Advancements, Patches, and Awards
Each unit designates a Unit Advancement Chair who purchases advancement ranks for the unit. Once adult leaders (Unit Leader, Committee Chair, or Advancement Chair) have confirmed Scout rank completion, the unit Advancement Chair will need to complete the Unit Advancement Report form to purchase any of the ranks at the Council office or San Leandro Scout Shop. All rank advancements (Cub Scouts: Lion, Bobcat, Tiger, Wolf, Bear, Webelos, Arrow of Light, and Scouts BSA: Scout, Tenderfoot, 2nd Class, 1st Class, Star, Life) require the name of the Scout, leader signature, the rank they earned, and the date it was earned. Read below for details on purchasing Eagle Awards.
Parents can purchase replacement badges at the Council office; originals are purchased by the Unit Advancement Chair.
The unit Advancement Chair uses the national BSA website app, Internet Advancement, or Scoutbook to prepare the Unit Advancement Report form, which must be signed by the Unit Leader, Committee Chair, or Advancement Chair.
The program provides a printout of the required information for each Scout. The program also creates a shopping list with the number of badges you’ll need to purchase.
Required Signatures: It is permissible for unit leaders and board of review members to sign a completed copy of the Unit Advancement Report found at www.scouting.org/forms. This signed report may then be attached to the electronically generated report and submitted to the Piedmont Council.
The Unit Advancement Chair creates a list of Cub Scouts that have earned belt loops and pins. No form needed, just a total of each item to purchase at the Council office.
Parents can purchase replacement belt loops and pins at the Council office; originals are purchased by the Unit Advancement Chair.
The Unit Advancement Chair purchases merit badges for Scouts in troops/team/crews. They will need to submit a Unit Advancement Report form, which includes the name of the Scout, the merit badge, and the date it was earned. Be sure to record the date the badge was earned, not the date of the court of honor or purchase date.
Parents can purchase replacement badges at the Council office; originals are purchased by the Unit Advancement Chair.
The Council provides an Eagle Award kit for the new Eagle Scout at no charge, which contains the Eagle Scout medal, rank patch, parent pins, and mentor pin. To purchase an additional medal or rank patch, or to replace a lost or destroyed medal or patch, you will need to show proof at the Council office with either your wallet card or certificate. You may buy additional parent or mentor pins without additional proof.
Purchasing Eagle Scout Palms requires a special form. This form requires documentation of the Eagle Scout date, previous Palms earned dates, and five merit badges for that particular palm. You’ll also need the date of the unit leader conference and the unit leader’s signature. Piedmont Council record information does not need to be completed to purchase a Palm.
There are a number of Venturing awards that can be earned, including: Venturing, Discovery, Pathfinder, Summit, Ranger, Quest, Trust, and Quartermaster. To purchase these awards, the crew or ship Advancement Chair should complete a Unit Advancement Report, listing the Scout’s name, award, and date earned. The form is signed by the crew advisor and board of review members.
The Summit Award requires the Venturing Summit Award Application. This application is similar to the Eagle Scout Rank Application and is processed by the Council.
The Council office staff is available to help select patches for youth or adult uniforms. They also have instruction sheets showing where the patches should go.
There are many other youth activity awards that Scouts can earn. Some require a completed individual form to purchase, for example: Outdoor Ethics, Emergency Preparedness, National Outdoor Award, 50 Miler Award, SCUBA, kayaking, and BSA Lifeguard. Some awards can be purchased without additional forms, for example: Whittlin’ chip, Totem chip, Fireman chit, monthly themes, recruiter, interpreter, and more. Search the Scouting.org website for additional awards and forms.