignUpGenius reservation.
Seat the boards
For each Scout, pick a chair and members from the adults who are available, and a free room of the right kind. Keep the Guide to Advancement’s rules in mind; Board Members quotes them. In particular, “Unit leaders and assistants must not serve on a board of review for a Scout in their own unit. Parents, guardians, or relatives must not serve on a board for their child.”
The board goes into the room first, with the paperwork, and reads it while the Scout waits outside. When the members are ready, the Scout’s unit leader or coach walks them in and introduces them.
Keep an eye on the clock. The Guide says “Eagle boards generally last 30 minutes or somewhat longer … but rarely should one last longer than 45 minutes.” A board that has been reading for a long time while a Scout waits in the hall deserves a check.
Before a Scout leaves
After a final board recommends a Scout, confirm everything on the post-board checklist is signed and that next steps have been explained. Collect the signed application and the sealed reference letters from the board. “Unless otherwise directed, the service project workbook and statement of ambitions and life purpose can be returned to the Scout.”
Before you leave
Get the signed applications to the council as soon as you can. The sooner the council has them, the sooner it can submit them to National.
Before leaving the venue, the district advancement chair scans every signed Eagle Scout Rank Application and emails the scans to the council accountant, so they can start the submission to National the next day.