Starting next year, Boy Scouts will have a new name

AJC file photo

Credit: Jennifer Brett

Credit: Jennifer Brett

AJC file photo

Beginning in February 2019 the program now known as the Boy Scouts will become Scouts BSA, a branding change that reflects the decision to allow girls to join.

The parent organization remains Boy Scouts of America (hence the BSA) and Cub Scouts will continue to be called Cub Scouts. Officials are also touting the new slogan "Scout Me In."

Boy Scouts of America announced in 2017 they would begin enrolling girls, a move some metro Atlanta parents cheered.

“I’m all for it,” Alexander Robbins II told us during a phone interview while he was en route to a Scout meeting. “I look at it almost like it was a sport. You have cheerleading and volleyball. They are both sports kids can participate in, and those things can overlap but they are distinct programs.”

Savannah-based Girl Scouts of the USA didn't seem impressed, saying in a statement: “Only Girl Scouts has more than 100 years of experience helping girls tap into their leadership potential by reinforcing and extending the skills they learn in school in a supportive, encouraging environment in which they feel safe to just be themselves. At Girl Scouts, we are girl experts, and we work every day to help girls develop the courage, confidence and character necessary to make the world a better place.”

 The Girl Scouts' historic headquarters is located in Savannah. Photo: Jennifer Brett

Credit: Jennifer Brett

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Credit: Jennifer Brett