Ranger Award
Encyclopedia
The Ranger Award is an award available to youth in the Venturing program and requires the same caliber of work as Boy Scout Eagle Award. It is designed to encourage youths to acquire a high level of proficiency in outdoor skills.
with the BSA universal badge at the top and the word RANGER at the bottom. A powderhorn
is in the center on a green enameled background. The bar is inscribed with RANGER. The Ranger bar is available as a separate item for informal uniform wear. As of mid 2009, there is no square knot insignia.
, although they are more difficult to complete. For example, an Eagle Scout must earn the first aid merit badge, by becoming certified in standard first aid. To earn the first aid elective, a Ranger must compete a 24 hour emergency first aid course and the Red Cross When Help is Delayed Module. There are eight requirements, called Core Requirements, that must be earned by all Ranger Candidates. In addition, a Venturer must complete four out of eighteen requirements, called Electives.
. Although the Ranger program was officially discontinued in 1949, Explorer Scouts could continue work on the Ranger Award until 1951. A total of 2,782 Explorers earned the original Ranger Award between 1944 and 1951.
The Ranger Award was re-introduced by the BSA in 1998 as part of the new Venturing
program. Adam Snyder of Waukegan, Illinois
was the first Venturer to earn the Ranger Award in 1999.
.
Award
The medal is an antique silver colored roundel suspended from a white and green ribbon that is in turn suspended from a bar. The medal is inscribed with a compass roseCompass rose
A compass rose, sometimes called a windrose, is a figure on a compass, map, nautical chart or monument used to display the orientation of the cardinal directions — North, East, South and West - and their intermediate points. It is also the term for the graduated markings found on the traditional...
with the BSA universal badge at the top and the word RANGER at the bottom. A powderhorn
Powder Horn (ammunition)
A powder horn was a device used to carry gunpowder, and was generally created from cow or buffalo horn. They were most commonly used with eighteenth century muskets, but were rendered obsolete by the development of breech loading fire arms, in particular, innovations brought about by Hall, Sharps,...
is in the center on a green enameled background. The bar is inscribed with RANGER. The Ranger bar is available as a separate item for informal uniform wear. As of mid 2009, there is no square knot insignia.
Requirements
To earn the Ranger Award, Venturers must complete requirements similar to Merit BadgesMerit badge (Boy Scouts of America)
Merit badges are awards earned by youth members of the Boy Scouts of America , based on activities within an area of study by completing a list of periodically updated requirements. The purpose of the merit badge program is to allow Scouts to examine subjects to determine if they would like to...
, although they are more difficult to complete. For example, an Eagle Scout must earn the first aid merit badge, by becoming certified in standard first aid. To earn the first aid elective, a Ranger must compete a 24 hour emergency first aid course and the Red Cross When Help is Delayed Module. There are eight requirements, called Core Requirements, that must be earned by all Ranger Candidates. In addition, a Venturer must complete four out of eighteen requirements, called Electives.
Core Requirements
To earn the Ranger Award, all Venturers must earn the following awards:- First AidFirst aidFirst aid is the provision of initial care for an illness or injury. It is usually performed by non-expert, but trained personnel to a sick or injured person until definitive medical treatment can be accessed. Certain self-limiting illnesses or minor injuries may not require further medical care...
- CommunicationCommunicationCommunication is the activity of conveying meaningful information. Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intended recipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast...
s - CookingCookingCooking is the process of preparing food by use of heat. Cooking techniques and ingredients vary widely across the world, reflecting unique environmental, economic, and cultural traditions. Cooks themselves also vary widely in skill and training...
- Emergency Preparedness
- Land NavigationOrienteeringOrienteering is a family of sports that requires navigational skills using a map and compass to navigate from point to point in diverse and usually unfamiliar terrain, and normally moving at speed. Participants are given a topographical map, usually a specially prepared orienteering map, which they...
- Leave No TraceLeave No TraceLeave No Trace is both a set of principles, and an organization that promotes those principles. The principles are designed to assist outdoor enthusiasts with their decisions about how to reduce their impacts when they hike, camp, picnic, snowshoe, run, bike, hunt, paddle, ride horses, fish, ski or...
- Wilderness Survival
- Conservation
Electives
To earn the Ranger Award, Venturers must earn four of the following:- Backpacking
- Cave Exploring
- Cycling/Mountain Biking
- Ecology
- Equestrian
- First Aid (Different from the Core Requirement)
- Fishing
- Hunting
- Lifesaver (Lifeguarding)
- Mountaineering
- Outdoor Living History
- Physical Fitness
- Plants and Wildlife
- Project COPEProject COPEProject COPE is an acronym for Challenging Outdoor Personal Experience, a program in the Boy Scouts of America. It consists of different challenges for groups of scouts that involve teamwork and problem solving, or for individual scouts that test agility and individual skills...
- Scuba
- Shooting Sports
- Watercraft
- Winter Sports
Origins
The first Ranger Medal was issued between 1946 and 1949 as part of the BSA's Explorer Scout ProgramExploring (Learning for Life)
Exploring is a worksite-based program of Learning for Life, a subsidiary of the Boy Scouts of America, for young men and women who are 14 through 20 years old...
. Although the Ranger program was officially discontinued in 1949, Explorer Scouts could continue work on the Ranger Award until 1951. A total of 2,782 Explorers earned the original Ranger Award between 1944 and 1951.
The Ranger Award was re-introduced by the BSA in 1998 as part of the new Venturing
Venturing (Boy Scouts of America)
Venturing is part of the program of the Boy Scouts of America for young adults, men and women, from the age of 14 years old or 13 years old and completed eighth grade through 21....
program. Adam Snyder of Waukegan, Illinois
Waukegan, Illinois
Waukegan is a city and county seat of Lake County, Illinois. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 87,901. The 2010 population was 89,078. It is the ninth-largest city in Illinois by population...
was the first Venturer to earn the Ranger Award in 1999.
For Leaders
Scout Leaders interested in the Ranger award can take the Powder Horn (Boy Scouts of America)Powder Horn (Boy Scouts of America)
Powder Horn is a high adventure resource course for Venturing, Boy Scouting and Varsity Scouting leaders of the Boy Scouts of America . The goals of Powder Horn are to: help Scout leaders to safely conduct outdoor activities of a fun and challenging nature, provide an introduction to the resources...
.