Merit Badge College 2024.
The Merit Badge College in 2024 is scheduled for Saturday, February 17, 2024. The event will offer an opportunity to earn up to three of 20 merit badge offerings. Most of the merit badge offerings are related to a STEM area of interest.
The website is now open for registration {https://susquehannabsa.org/2024-merit-badge-college/}.
A prerequisite for every Scout that attends the Merit Badge College is to have a current Cyber Chip; so make sure each Scout has completed the Cyber Chip requirements for their age group with a completion date of 2/1/23 or later.
Please go to and carefully read the information on Be Prepared requirements. Scouts are encouraged to start now to work on the Be Prepared requirements!
Registration closes for the event on February 5, 2024.
Required training for merit badge counselors.
Attention merit badge counselors.
The council has changed the required training policy to require all individuals to complete the position specific training for merit badge counselors prescribed by National BSA to serve as a merit badge counselor in the council, with a phased implementation plan.
The policy: All individuals are required to complete the position-specific training for merit badge counselors prescribed by National BSA to serve as a merit badge counselor in the council. The training is available on-line or scheduled classroom training.
The implementation plan for this change in the required training policy for Merit Badge Counselor training is as follows:
Effective November 1, 2023, all individuals applying for the first time to serve as a merit badge counselor must meet the training requirement as a prerequisite for approval as a counselor.
Effective June 1, 2024, all individuals currently approved to serve as a merit badge counselor must meet the training requirement as a prerequisite for renewal as a counselor. Thus, currently approved counselors that have not completed the training should do so before the end of May 2024.
Registration fee for merit badge counselors.
Attention merit badge counselors.
BSA National has implemented an annual registration fee of $25 for merit badge counselors. However, the payment of this fee is only applicable for adults registered with BSA only as a MB counselor; it is not applicable if the adult is also registered for another adult leader position. The implementation of the fee is as follows:
Effective now, first time applicants to serve as a merit badge counselor must pay the fee to be registered as a MB counselor.
Effective June 1, 2024, any adult currently approved to serve as a merit badge counselor and is not also registered for another adult leader position must pay the fee to re-register.
Eagle Scout Service Project Workbook.
Attention Scouts and unit leaders.
BSA National has published a new version of the Eagle Scout Service Project Workbook, dated February 2023. Eagle Scout candidates must use the most current version of the workbook published by BSA National at the time they begin development of their proposal. Thus, all Scouts must use this version of the Eagle Scout Service Project Workbook, dated February 2023, if they are starting to prepare the project proposal after February 2023.
Updated Merit Badge Requirements.
Attention Scouts, unit leaders, and merit badge counselors.
At the start of every year, BSA National publishes updates to the requirements for selected merit badges. The update of the requirements for a merit badge will include one or more of the following types of changes: 1) modification of a previously established requirement, 2) addition of a new requirement, 3) deletion of a previously established requirement, and/or 4) reordering of previously established requirements.
In 2023, BSA National has updated the requirements for the following thirty (30) merit badges, including eight (8) merit badges that count towards the requirements for the Eagle rank [highlighted]. The updated requirements went into effect on 1/1/2023.
American Business Geology
Animal Science Golf
Archery Hiking
Architecture Inventing
Composite Materials Mammal Study
Cooking Nature
Cycling Personal Fitness
Digital Technology Plant Science
Disabilities Awareness Programming
Emergency Preparedness Reptile and Amphibian Study
Environmental Science Salesmanship
Family Life Small Boat Sailing
Farm Mechanics Snow Sports
Game Design Sports
Genealogy Swimming
Any Scout starting any of these eighteen merit badges in 2023 must meet the new requirements. Anyone can find the most current requirements for every merit badge, including the merit badges with updated requirements, on this site and on the page “The Merit Badge Program”, then finding the “Requirements” section and clicking on the link.
Merit Badge – Citizenship in Society.
The goal of the Citizenship in Society merit badge is to help educate Scouts on what diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are; why they are important; and how to lead ethically and inclusively to contribute to the cultivation of an environment of belonging for all Scouts. This merit badge is one of the educational and awareness initiatives the BSA is implementing to ensure every youth feels welcomed and wholly included, to achieve a sense of belonging with the Scouts, and to prepare them for success in our ever-evolving world.
This merit badge is unique in that it will involve a different experience for the Scout to earn it. The merit badge has no pamphlet that provides the answers or information to meet each requirement. Instead, it will require a Scout to do their own research and to dig as deeply and as detailed as the Scout desires. Scouts should plan for multiple sessions over an extended period of time to complete this merit badge.
Anyone can find the most current requirements for this merit badge on this site and on the page “The Merit Badge Program”, then finding the “Requirements” section and clicking on the link.
The Citizenship in Society merit badge became a required merit badge to earn the rank of Eagle starting on July 1, 2022. The total minimum number of merit badges to earn the rank of Eagle remains as 21.
The Citizenship in Society merit badge is a required merit badge for every Scout that completes one or more of the requirements for the rank of Eagle on July 1, 2022 and thereafter.