Boy Scouts of America announces name change to Scouting America, in effect next year
Boy Scout uniforms are shown, Feb. 18, 2020, in the retail store at the headquarters for the French Creek Council of the Boy Scouts of America in Summit Township, Erie County, Pennsylvania.
For the first time in its history, Boy Scouts of America is changing its name to the more inclusive Scouting America.
The scouting organization announced the name change in a release on Tuesday, noting the rebrand reflects the “ongoing commitment to welcome every youth and family in America to experience the benefits of Scouting.”
The name change will go into effect Feb. 8, 2025, on the organization’s 115th anniversary.
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The name change from Boy Scouts of America to Scouting America comes in the wake of scandals and upheaval in the organization, including lawsuits from former scouts claiming sexual abuse.
The organization in recent years has opened its doors to girls, gay youth and gay leaders to join. Gay youth were allowed to join 2013, with a ban on gay leaders ending in 2015. Then in 2017, Boy Scouts announced that girls would be accepted into Cub Scouts the following year and into a separate Scouts division in 2019. In 2021, the first group of nearly 1,000 girls and young women around the country had achieved the prestigious rank of Eagle Scout.
Those changes did not stop the financial woes for the organization, however. In 2020, amid declining membership and ongoing child sexual abuse allegations, the organization filed for bankruptcy. Last year, the organization agreed to pay $2.46 billion to settle claims of sexual abuse to former Boy Scouts.
More than 130 Americans have been through scouting programs since it was founded in 1910, and more than 2.75 million young adults to date have achieved the rank of Eagle Scout, per the organization.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Boy Scouts of America announces name change to Scouting America, in effect next year