Irving, Texas – Scouting America, formerly known as the Boy Scouts of America, is embarking on a significant strategic shift, publicly reasserting its foundational values and strengthening its long-standing ties with the U.S. military. The organization, headquartered in Irving, Texas, has recently taken concrete steps to address criticisms that it had strayed from its core mission, including policy changes announced by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on February 27, 2026.
Chief Scout Executive Roger Krone has emerged as a key figure in articulating this renewed direction, engaging in public discussions and outlining the organization's identity. Under his leadership, Scouting America has discontinued a merit badge focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), replacing it with a new badge centered on military service. This change is part of a broader agreement with the Pentagon, finalized in February 2026, which restored the Department of Defense’s formal partnership with Scouting America after Defense Secretary Hegseth had previously threatened to sever ties. The Department of War had earlier stated on YouTube, “The Department of War has officially put Scouting America on notice.”
Alongside the renewed partnership, a tangible benefit has been extended to military families: registration fees for children of active-duty, National Guard, and Reserve military members are now waived. This initiative directly acknowledges and reinforces the historic bond between scouting and the armed forces, a connection that dates back to the program's inception.
Krone has frequently highlighted the military origins of the scouting movement. Lieutenant General Robert Baden-Powell, a decorated British officer, founded the program in February 1910 as a structured response to the challenges faced by unsupervised children in post-Industrial Revolution London. Krone explained to Fox News, "There were kids in London that were getting in trouble because they had too much time on their hands. And so we started using these military tactics, learning how to track animals and using compasses and these things, to keep kids occupied."
This founding philosophy, Krone asserts, has been a consistent thread throughout Scouting America’s history. Scouts traditionally wear the American flag on their Class-A uniforms from their entry as Cub Scouts through achieving the Eagle Scout rank. Every meeting continues to open with the Pledge of Allegiance and the Scout Oath, which includes pledges to honor God, country, and law, underscoring the organization's patriotic and faith-based underpinnings. Krone emphasized this, stating, “We are a very faith-based, faith-driven organization, very patriotic, we love God and country and so yeah, we strive very hard to be apolitical these days.” Approximately 70 percent of all sponsoring organizations for individual troops are religious institutions, with the Catholic Church holding the largest number of unit charters nationwide.
The connection between scouting and national service is evident in various statistics. Fifteen percent of all current military academy cadets are Eagle Scouts. Since 1910, over 130 million Americans have participated in the program. Krone further drew a parallel to American achievement, noting, “In fact, I think all but one of the men that walked on the moon were Scouts. There is [also] a tendency for a certain percentage of membership to want to trade their Scout uniforms for military uniforms: we have a long tradition with the military.”
The White House has also reflected this tradition. President John F. Kennedy was the first Scout to reach the presidency. President Gerald Ford holds the distinction of being the only Commander-in-Chief to have earned the Eagle Scout rank. President Jimmy Carter, though not a Scout himself, received the BSA’s Silver Buffalo Award for his contributions to the program in Georgia. Scouting’s internal honor society, the Order of the Arrow, established in 1915 by E. Urner Goodman, recognizes Scouts demonstrating exceptional commitment to service.
In a recent development, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that Scouting America would reinstate the separation of males and females in showers, tents, and private spaces. This decision, conveyed via a social media post on February 27, 2026, also confirmed a further rollback of the group’s DEI policies, following public pressure. This move comes after Scouting America faced sustained criticism for its earlier decision to admit girls into programs previously exclusively for boys. Krone addressed the admission of girls by emphasizing that rank requirements have remained unchanged based on gender. He stated, “Whether you’re a young man in a program or a young woman in a program, you do the same exact thing.” The recent announcement by Secretary Hegseth appears to clarify the organization's approach to gender-separated facilities within this broader context. These changes signal a deliberate effort by Scouting America to return to what its leadership characterizes as its historical mission and values.
