by Christopher B. Beaver
You would be hard pressed to find someone who has not heard of the prestigious Eagle Scout award. Scouting’s highest achievement stands for hard work, knowledge of the outdoors, and leadership skills. Perhaps one of the most ambitious Scouting awards, however, is named after the twentieth century conservationist William T. Hornaday. Founded in 1925, just roughly 1,100 Hornaday awards have been earned nationwide. Compare this to over 150 Eagle awards earned in the Glacier’s Edge Council, serving South-central Wisconsin and Northern Illinois, in 2016 alone. As far back as its founding in 1910, conservation remains one of the core values of the Boy Scouts of America. Today, in order to achieve the earliest ranks of Scouting, boys must learn the Outdoor Code which states that a Scout is “conservation-minded.”
In Madison, one Eagle Scout is making the commitment to his biotic community and has set his sights on earning the Hornaday award. Bailey Sargent, an incoming senior at Madison East High School, began working on what he considers a “next step” after earning the Eagle award in 2015 with a pollinator project aimed at improving bee habitat. Bailey’s motivation in pursuing the project was to help educate his neighbors about the environmental threats to bees and other pollinators, specifically climate change and habitat loss. Bailey understands that pollinators are essential to our survival and he seeks to help spread the word in Wisconsin’s urban communities, beginning with Madison.
Subsequently, Bailey led a drive to remove invasive garlic mustard from Madison’s Northside. Like the threats to pollinators, Bailey is motivated to educate residents about the threats invasive species pose to his community. In addition to garlic mustard, Bailey plans to include European thistles in his future projects. His most ambitious endeavor includes creating and implementing an educator program for Madison schools in which invasive species and watershed conservation are two key themes. While he has his sights set on his home community, there are plans to reach outside of Madison to help urban youth understand ecological threats.
Though important in their own right, there is more to the Hornaday Award than conservation projects. Scouts must complete all requirements from an extensive list of nature- and environmental-related merit badges such as Mammal Study, Weather, Public Heath, and Soil and Water Conservation. These merit badges give the Scout a broad view of environmental stewardship and resource education and, in some cases, provide the basis for future career paths in conservation and the natural sciences. Bailey’s most influential merit badge was Environmental Science, required of both the Eagle Scout and Hornaday Awards. He remembers the enthusiastic counselor who helped him earn this badge and the hours of extra work he spent in the Ecology-Conservation area at Ed Bryant Scout Reservation near Mauston, Wisconsin while at summer camp.
Bailey’s other post Eagle Scout experiences include a semester at Conserve School in Land O’Lakes, Wisconsin earlier this year. Highlights include reading about Wisconsin pioneers who cut blocks of ice from frozen lakes and built dugout canoes, both of which Bailey did while a student. Like Scouting, students at Conserve School learn by doing in the outdoors. Also, in July, Bailey spent two weeks in the Boundary Waters on a wilderness voyage with the Order of the Arrow, Scouting’s camping honor society. Over the course of twelve days, Bailey and other Scouts built portage trail, fished, and participated in a trek in Quetico Provincial Park, ending up back in the United States. When describing these incredible opportunities, Bailey has one word: “awesome!”
Outside of Scouting, Bailey enjoys trips near Pardeeville, Wisconsin where his family hunts deer and turkey. These outdoor experiences coupled with his Scouting achievements have led Bailey to consider a potential career in conservation. As with most Scouting adventures, young men are bound to learn something new that will lead to a life-long passion. In Wisconsin, Bailey Sargent is leading the way for many future conservationists in Madison and beyond.
Additional information about the Hornday award can be found at
http://www.scouting.org/scoutsource/Awards/HornadayAwards/Earn.aspx.