Your Life-to-Eagle team includes several people:

• Your Unit Leader
• Your Unit Committee
• Your Life-to-Eagle Mentor or Advisor
• Your Eagle Project Coach
• Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) for your project
• Your Eagle Board Liaison

Your Unit Leader is someone your already know well: your Troop Scoutmaster, Venturing Crew Advisor, or Sea Scouts Ship Skipper. Of course they will be available to guide you along the way, and can help in selecting the next three members of your Life-to-Eagle team. An Eagle Scout service project is a unit activity, and your Unit Leader and other adult leaders in your unit have the same responsibilities, e.g. to assure safety in conducting a project, including Safeguarding Youth requirements, as with any other unit activity. While you, as a minor, cannot be held responsible for safety concerns, you should be sure to discuss safety concerns with your Unit Leader and adult leaders who will be present during work on your project, including any fundraising activities.

Your Unit Committee must approve your project proposal, and can assist with fundraising and holding funds raised but not yet spent.

You may have a Life-to-Eagle Mentor (sometimes called your Advisor – but this is not the same as a Venturing Crew Advisor) who will work with you along your trail from Life to Eagle, including but not limited to your project. A Life-to-Eagle Mentor provides frequent support, encouragement, and guidance through the entire Life-to-Eagle process, including leadership development and the administrative steps. The Mentor offers ongoing, unit-level support for the overall rank advancement journey. Your mentor can provide advice and suggestions, but cannot require anything of you: This Life to Eagle journey is yours. If you don’t already have a Life-to-Eagle Mentor, your should discuss with your Unit Leader whether you want one, and if you have someone in mind, who that is. The choice of a Mentor is between you and your Unit Leader.

You may also have a Project Coach to work with you on your Eagle Scout Leadership Service Project. An Eagle Project Coach is an advisor focused solely on guiding you through the planning and execution of your Eagle Scout service project. The coach is a registered adult leader who is a subject matter expert on the processes and standards of the service project (but not necessarily an expert on any particular skills related to the subject of your project). The role of the coach is described in the Guide to Advancement §9.0.2.9 and a presentation about the role of the coach at https://filestore.scouting.org/filestore/boyscouts/ppt/The-Eagle-Scout-Service-Project-Coach.pptx.

In Scouting America New Hampshire, the selection of a Coach is up to your Unit Leader, your Mentor (if you have one), and you; a Coach will not appointed by the Council.

If you don’t have a Coach, or if your Coach is a Coach for the first time, your Liaison (described below) can provide guidance on the processes related to your project. Like your Mentor, your Coach can provide advice and suggestions, but cannot require anything of you. Their help can be valuable in getting the project done right — but you are the leader of the project. You should discuss with your Unit Leader and/or Mentor whether you want a Coach, and if you have someone in mind, who that is. The choice of a Coach is between you, your Mentor, and your Unit Leader.

You might also have one or more Subject Matter Experts (“SMEs”) to provide expertise in specific subject area(s) of the project. The advice and assistance of SMEs can be valuable in getting the project done right — but you are still the leader of the project. It is up to you to determine what SMEs you need for your project. While your Unit Leader, Mentor, and/or Coach might help you to find SMEs, it is ultimately up to you to choose which, if any SMEs are needed for your project.

Your Eagle Board Liaison will be appointed by the Eagle Board when your Eagle project Proposal is reviewed. Your Liaison is a member of the Eagle Board. In New Hampshire, the Liaison may serve some of the functions of the Eagle Project Coach: They can be your point of contact for questions about the process. Unlike the Coach, who cannot approve any changes to your project, your Liaison is your first point of contact to request approval for any significant changes to your project proposal after it has been approved. (Changing the color of paint, or moving a posthole a few feet to avoid a boulder is not significant; moving the project from a park to a church, or expanding or shrinking the scope of the project might be. If in doubt about what is significant, contact your Liaison.)

In Scouting America New Hampshire, the Eagle Mentor or Advisor and Eagle Project Coach are either selected by you and approved by your unit leader, or appointed by your unit leader with your agreement, depending on the practice in your unit. While these roles are different, your Life-to-Eagle Mentor and Service Project Coach could be the same person. While you are not required to have or use a Mentor, Coach, or SME(s), experience has shown that each of them can be useful – but it’s up to you.