Archives for January 2024

Some of the behind the scenes movers and shakers to make the NCAC Potomac District Klondike Derby weekend a success!
Thanks for all the participants!

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Scouting CARES (Character, Achievement, Respect, Education, and STEM) provides students with engaging programs with a focus on character development and leadership. NCAC’s CARES program partners with schools and communities that would benefit from a vibrant Scouting program. Serving almost 300 students across five different schools!

CARES students from St. Francis Xavier School received their Belts and Belt Loop Badges after completing the first 8 weeks of the 16-week curriculum. Notable belt loops earned included Howling at the Moon, Adventures in Coins, Tiger Bites, and Call of the Wild, among others. Howling at the Moon had students communicating in creative ways, while Tigers Bites taught them the joys of healthy eating and handwashing. Adventures in Coin introduced them to the fascinating world of currency, and Games Tigers Play emphasized the power of teamwork. Call of the Wild? It’s all about being prepared with a first aid kit and mastering knots!  Eager to continue their journey, the students expressed enthusiasm for acquiring more badges in the future.

Suitland Elementary School  3rd- 5th graders received their Belt Loops and Belt Loop Badges after completing half of their CARES curriculum. The 3rd graders earned a few badges including Howling at the Moon, Adventures in Coins, Tiger Bites, and Call of the Wild.

A significant highlight of the fall 2023 program was the field trip to the College Park Aviation Museum by Suitland Elementary School. These field trips expose students to new experiences as a substitute for traditional scouting activities. Exciting plans for 2024 include visits to the Air and Space Museum, The University of Maryland Greenhouse, and the Monuments in Washington D.C. Along with continuing to engage with possible new schools.  

As the Distinguished Conservation Service Award (DCSA) program gains traction in the National Capital Area Council (NCAC) and as youth become interested in pursuing Boy Scouts of America’s most prestigious conservation award, we thought the following examples from NCAC would help youth, their DCSA Advisors, their Conservation Advisors, and their unit leaders better understand the DCSA program and requirements.

DCSA project categories

• Energy conservation
• Soil and water conservation
• Fish and wildlife management
• Forestry and range management
• Air and water pollution control
• Resource recovery (recycling)
• Hazardous material disposal and management
• Invasive species control
• Pollinator Habitat Conservation

To date, NCAC youth have not identified a conservation issue or need in all nine of these categories, so we do not have NCAC examples in every category. As the DCSA program becomes more popular in our council, we hope to have examples in all nine categories. Some blogs below refer to the Hornaday Award, which predates the current DCSA program.

Soil & Water Conservation
Scout Restores Ravine in Potomac Overlook Park 

Forestry and Range Management
DCSA Forest Restoration for Tomorrow

Fish & Wildlife Conservation
Distinguished Conservation Service Award Projects 

Resource Recovery (recycling)
Match Point for Sustainability 
Reel-In and Recycle!

Invasive Species Control
Hornaday Project Earns Eagle Scout the County’s Most Prestigious Environmental Award 
Hornaday/Eagle Project: Stopping the Invasive Plant Invasion 
Hornaday Badge Project “Evicting the Invaders”
Boo Berry Yay Fern: A project to save our native plants 

Pollinator Habitat Conservation
Life Scout Builds Half-Acre Monarch Pollinator Habitat in Poolesville, MD 
Poolesville Scout Awarded a National Conservation Medal 

Some helpful reminders:

• Identify a DCSA Advisor
• The young person must follow the scientific approach by beginning with the identification of a conservation issue or need in the local area. Do not start with a project idea, start with a problem or need.
• The young person will compile or collect data and/or observations to better understand the conservation issue or need
• The young person will research the issue to identify ‘alternatives’, one of which will become the project
• Projects must be based on sound scientific principles and practices
• Projects must contribute to sound conservation and environmental improvement
• The young person will provide comprehensive observations showing the effect of the project on the identified conservation issue.
• The young person will demonstrate clearly outstanding efforts in planning, leadership, execution of plans, and involvement of others beyond the BSA unit
• The young person must provide opportunities to help others learn about natural resource conservation and environmental improvement
• In most cases, implementation of a traditional service project will not meet the requirements for the DCSA program
• The BSA training for a DCSA adviser is a great resource for interested youth, leaders and parents to get a better idea of the size, scope and time required for a single DCSA project

DCSA resources:
BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Award Program 
BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Award Project Workbook
Executive Summary Template
Complete list of award requirements

Hill H., a NCAC Scout from Maryland, created wearable devices to aid visually-impaired individuals. Hill’s invention earned him the Lemelson Early Inventor Prize. This award from the Lemelson Foundation recognizes and celebrates the achievements of individuals who have “demonstrated early excellence in inventing solutions to real-world challenges.”

Read the full story published by the Society for Science at this link:
Middle schooler creates sonar-enabled wearables to help visually impaired