The second session of the Law Merit Badge will be held this Thursday in the Social Hall at RPC. Scouts who were not at the meeting last week can still participate but will have to make up the material covered last week. All scouts should bring pen/pencil and paper (or print out merit badge workbook found here: http://meritbadge.org/wiki/images/e/e5/Law.pdf)

Scouts should have the merit badge book (available at the Scout Store) and should review it before the meeting.

Scouts interested in earning the Snow Sports Merit Badge are invited to the Riverside Library this Saturday, February 11, at 3:00 p.m. Scouts should bring their Blue Cards, the snow sports worksheet, and the merit badge book.

It’s not too late to sign up for our Ski Trip on February 25-26 (registration deadline February 19). More information is available at http://troop24riverside.com/2012/01/sunburst-ski-trip-feb-25-26/

Beginning this Thursday, February 9, and continuing for the next several troop meetings, scouts will be working on the Law Merit Badge. All scouts are eligible to participate. They will be working with Merit Badge Counselor Chris Robling. We will meet in the Social Hall of the church this week. Scout should bring a spiral notebook and pen/pencil. Scouts will also need the Law Merit Badge book–if not at the first meeting, please have it by next week.

At the Troop meeting, this Thursday, January 26, our scouts will be working on merit badges.

Scouts in high school, and who are Star or Life rank, will be working with Rick Andersen on the Family Life Merit Badge.

All other scouts will be working on the Scholarship Merit Badge. Assuming the scout meets the requirements for good grades, there is only one requirement (Requirement 5) that must be completed outside of the meeting, and that can be done before Thursday and signed off on Thursday, or it can be completed later. Stephanie Lanken will be the merit badge counselor, and several of our leaders will be assisting with some of the requirements.

Requirement 1:

• Show that you have had an average grade of B or higher for one term or semester OR
• Show that for one term or semester you have improved your school grades over the previous period.

To fulfill this requirement, scouts should bring a copy of their report card (or in the case of District 96, a printout from PowerSchool for Grade History) for the 1st semester of the current school year (and if necessary the spring 2011 semester to show improvement).

Mrs. Lanken will be checking off grades. Please reinforce to your scout that there is no need to “share” their grades with other scouts at the meeting.

Scouts will also need to bring their assignment notebooks (Requirement 2c-using a daily planner show your counselor how you keep track of assignments).

They will also need proof that their behavior has been satisfactory (Requirement 3). In the case of Hauser students, this can be printouts from PowerSchool for each class showing that the scout has received a 01 04 rating in the Teacher Comments section (01 Commendable Effort 04 Commendable Conduct). Now that Hauser does not send out paper grades, you have to go to Grade History and then click on the % for each class to see the Effort/Conduct grade. An alternative way to meet Requirement 3 is to get a note from the principal of the school that states that during the past year your behavior, leadership, and service have been satisfactory. In the case of Hauser, the note can come from Ms. Berman, Mrs. Westin, or Mr. Wolf. If you plan to ask for a note from an administrator, we suggest the scout take a copy of the Scholarship worksheet to the school official: http://meritbadge.org/wiki/images/b/bf/Scholarship.pdf

Outside of the meeting the scout must do ONE of the following:
a. Write a report of 250-300 words about how the education you receive in school will be of value to you in the future and how you will continue to educate yourself in the future.
b. Write a report of 250-300 words about two careers that interest you and how specific classes and good scholarship in general will help you achieve your career goals.

Because the class size for the Fermilab Nuclear Science Merit Badge was limited to 12, we had more scout interest than available space. For those who did not sign up for the Fermilab outing (January 28, NOT January 21 as one of our posts mistakenly indicated), you have another opportunity. DPVC provides this information:

In conjunction with National Engineers Week, the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) is hosting an engineering fair and other activities at its Rice Campus. The purpose of the engineering fair is to communicate what engineers do, and attract young people to careers in science, technology, and engineering. The fair’s open house will consist of presentations and hands-on demonstrations by local professional engineering societies and businesses. Visit www.dupageeweek.iit.edu for more information. A Nuclear Science merit badge class for Boy Scouts will be offered on February 18, 2012. The open house and other activities will be held on February 25, 2012. The open house and the merit badge program are free.

The merit badge class will run from approximately 7:30 a.m. to 12:15 pm. Scouts need to bring “blue cards” and a copy of the merit badge book (2010 edition) with them. Registered counselors, Pedro Kong and B. J. Andrews, from the Calumet and DesPlaines Valley Councils respectively will sign the blue cards. Registration will only be accepted from 7:00 p.m. on January 31 through 7:00 p.m. on February 1, 2012. Registration is required due to the limited spaces in the class. For more information and to register, send email to AtomicEnergyMB2004@hotmail.com. Please provide the name of those attending, phone number, council name, and troop number in your email. Registration will be processed within three days and you will be informed if you are accepted or not.

IIT Rice Campus is located in Wheaton at 201 East Loop Road. Take the Naperville Road Exit off the East-West Tollway (I-88) going north towards Wheaton. Follow the sign to Naperville Road. Proceed north on Naperville Road to Butterfield Road (Rt. 56). Turn east on Butterfield Road and proceed to East Loop Road (about one mile). Turn north on East Loop Road. IIT Rice campus should be visible within one block.

Interested scouts from Troop 24 should sign up individually as described above. Our Council name is DesPlaines Valley.

This Saturday, January 21, scouts who have started but not completed the American Heritage, Reading, or First Aid Merit Badges are invited to join Scoutmasters Robertson and Lanken at the Riverside Library from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. A room has been reserved for the scouts, so this will be a great time to finish those badges. Scouts should bring their merit badge books and worksheets. Blank worksheets are available at http://meritbadge.org/wiki/index.php/Merit_Badge_Worksheets Contact Mr. Robertson with questions.

We have filled the two remaining spots for the Nuclear Science Merit Badge class on January 21.

The Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago offers monthly Archeology Merit Badge classes. Several of our scouts are signed up for this merit badge class on Saturday, January 21, noon-2:00 p.m. Any scouts who are interested in joining them can register directly with the Institute by calling 773-702-9507. The cost is $15 per scout. Please call the Institute or e-mail oi-education@uchicago.edu for more information.

Troop 24 is planning an outing to Fermi Lab in Batavia to complete the Nuclear Science merit badge on Saturday, January 28.

Scouts should be dropped off at the RPC at 11:00 a.m. We will return at approximately 3:00 p.m. The cost for this outing is $5. This registration is limited to the first 12 scouts to both register and pay. The scouts should wear their Class A uniforms. All materials are provided, but scouts may choose to look up the merit badge requirements on-line and review the workbook . Scouts should eat before being dropped off.

Contact Dawn Gmitro with questions.

Please fill out the registration form here: http://troop24riverside.com/2012/01/nuclear-science-merit-badge/