Correct. The BSA National Executive Board of Directors is led by its Executive Committee, i.e., ~ 27 officers. They are all volunteers and are a subset of Fortune 500 executives.
Why did they decide this?
BSA's flagship youth program, troops for boys 11-17 years of age, has been steadily bleeding youth members since its 1973 high water mark, a decline of ~ 50%. BSA is desperate for new youth membership blood to generate $$$ to fund the BSA professionals' pensions and for the local councils to be able to afford keeping their camp properties open for the 6-7 week summer camp season.
How do directors get on the board to be in position to make decisions?
Most likely these business executives were involved in Scouting during their youth. They simply put the word out through the old boy network that they wish to serve on the National Board of Directors. Of course it is implicitly understood that you "pay to play" by making a generous donation to BSA.
Sounds like lots of Mormom church based troops are leaving.
Yes. The LDS offered up an explanation earlier in 2017 they are withdrawing after 104 years of using BSA programs as their church's official male youth program. Many suspect that after LDS national leadership secretly approved the BSA's National Executive Committee's plan to admit openly homosexual youths as members in 2013, they developed buyer's remorse.
The scouts may well see their membership dwindle. Time Will tell.
BSA most likely commissioned a study to determine if they could stanch the membership loss by accepting girl members. Apparently the findings suggested they could. As you say, time will tell.
Is political correctness so strong in this society, that this decision was inevitable??
Yes. The cultural Marxism espoused by "The Frankfurt School" has fully taken root in U.S. soil. The "Long march through the institutions" starting in 1933 has succeeded.
