Venturing Program Summit Trail

Venturing Award. This is the beginning of the Venturing experience. The new member learns about the program, what a crew does, what to expect from the experience and the adventures, and makes a commitment to the principles of Venturing. 

Discovery Award. Participation and preparing for leadership are the key elements here. The Discovery Award encourages members to design and lead an active program of continuous adventure and service. Venturers who achieve the Discovery Award will have taken part in two crew activities, and as they become more active, they discover talents and learn skills that will help them lead and serve others. In doing so, personal growth will result, and they will gradually recognize the wide variety of opportunities awaiting them.

Pathfinder Award. In earning the Pathfinder Award, a Venturer should begin to establish a reputation as a skilled leader. The award seeks to engage Venturers more deeply in the program by delivering further on the ALPS model. One of the key requirements involves leading a crew adventure. The type of adventure— whether an extended bicycle or canoe trip, or even 10 days visiting the museums of Washington, D.C.—is up to the award candidate and the crew. The value in the adventure comes from learning how to lead and demonstrate skills through action. Pathfinder candidates will also continue to deliver service to others, including in the crew to ensure it remains a strong and viable team. Goals set and achieved will continue to help the Venturer grow as an individual

Summit Award. While the Pathfinder Award requires a member to lead an adventure, the Summit Award—Venturing’s highest—moves a young person into the role of servant leader. The Venturer will serve the crew as a leader—both formally and informally—and become a mentor to others. Additionally, Summit candidates are challenged to carry out a significant and valuable service project, where they will apply many of the lessons they have learned along the way. A crew’s program should be built upon a program of continuous, youth-led adventure, leadership, service, and personal growth. Each award level challenges Venturers to dig deeper into the question of who they are in order to truly develop and enhance their skills and confidence to complete the requirements. To the Summit Award recipient, servant leadership and community service are the cornerstones.