User Journey: As a council I need to restrict the unit leadership from performing final sign off as “Earned” any advancement rank or award that requires Council approval. This is to prevent scouts from achieving awards or advancement they are not authorized. The option currently exists which, if approved at the unit level, completely bypasses Council and National requirements and places the approval in the Scouts permanent national records even if they have not met 100% of the requirements for the rank or award.
Requirement:
- Ability to restrict the approval rights for advancement and award overall “Earned” to only Council level persona/permission levels.
- Ability to provide a popup message letting unauthorized approvers know they are not allowed to select an advancement or award as “Earned” and this must be done by their Council.
Affected advancement and award: Eagle Scout, National Medal for Outdoor Achievement
Attachment:
@GlennWoodson - unit leaders can not mark items like that completed. I just looked at my son’s eagle and it was marked completed and approved by our registrar
Yeah it is locked down - @GlennWoodson if you provide BSA #s of the Scout and user we can take a look
on the medal am gonna have to check that - I think some SE’s wanted to reduce council work
That approver is also a Council Admin
@GlennWoodson the Eagle is correct - she is council staff
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@GlennWoodson on the medal - National approval is not required - Bottom of App
Upon completion and unit leader signature, the award should be submitted using Internet Advancement
(preferred) or by sending a copy of the signed application to the local council service center. Submittal
is not required for the devices. Once the award application is submitted, the badges, devices or medal
can be obtained from the local Scout Shop by presenting the completed Internet Advancement report or
a copy of the signed application with the appropriate fee.
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Thanks for the quick response. There is not a specific scout right now. These are issues we have seen at the unit level for a number of years. It may appear to be locked down but I literally just retested this on scouts within my unit for both eagle scout rank and NMOA and I was able to input Earn dates as well as the checkboxes for Approved/Recorded and Awarded. I then logged out, logged, verified the records still showed incorrect data and then deleted the earn dates.
For the NMOA, eight months ago I withdrew 3 awards that were mistakenly given to scouts in my unit due to a misunderstanding of our advancement coordinator who over 18 months prior incorrectly thought the NOAP center emblem was recorded in Scoutbook as the NMOA.
yes entering complete date for eagle is totally legit - as that is complete and not approved. It does not flow to the full record until council approves it.
On the Medals you made the mistake and went against the Guide to Advancement.
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thanks. Go find a life scout in your unit with everything done, and if you are authorized key 3 (I am) and see if you can approve the at unit level. I can and did in the last 24 hours for one of my life scouts. I then later removed.
Yes the Registrar is supposed to do this. But as unit leader, I should not be able to make an entry even if it is not pushed into the national database.
What I know for a fact is that a prior advancement coordinator did do this for the NMOA for a scout 2 years prior to him ever achieving it. It is literally in his national record as verified today by our council. He had not earned it per the date in the national database record printed today. It is ultimately ok but only because the scout eventually did the work and would have later earned it. BUT that is more fortune and luck then planning since the scout did not even know they had acheived the award (phone call with him today).
@GlennWoodson - I just looked at one of my life scouts ( i am CC) all I could do is marked earned date and clicking back into it is just the earned date no approvals…
Thanks on the advancement. As for NMOA, ok. I did not make these entries but I greatly value the integrity of the award. I have found at least 4 scouts in my unit that were given it incorrectly (including my son 2 years ago) and honestly am guessing that at least 8 others who likely received it (all aged out) now that I know what I am looking for. Nothing to do now. But, a software fix to prevent this type of action already exists in other awards.
I am sure that our prior advancement coordinator is not the only one to mistake the NMOA for the center badge in Scoutbook since the center badge is an add-on that comes with the first awarded segment.
I would like this software fix since with <1% of scouts achieving, it is a disservice to approve these to both the scouts earned and unearned. BSA directs us to not punish a scout and withdraw awards given by adult mistakes. But, like the eagle scout award, the NMOA, is not just an award: it is the culminating award for outdoor activities.
This is Eagle - just a complete date field (as an SM I never fill it in cause that way I look on day and the Scout is an Eagle and I know the paperwork is done - but some like it)
Where this is other ranks - with Approved Checkbox making it official
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@GlennWoodson on the medal - talk to that committee - read the app - it clearly says the unit approves it
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Thanks. I know the one in the sample mockup attachment was approved correctly. It is a mockup only and the scout is my son. 
@GlennWoodson - no matter what I do I find no way to approve the eagle rank. I would love to see screen shots of where you could do that.
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I see what you are saying and agree. Here is a screenshot of what I just redid as a sample for one of my Life Scouts. Officially he stil has to submit his eagle application and complete his EBOR. But this the screen I just created. Maybe it is just my permissions then and not right. I will check with council tomorrow.
thanks.
@GlennWoodson do you have a moment for a screenshare?
Maybe it is just a council thing then. As a SKU 66 national level item, the scout shop cannot purchase without approval of council is what we are told and how we procure. But if not, then I will jsut remove this request completely though in principle I agree on restricted approval and inventory control given the nature of the award. Thanks, Glenn
Actually I don’t right now; have to get to a planning commission meeting. But can later. I can also take what you have here and talk to Bel tomorrow. She and I are also due for a catchup on one of my soon to age out scouts.
