SUNY Fredonia Executive Vice President and Provost David Starrett welcomes some 400 scouts and adult leaders at the University of Scouting event held on the campus.
Boy Scouts of America Merit Badges by the hundreds – plus a bonus introduction to college life at SUNY Fredonia – were what approximately 400 Scouts and adult leaders took home with them from the University of Scouting program.
The event on the SUNY Fredonia campus was organized by the Allegheny Highlands Council BSA that serves youth in Western New York and parts of Central Pennsylvania.
“The day was great; it was phenomenal” said Paul Starcher, SUNY Fredonia graduate admissions counselor and member of the executive board of the Allegheny Highlands BSA Council, in describing the day-long Oct. 5 gathering held on the campus during the semester fall break.
Allegheny Highlands Council BSA serves youth in Chautauqua, Allegany and Cattaraugus counties in New York and Potter and McKean counties in Pennsylvania.
SUNY Fredonia Executive Vice President and Provost David Starrett welcomed the scouts where they assembled in the Williams Center Multipurpose Room. A former scout, Dr. Starrett shared memories of working with his two sons on their Eagle Scout projects.
Village of Fredonia Mayor Doug Essek also shared stories about his scouting experiences.
More than 20 different merit badges – in diverse categories such as space exploration, geology, citizenship, building trades, robotics, theatre, geocaching and plumbing – were awarded to the Boy Scouts, ages 11 to 17, to advance their scouting rank. Ten SUNY Fredonia faculty – representing Geology, Biology, Computer Information Systems, Education and Physics – and staff, taught most of the sessions.
“The Scouts were able to interact with college faculty and do experiments with them, which might make them interested in a future career in that area” - Paul Starcher
“In geocaching that I taught, we used GPS devices to find containers that were hidden in the woods,” said Department of Computer and Information Sciences Adjunct Lecturer Gregory Cole.
Even though it rained during their three-mile hike across the campus, the scouts were prepared for the weather, noted Mr. Cole, a longtime scoutmaster in Silver Creek, NY. He’s also a former Eagle Scout and father of two sons who became Eagle Scouts.
“That’s their motto; they were ready, and had their boots and rain gear with them,” Cole said.
Adult sessions concentrated on organizational skills as well as information relating to newer hiking and camping gear, leadership development and new outdoor cooking recipes for future troop gatherings. All merit badge sessions were housed in the Williams Center, Science Center, Houghton Hall and Michael C. Rockefeller Arts Center.
“The scouts were able to interact with college faculty and do experiments with them, which might make them interested in a future career in that area,” Mr. Starcher explained. Tours of the campus were also given, and the scouts were treated to lunch at Cranston Marché.
“I know that they loved Cranston; the scouts really went after the ice cream bar,” Starcher added. “Overall, it was a great way to introduce scouts to the Fredonia campus and to what it’s like to be in a college environment.”
Many of the scouts had never been on the campus before, Starcher noted, “so this was a way to introduce them to Fredonia and to our faculty.”
To commemorate the event and its location, the SUNY Fredonia logo was placed on the University of Scouting patch.
Several vendors also set up displays. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service erected an inflatable archery range, which used soft-tip arrows, that was popular with the scouts, Starcher said. Prizes were awarded to the most skilled archers.
While the Allegheny Highlands Council serves Western New York youth, this University of Scouting program also attracted scouts from other councils that serve New York state, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Illinois.
