Boy Scouts of America to change name to Scouting America by 2025

For the first time in its history, Boy Scouts of America is changing its name.

The organization announced the name change to the more inclusive Scouting America in a release on Tuesday, noting the rebrand reflects the “ongoing commitment to welcome every youth and family in America to experience the benefits of Scouting.”

The name change will go into effect Feb. 8, 2025, on the organization's 115th anniversary. The name change from Boy Scouts of America to Scouting America comes in the wake of scandals and upheaval in the organization, including lawsuits from former scouts claiming sexual abuse.

The organization in recent years has opened its doors to girls, gay youth and gay leaders. Gay youth were allowed to join in 2013, with a ban on gay leaders ending in 2015. Then, in 2017, Boy Scouts announced that girls would be accepted into Cub Scouts the following year and into a separate Scouts division in 2019. In 2021, the first group of nearly 1,000 girls and young women around the country had achieved the prestigious rank of Eagle Scout.