Merit Badge Counselors

ABOUT BEING A MERIT BADGE COUNSELOR
Share your knowledge with Scouts. Merit badge counselors teach Scouts a variety of skills. From American Business to Woodwork, there’s a badge for everything. All merit badge counselors must be registered with the Boy Scouts of America and approved by the Mayflower Council for each badge listed on the Merit Badge Counselor Information form.

REGISTRATION
The Mayflower Council has the responsibility of approving and maintaining a list of current merit badge counselors. A merit badge counselor is a council-level position, not a troop position, which means leaders must submit a new adult leader application even if already registered in another capacity.

There are four steps for a new merit badge counselor to register with the Boy Scouts of America and begin merit badge counseling:

1. Complete Online Youth Protection Training
- To become a merit badge counselor, a volunteer must complete youth protection training which can be found on My.Scouting.org. Once complete, you will be offered the opportunity to print or save a completion certificate. It is a good idea to save a copy for your records.
2. Complete Online Adult Leader Application
- Having completed youth protection training, you need to complete a new adult application. This form is required, even if you hold a current registration with your unit or district. Use the link below to register.

Adult Leader Application

3. Complete the Online Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) Form
- Individuals who aren’t currently registered, or have had a lapse in registration, will also need to complete the online CORI form.

CORI Form for volunteer leaders

4. Complete the Online Merit Badge Counselor Information Form
- This form is used by the Mayflower Council to know which merit badges you want to teach, to show why you are qualified to teach the listed merit badges, and to approve your request. Merit badge counselors are authorized to counsel anywhere within the Mayflower Council.

COMPLETE MERIT BADGE COUNSELOR INFORMATION FORM

MERIT BADGE COUNSELOR REGISTRATION CONSIDERATIONS

There is no fee for registering as a merit badge counselor even if you are only registered with the Boy Scouts of America as a merit badge counselor.
You must be current with Youth Protection Training to work with Scouts and this training must be completed every two (2) years. The council may track this requirement but it is your responsibility to remain current. Failure to keep up to date on youth protection training will also result in being dropped from the list. If a merit badge counselor is dropped from the council list the dropped counselor will have to re-register as a new counselor again.
Several merit badges involve activities for which BSA has implemented strategies to improve safety, improve the Scouts’ experience, and manage risk. These activities often require supervision with specialized qualifications and certifications. Merit badge counselors who do not meet the specific requirements may use the services of others who do. See the Guide to Advancement paragraph 7.0.1.1 for these merit badges and their requirements.
Consider not limiting yourself to only those Scouts in your troop. Many of the less popular merit badges may not have a counselor in their troop and you could help scouts pursue an interest in an area where you have some expertise.

SCOUTBOOK
Once registered with the BSA as a merit badge counselor, your merit badge counselor position will be added to Scoutbook. If you do not already have a Scoutbook account, an account will be created for you and you will be sent login information by email. You can adjust how you display on the list. Sign onto Scoutbook (if you misplace your login credentials, click login then click the Forgot Password link.) Once you login you will be able to adjust your listing preference between: Council list, District list, Unit list, Worldwide or Not Listed.

For detailed instructions on how to use Scoutbook as a merit badge counselor review this resource Scoutbook Merit Badge Counselor Guide.

If you are a merit badge counselor and your listing is not showing in Scoutbook follow these directions to find out if you are registered as a merit badge counselor:

Log into http://my.scouting.org
Select My Dashboard (upper left)
Then select My Profile. You can edit your contact information there. Make sure your email address, ZIP and phone number are there and up to date. Scoutbook requires a valid email address, ZIP and phone number to be listed.
Make sure your email address is not used by someone else in your family in Scoutbook. Email addresses in Scoutbook must be unique.
If you are registered as a merit badge counselor it will show there as well.
While your at my.scouting.org, make sure your Youth Protection Training is current.
If you know for sure you are registered with the council, check and make sure your Youth Protection Training is current and sync it inside Scoutbook. Scoutbook will not show merit badge counselors with expired youth protection training. The list in Scoutbook is updated on a regular basis.
For information on how to register as a merit badge counselor see above.

USEFUL LINKS FOR MERIT BADGE COUNSELORS

ANNUAL RENEWAL OF MERIT BADGE COUNSELORS
All merit badge counselors must confirm their registration annually. In May of each year, currently registered merit badge counselors will be sent an email to confirm their desire to continue as a merit badge counselor. Failure to confirm this information will result in being dropped from the merit badge counselor list.

If a merit badge counselor who was dropped wishes to continue as a merit badge counselor he/she must register as a new merit badge counselor again using the forms and processes listed above.

QUESTIONS
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