The Distinguished Eagle Scout Award (DESA) is a distinguished service award of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). It is awarded to an Eagle Scout for distinguished service in his profession and to his community for a period of at least twenty-five years after attaining the level of Eagle Scout. Other requirements include significant accomplishment in one's career and a solid record of continued community volunteer involvement. It is the only BSA award given to adults that is dependent upon the recipient's association in the BSA as a youth. Recipients are known as Distinguished Eagle Scouts.

Award

The award consists of a gold eagle suspended from a red, white, and blue ribbon worn around the neck. Recipients may wear a small gold eagle device on the Eagle Scout square knot on the Scout uniform.^[1] The eagles use the same design as on the Eagle Scout medal. The Distinguished Eagle Scout medal is worn in place of the regular Eagle Scout medal for Eagle Scout-related ceremonies. The recipient is also presented with an engraved bronze plaque and is made a member of the Board of Regents of the National Eagle Scout Association.

History

The DESA was first introduced in 1969 and awarded by the National Eagle Scout Association.^[2][3]

Prior to the establishment of the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award, the first and only "gold Eagle Scout badge" was awarded to Dan Beard at the Second National Training Conference of Scout Executives held in 1922 in Blue Ridge, North Carolina.^[4]

As of the end of 2005, 1,835,410 Scouts had earned the rank of Eagle. Since its introduction in 1969, the DESA has only been awarded to just under 2000 of those Scouts.^[5] Thus, only about 1 of every 1000 Eagle Scouts has received the award.

Recipients

References