Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St., announced, on Sept. 16, that it is looking for volunteers to serve as scout leaders and mentors, for what is to be the first partnership between an LGBT community center and the Boy Scouts of America ( BSA ).
"We're embarking on a new groundbreaking endeavor and that's very exciting," said Julie Walther, Chief Program Officer at Center on Halsted, in a statement. "We are entering our third year of Girl Scouts here at Center on Halsted and with this policy change, we're ready to welcome the Boy Scouts too. It's important for us as an organization to be those agents of change and lead the way in creating inclusive communities."
Prior experience with Boy/Cub Scouts is preferred but not required for those interested in volunteering. A year-long minimum commitment is required and is open to all gender identities and sexual orientations. For more information, contact Grant Ladniak, the Center's special events and volunteer manager, at gladniak@centeronhalsted.org .
The initiative comes just a few months after BSA voted to lift its ban on gay troop leaders; the ban on gay scouts was lifted in 2014.
"A Cub Scout pack and a Boy Scout troop chartered by Center on Halsted would send a strong message on how to truly be inclusive," said Mary Anderson of the Oak Park chapter of the national organization Scouts for Equality. "This can be a model for the rest of the country on inclusion and youth leadership."
