The Chief Scout Executive is the top
professional
A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skil ...
of the National Council of the
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants. The BSA was founded i ...
. In most similar non-profit organizations, this is equivalent to the position of CEO,
national
executive director
Executive director is commonly the title of the chief executive officer of a non-profit organization, government agency or international organization.
The title is widely used in North American and European not-for-profit organizations, though ...
or
secretary general
Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...
.
Roger Mosby
Roger C. Mosby is the President, CEO, and 14th Chief Scout Executive of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), having succeeded the retiring Michael B. Surbaugh on December 29, 2019. He was previously Vice President of Human Resources for Kinder Mo ...
is the current Chief Scout Executive, succeeding
Michael B. Surbaugh
Michael B. Surbaugh was the 13th Chief Scout Executive of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), having succeeded the retiring Wayne Brock on October 1, 2015. He was previously Group Director of HR, Innovation, Exploring and Learning for Life for the ...
in December 2019.
Mosby was initially title President and CEO (not being a
professional Scouter
The Boy Scouts of America is an organization run by volunteers, however the day-to-day administration is performed by a staff of professional (or career) Scouters. The organization has professional staffing at every level—district, council, reg ...
), however in May 2021 Mosby received a commission as a professional Scouter and was appointed to the Chief Scout Executive position in May 2021.
This position should not be confused with the position of Chief Scout. Many National Scout associations still use this position; however, it is always for a volunteer position, not a paid one. In the BSA, only three people (
Ernest Thompson Seton
Ernest Thompson Seton (born Ernest Evan Thompson August 14, 1860 – October 23, 1946) was an English-born Canadian-American author, wildlife artist, founder of the Woodcraft Indians in 1902 (renamed Woodcraft League of America), and one of ...
,
James E. West and
Elbert K. Fretwell
Elbert K. Fretwell (1878-1962) was an American academic and early leader in the field of youth development through recreation and extracurricular activity. He served as the second Chief Scout Executive of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), serving ...
) have held the position of Chief Scout, which is separate and distinct from the position of CSE.
History
Edgar M. Robinson
Edgar Munroe Robinson (1867–1951) was Boys' Work Secretary of the International Committee of the YMCA and a long-time director and executive with the YMCA in New York. He is notable for his significant efforts in helping to establish the Boy Sc ...
was the YMCA's first International Secretary for Boys' Work and had written an article in the national YMCA's magazine praising the Scouting program in use at many YMCA's in the country. He saw the need to help
William D. Boyce
William Dickson Boyce (June 16, 1858 – June 11, 1929) was an American newspaper man, entrepreneur, magazine publisher, and explorer. He was the founder of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) and the short-lived Lone Scouts of America (LSA). ...
with the organization of the BSA, met with Boyce on May 3, 1910, and agreed to help Boyce organize the BSA national leadership at its June meeting. He recommended John Alexander, another YMCA executive, be appointed the managing secretary, and Alexander served in that role from June until the end of the year, when the national executive board appointed
James E. West to that position, effective January 1911. West took on the position initially for a sixth month period, settled into the role, and assumed the new position of Chief Scout Executive by agreement with the board in November 1911.
There have been 14 (as of now) men who have served in the position of Chief Scout Executive during the long history of the BSA. All other professional Scouters and employees of the National Council BSA work under the direction of the Chief Scout Executive.
Over the history of the BSA, the sitting Chief Scout Executive has during some periods appointed a Deputy Chief Scout Executive and/or one or more Assistant Chief Scouts Executive. In most cases, these men reported directly to the CSE, but in some cases, an assistant CSE worked under the direction of the Deputy CSE. Although the Deputy CSE has normally been considered the "right hand" person to the Chief Scout Executive, there is not an automatic succession to the top position, which has been filled by appointment by a committee of the national executive board on each occasion that a new Chief Scout Executive was needed.
List of Chief Scout Executives
Deputy Chief Scout Executives
List of Assistant Chief Scouts Executive
See also
*
National Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of America
The National Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of America governs the Boy Scouts of America organization. One source reports that there were 72 members of the board in 2001.
The board is led by the national chair, a volunteer elected by the Nat ...
References
External links
*
{{Scoutorg BSA