Roosevelt Student Achieves Top Scouting Honor

The St. Johns Review, February 7, 2020

By Mark Hubbard

You could call Roosevelt High School senior Jared Alton a real go-getter. Jared has a 4.0 GPA, has participated in five different Roosevelts sports teams, played trumpet in Roosevelt’s award-winning jazz band, and has logged over 900 volunteer hours at the Red Cross office in North Portland.

Jared is also a member of Scout Troop 71 where he earned his Eagle Scout rank in November 2018. The Eagle Scout rank is the highest and most prestigious rank in scouting. Only four percent of scouts have earned this rank.

But now Jared has done something even more extraordinary in scouting. He has earned all 138 merit badges offered by the national organization. This is a feat only accomplished by handful of scouts across the nation each year. To put this achievement in perspective, scouting’s Eagle rank requires only 21 merit badges to be earned. Of course, many scouts earn more than that, often in the 30 to 40 merit badge range. But to earn 138 badges is practically unheard of.

“In the thirty-two years I've been a scout leader, I've never seen anything like this,” said Troop 71 Advancement Chair Dave Chaney. “The most merit badges I've seen a scout get is about fifty-five to sixty.”

For his part, Jared is fairly matter-of-fact about how he accomplished this rare feat.

“I just didn't think about it,” said the Roosevelt senior. “I saw no reason not to get more merit badges so I just kept going.”

A variety of badges

Scouting offers a wide variety of merit badges across many disciplines, including performing arts, the sciences, outdoor skills and community service. Thirteen merit badges are required for the Eagle Scout rank, including the citizenship in the community, first aid, emergency preparedness, camping, and physical fitness badges, among others. The remaining 120+ merit badges are electives, allowing each scout to pursue their own individual interests.

Of course, Jared pursued them all. But he did have a few favorites, including the aviation merit badge where he got to fly an airplane out of the Troutdale airport and up the Columbia Gorge.

“My favorite merit badges were aviation, scuba diving, dentistry, shotgun, and surveying,” said the Eagle Scout, reflecting on his own wide and varied interests.

A well-rounded student with plans

As noted above, outside of scouting, Jared is very active in his school and community. Currently, he is one of the editor/designers on the Roosevelt High yearbook team and is captain of the Roosevelt swim team. He has also participated in one or more seasons on the cross-country, track & field, golf and soccer teams at the school. Additionally, he has honed his musical performance skills over three years with the school jazz band. Lastly, his 900 hours of community service at the Red Cross has spanned over five years. But at the heart of it all is what he has learned from scouting.

“Scouting has taught me to see good in everyone and always strive to do the right thing,” said the Roosevelt senior.

Jared Alton will graduate from Roosevelt High in June and plans to attend the University of Portland, where he will major in nursing and pre-med. His career goal and ambition is to one day become a pediatrician. With his accomplishments in scouting, school and the community, he is well on his way to achieving his goals.