With school age children deciding on careers at a much earlier age, an innovative approach is needed in order to introduce kids to the nursing profession. This is especially true of young boys, who get little (if any) exposure to this profession throughout their lives. The "Scouts Explore Nursing" program began in 2003, following the lead of state programs that focused on Girl Scouts. These programs, while successful in their approaches to encourage scouts to become nurses, focused mainly on girls, leaving out another group of potential nurses--the boys. In conjunction with  Dutchess County Boy Scout Council, Ms. Anna Sers developed a Medicine Merit Badge Seminar for boy scouts, with a focus on nursing, and the program "Are You Strong Enough to be a Nurse?" was born. Thusfar, results have been overwhelmingly positive--calls have come in from troop leaders interested in implementing the program, and scout troops have traveled over two hours to attend this popular seminar. This site has been developed with support from the Johnson & Johnson Campaign for Nursing's Future. Please explore the different areas of the site to learn about the program, see photos, and get more information.