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An Eagle Scout is a Scout with the highest rank attainable in the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Since its introduction in 1911, the Eagle Scout rank has been earned by more than one and a half million Scouts.

Requirements include earning a number of merit badges and demonstration of Scout Spirit, service and leadership. Eagle Scouts are presented with a medal and badge that visibly recognizes the accomplishments of the Scout. Additional recognition can be earned through Eagle Palms, awarded for completing additional tenure, leadership and merit badge requirements.

History
Scouting's highest award was originally conceived of as the Wolf Scout, as shown in the June 1911 Official Handbook for Boys. The August 1911 handbook subsequently changed this to Eagle Scout. The medal illustrated in the handbook was a profile of an eagle in flight, but was changed to the current design before any were issued. In their original conceptions, Life Scout, Star Scout and Eagle Scout were not ranks, but part of the merit badge system that recognized Scouts who had earned a number of merit badges. Eagle Scout was awarded to any First Class Scout who had earned 21 merit badges. Consequently, eight of the first nine Eagle Scouts did not earn the ranks of Life Scout or Star Scout.

The first Eagle Scout medal was awarded in 1912 to Arthur Rose Eldred, a 17–year–old member of Troop 1 in Rockville Centre, Long Island, New York. Eldred was notified that he was to be awarded the rank of Eagle Scout in a letter from Chief Scout Executive James West, dated August 21, 1912. The design of the Eagle Scout medal had not been finalized by the National Council, so the medal was not awarded until Labor Day, September 2, 1912. Eldred was the first of three generations of Eagle Scouts; his son and grandson hold the rank as well. Since then, more than one and a half million Scouts have earned the rank. In 1982, 13-year-old Alexander Holsinger, of Normal, Illinois, was recognized as the one millionth Eagle Scout. In 2002, 49,328 Scouts attained the Eagle Scout rank, more than in any other year.

Requirements
A Scout earns Eagle Scout by serving as a Life Scout for six months, earning 21 merit badges, demonstrating Scout Spirit and serving as a leader in the troop, team, crew or ship. He must plan, develop and give leadership to a service project &mdash; the Eagle Project &mdash; that demonstrates both leadership and a commitment to duty. He must then take part in a Scoutmaster conference before his eighteenth birthday. After all of the requirements are met, he must complete an Eagle Scout Board of Review. Venturers and Sea Scouts who attained First Class as a Boy Scout or Varsity Scout in a troop or team may continue working toward the Star, Life and Eagle Scout ranks, as well as Eagle Palms, while registered as an Venturer or Sea Scout up to their eighteenth birthday. Scouts with a permanent mental or physical disability may use alternate requirements based on the Scout's abilities, if approved by the council. Eagle Scout may be awarded posthumously, if and only if all requirements are completed before death. A board of review may be held and the award presented to the Scout's family.

Eagle Palms are not themselves a rank, but are awarded as additional recognition to an Eagle Scout for earning additional merit badges and completing tenure and leadership requirements. Palms are awarded in the order of bronze, gold and silver, repeating for additional palms.

Eagle Scout service project
The completion of the Eagle Scout service project requires significant effort on the part of the Eagle Scout candidate. The project must benefit an organization other than the BSA. It cannot be performed for an individual or a business, cannot solely be a fund-raising project and cannot be commercial in nature. A written plan using the Eagle Scout Leadership Service Project Workbook must be submitted and pre-approved by the benefiting organization, the unit leader, the unit committee and a district representative, before the work of the project can begin. When the project is complete, the Scout will update the workbook and determine the methods in which he gave leadership, ways in which the plan may have had to change, and the benefits of the project. Examples of Eagle Scout service projects include: constructing park benches, refurbishing a room at a church, planting grass for erosion control, or organizing a dinner and collecting necessities for the homeless.

Development
Eagle Scout requirements have evolved since the awards' original conception. A requirement to earn 11 specific merit badges was added in 1914, which underwent minor changes in 1915. The Life–Star order was reversed in 1924, apparently because the five-pointed star of the Star Scout insignia could be associated with the five merit badges required to earn the rank immediately following First Class Scout. In 1927, Eagle Scout began to transition from being a super merit badge to a rank. As a result, the first requirements for tenure were created, Scouts were now required to be an active First Class Scout for one year and the initial requirements for what became the service project appeared with a requirement to show satisfactory service. The number of required merit badges increased to 12. In 1936, the ranks of Star and Life became mandatory, and the number of required merit badges jumped to 13. It was at this time Eagle Scout became a full-fledged rank. In 1952, age limits were set so that adults could no longer earn Eagle Scout and the service project requirement was slightly expanded to "do your best to help in your home, school, church or synagogue, and community". In 1958 the number of required merit badges increased again to 16 of the 21 total merit badges needed to obtain Eagle, along with the first requirements for service and leadership. In 1965, the requirements for the service project and specific troop leadership were defined, and the number of required merit badges returned to 11. The Eagle Scout candidate was now required to plan, develop, and carry out a service project. Minor changes were made to the required merit badge list in 1970. In 1972, the Improved Scouting Program increased the number of merit badges needed to obtain Eagle to 24, while reducing the list of required merit badges to ten and eliminating badges that required swimming and outdoor skills and the requirement to show leadership during the service project was added. Until 1972, Explorers who were also registered as an assistant Scoutmaster in a troop could work on Eagle until age 21. In 1978, the total number of merit badges needed for Eagle was dropped back to the original 21; required merit badges now numbered 11 and would eventually change to the current 12 in 1999.

Insignia and apparel
The Eagle Scout badge is worn on the left shirt pocket by youth. Adult leaders who earned the rank of Eagle Scout as a youth may wear the square knot on their uniform above the left shirt pocket. The Eagle Scout medal is worn on the left shirt pocket flap of the uniform. It is usually only worn on ceremonial occasions, and can be worn by both youth and adults while wearing the badge or square knot.

The Eagle Presentation Kit currently includes the Eagle Scout medal, the Eagle Scout badge, a mother's pin, a father's pin and an Eagle Mentor pin. A variety of caps, belt buckles, pins, tie tacs, neckerchiefs and slides, bolo ties, rings, jackets, t-shirts and other items are also available for purchase. Official Eagle Scout insignia is controlled by BSA Supply and requires verification by presentation of the Eagle Scout card or other means before it can be purchased.

History of the medal
Since its introduction in 1912, the Eagle Scout medal has undergone several design changes. Changes to the scroll and to the eagle pendant were not always introduced at the same time, therefore types may be somewhat mixed. Scouting historians classify these medals by the five different manufacturers and then by 17 sub-types, with several minor variations. Many variations were caused by quality control issues, mainly due to wear of the dies. During the 1920s and 1930s, some military schools allowed wear of the Eagle Scout medal on the uniform. In order to conform to the medal system, the scroll was removed and the ribbon affixed to a standard ribbon bar.

T. H. Foley made the first medals from 1912 until they went out of business in 1915. The eagle pendant and scroll were of die struck bronze washed with silver. Early versions were made with a short double knot and later ones with a long double knot. Only 338 of these medals were issued, making them the rarest version. Some Foleys were issued with a drop ribbon– the ribbon was extended, folded through the bar mount on the scroll, then dropped behind the eagle pendant and cut in a swallowtail. The first drop ribbon style medal was issued to the fourth Eagle Scout– Sidney Clapp, a 31 year-old scoutmaster from West Shokan, NY.

Dieges & Clust took over production from 1916 to 1920, basing the design on the Foley. These medals also have the distinguishing extra-long double knot hanging from the scroll. There were 1,640 of this variety awarded, all made of sterling silver.

In 1920, the Robbins Company took over production. They produced six distinct variants, all in sterling silver. The first 1920 version was similar to the Dieges & Clust design, but with smaller scroll lettering and the standard single knot. The second 1920 version has more distinctive feathering on the back side of the pendant. The engraving on the 1930 version is especially fine. In 1933, BSA was removed from all of the Eagle Scout insignia, including the medal. In 1955 the obverse of the eagle pendant was made flat so it could be engraved. BSA was added back to the front and the obverse was returned to a full feathered design in 1969.

Medal manufacturer Stange was authorized to begin producing Eagle Scout medals in 1968, at the same time as Robbins– they created six distinct models. The 1968 version is very similar to the Robbins version, but the bend in the scroll is much flatter, more like a sideways V as compared to the S on the Robbins scroll. The BSA was added back to the front, and the obverse was returned to a full feathered design in 1970. A major re-design of the eagle pendant was made in 1974 to match the new NESA logo. In 1978, Robbins ceased manufacturing Eagle Scout medals and Stange switched to the last design used by Robbins. Minor differences are in the white edged ribbon and the sterling silver markings. In 1980 the price of silver rose dramatically and the medal was changed to silver plated, die struck copper. Very early versions were silver plated and oxidized, thus the scroll and pendant are black. Later versions were oxidized, buffed and lacquered to maintain the silver shine. Sterling silver medals were produced from the same dies and from this time were only available on special order. 1993 saw a number of changes. The clasp on the scroll was changed from the pin on type to a double clutch back. The pendant was changed to pewter and enlarged due to the lighter rigidity of the material.

Custom Fine Jewelry (CFJ) took over the contract in 1999 and has currently created three types. The initial versions were based on the last Stange version but with the ribbon attached through the clutch pins instead of a bar (this lead to damage of the ribbon). A small number of sterling silver versions were made, marked with 925. In later 1999, the dies were laser engraved, giving a much sharper look and the ribbon mount was improved to eliminate wear. The knot went from wire to a molded version in 2001.

History of the badge
Since its introduction, the Eagle Scout badge has undergone several design changes. Scouting historians have classified these badges into eight different designs, with several minor variations within each type.

The cloth badge was introduced for Eagle Scouts attending the 1924 World Scout Jamboree in Denmark with a design based on the hat pin. The Eagle Scout merit badge was sewn onto the top of the merit badge sash that was also created for the jamboree. The design is quite similar to the current badge. As with other patches of the time, the rank badges were embroidered onto rolls of fabric and then cut. The edges were folded under before sewing the badge onto the sash. Initially produced on tan cloth, it was later switched to olive for the Boy Scout uniform and white and blue to match the various Sea Scout uniforms. In 1933, BSA was removed from all of the Eagle Scout insignia, including the badge. The text Eagle Scout and Boy Scouts of America was added to the border, and Be Prepared was added to the scroll. These badges were embroidered with silk thread, switching to cotton in 1940.

The production of badges and emblems changed in 1956 to the rolled edge now in current use, thus eliminating the various colored backgrounds. The outside oval was then changed to red. With the introduction of the Improved Scouting Program in 1972 came an overhaul of many badges and emblems. The new stylized Eagle Scout badge with no text was a major change that proved to be unpopular. It appears that some Scouters commissioned reproductions of the 1956 badge for issue in place of the 1972 version. In 1975 the badge design partially reverted to the 1956 version. 1985 saw a reversion to the 1956 issue with some minor differences. The border and the eagle were done in silver Mylar and the Be Prepared text was in blue. In 1986 the Mylar eagle changed back to silver thread due to problems with wearing and the scroll and text were enlarged. The Mylar border was changed to silver thread in 1989. Later variants increased the thread count of the white stripe to eliminate the visible background.

Other insignia
Eagle Scout hat pins were produced from 1921 through 1958 with several variations. Eagle Scouts who earned additional merit badges were recognized using Eagle Palms, introduced in 1927. Adults who had earned Eagle Scout began to be recognized in 1934 with a red, white and blue ribbon bar. In 1940, a small eagle pin was added to the bar. Ribbon bars were replaced by embroidered square knot patches in 1947. Over the years, the knot was produced with various background colors to match the different uniforms. Although the Venturing and Sea Scout programs use different uniform shirts, the current knot is available only with a tan background that matches the Boy Scout uniform. When the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award (DESA) was created in 1969, a gold eagle device was introduced for wear on the Eagle Scout square knot. The Law Enforcement Explorer program introduced a ribbon bar for Eagle Scouts in 1995. The Eagle Scout Mentor pin was introduced in early 2004 in a gold-plated version, and was changed in early 2006 to pewter to match the mother and father pins.

Certificates
From 1912 to 1943 the BSA issued an index sized card with information about the Eagle Scout. Wallet sized cards were introduced in 1944 and switched to a plastic credit card style in 1991. Certificates suitable for framing were first issued in 1944. As the honorary president of the BSA, the signature of the President of the United States appeared on all certificates except from late 1999 to 2002. Replacement of a card or certificate can be made by application through the National Eagle Scout Association (NESA).

After becoming an Eagle Scout
About four percent of Scouts attain the Eagle Scout rank, and many have become notable for accomplishments in their later life and career. Eagle Scouts are expected to set an example for other Scouts and to become the leaders in life that they have demonstrated themselves to be in Scouting. They are disproportionately represented in the military, service academy graduates, major professions, business and politics. Eagle Scout is the only Boy Scout rank that is recognized on an adult Scouter's uniform, worn as an adult recognition of the youth award as a red white and blue square knot. The title of "Eagle Scout" is held for life, thus giving rise to the phrase "Once an Eagle, always an Eagle". Eagle Scouts can join the National Eagle Scout Association (NESA), which serves as a fellowship and communications board for all Eagle Scouts.

The Distinguished Eagle Scout Award (DESA) is a special award, given only to Eagle Scouts, for distinguished service in their profession and the community for a period of at least 25 years after earning the Eagle Scout rank. Only about 1 in 1000 of all Eagle Scouts have been honored with this prestigious award. Eagle Scouts who enlist in the U.S. military may receive advanced rank in recognition of their achievements.

NESA directly administers several Eagle Scout scholarships. {{cite web | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | year = | url =http://www.nesa.org/scholarships/