The adults who keep a unit running: chairs, treasurers, advancement coordinators and chartered organization representatives. These posts cover budgets, fundraising, recruiting and boards of review.
November 16, 2012 Thursday 1900-2045 Denali District District Committee Meeting Attendance: Travis Ransom, District Executive Cliff Crismore, Council Scout Executive Mark West, Unit Commissioner District Finance Chair District Advancement Chair District Chairman District Camping Chair District Training Chair Agenda Overview: District Commissioner Update: Prospects for District Commissioner Position Recharter Trouble Units (ie.
It doesn’t happen very often, but on rare occasion a troop’s committee withers away as Scouts leave or age out and their parents, who served on the committee, also depart without being replaced. Sometimes, others just take on the added responsibilities rather than recruiting a replacement, until the burden gets too great and they themselves…
The Board of Review. Terrifying to the new Tenderfoot Scout. Confusing to the new committee member. How does the Scout prepare? What are the board members supposed to cover and ask? I have been scoutmaster long enough to see a lot of people come and go on the committee.
Join us on Sunday March 10th at 9 PM EST (6 PM PST) for a presentation and question and answer session at scoutcircle.org . Our guest this month is Frank Maynard, a long-serving Committee Chair for a troop of 65+ boys in Michigan who also serves committees at the Cub Scout and District levels.
Our monthly Troop Committee meeting was last night. While a Troop should be Scout-led any very successful Troop has a well organized Troop Committee behind it. Last night's meeting was an odd one in the fact that the usual suspects were not in attendance.
Each year all (I assume) of the local BSA councils have a "Friends of Scouting" campaign to raise money to support the daily administrative functions the council provides, as well as maintain their camps and facilities that the scouts use for summer camp and such activities.
Amy sent in this question: My son has completed his requirements and a scoutmaster conference for his next rank. He has requested a board of review but was told he cannot have his board of review until school starts and regular meetings resume in September, two months away.
The other day while I was training new Scoutmasters and Assistant Scoutmasters, we were discussion the Troop Organization. I asked if people in the room knew who the Chartered Organization was for their units, some did, most did not. The Chartered Organization is an important part of the Troop, Pack, or Crew.
I don't give Friends of Scouting much thought throughout the year. In fact, I don't really ever think about it until the campaign comes around and forces me to wonder what everyone else wonders. The bad news is that I still don't have a clear understanding of how FOS benefits my unit even after another…
You’ve probably wondered what your Pack Committee does . You know you have a Cubmaster, and you assume that he or she is in charge of the pack. I think of the Cubmaster as the “face” of the pack . He or she interacts with the Scouts and runs the pack meetings.
If Scout campouts are the pizza toppings — cheese, pepperoni, mushrooms or whatever else you’re craving — then consider meetings the crispy crust and savory sauce. Scout meetings hold everything together and provide a solid foundation to deliver the other ingredients of a successful Scouting experience.
The board of review, like most aspects of Scouting, works best in person. But sometimes, for a number of legitimate reasons, that’s not an option. That’s why, as outlined in the Guide to Advancement (section 8.0.1.6), the BSA allows units to conduct boards of review by teleconferencing, using tools like Skype, Google Hangouts or Zoom.
When it comes to the Scout Law, last is certainly not least. Being “reverent” is a year-round part of a Scout’s life, but there’s one time each year when the connection between Scouting and faith takes on even more significance.
A reader asks: My boys just joined or local pack in our area last August. This pack has like 60 kids. The 1st thing I noticed was that everything was very very unorganized, but I didn't want to be one of those parents that gripes and does nothing.
Time to open the mailbag and answer a couple more of your questions. First, from the chartered organization representative of a Cub Scout pack: We’re chartered by the Parent-Teacher Association of the elementary school that we serve. Up until now, the PTA has been a affiliated with the school, but they are separating and the…
Article submitted by Derrick Russaw of the Southern Region. In order to continue to serve its youth members, it is incumbent on the district to elect a strong district committee. Thus, it is the task of the district nominating committee to select a slate of excellent officers and members at large for the next year.
With fall comes our surge of new members in the Boy Scouts of America – mainly in the Cub Scouting program – and with it comes the paperwork. The BSA membership of our current members gets renewed at recharter time, but those new to Scouting or new to our units (including transfers from other packs) need to…
In the BSA’s early days, councils assigned numbers to new troops numerically. The first troop in a council was Troop 1, the second was Troop 2 and so on. Today, Cub Scout packs, Scouts BSA troops, Sea Scout ships and Venturing crews get to pick their own one- to four-digit number.
The Scenario Troop 21’s membership has been dwindling the past few years. Not too long ago, it was 50-members-strong; today, membership is down to 23. Families have moved; Scouts have aged out of the program; some have dropped out for other reasons — the problem is that the troop hasn’t been able to attract very many…
It’s still summer across the country and we’re mostly in that mode of thinking – summer camp or day camp, pack picnics and bike rides, hiking and weekend camping. Families are enjoying vacations, relaxing in the back yard or at the lake, working in the garden or taking in the splendors of summer.
The mailbag brought a couple more questions to the Bobwhite’s attention in the last few weeks. I’ll take a stab at answering your conundrums this week. First, a question from an experienced den leader – and thank you for your service, as you are the front-line deliverer of Scouting to our Cub Scouts!
A young person doesn’t have to become an Eagle Scout to have a life-changing experience in Scouting. But you can bet some Scouts in your troop will set their sights on that shiny Eagle medal. And chances are some of those Eagle hopefuls will join your Scouts BSA troop this year as 16- or 17-year-olds…
As young people cross over from Cub Scouts to ScoutsBSA ‘s programs, their parents frequently follow. Often, the more involved adults have been volunteer leaders in their childrens’ packs, and it is this source of talent that many troops seek to help do the many things that adults do for the Scouts.
Joe and Susan heard the troop committee would be mulling over whether or not to have a fall fundraiser this year at the committee meeting tomorrow night. They have some ideas on what should be done. When they asked fellow parents if they also were planning on attending, they were informed parents couldn’t attend troop…
Consider this getting the best of both worlds. When the Scouts BSA program launches on Friday, Feb. 1, girls already in Venturing or Sea Scouting can join a Scouts BSA troop without paying a second membership fee. That means they’ll experience the excitement of Scouts BSA without having to give up the high-adventure fun and…
The Scouting journey prepares a young person to get a good job. But that doesn’t mean the final step in that journey — which for many young people is the Eagle Scout board of review — should be conducted like a job interview.
Time for answers to a couple of your questions: Our Committee Chair has a conflict that prevents his participation in our troop committee meeting on its traditional night. In his absence our Scoutmaster is running the meetings. Is this a good practice, or should someone else be running our committee meeting?
It’s already mid-August, which means school will be starting very soon for most, and with it the Cub Scout program year. Packs should have been planning their recruiting activities – Boy (and Girl!) Talks, exhibits and demonstrations at school activity nights, School Nights for Scouting (evening presentations and orientation for new Scouts and families) and the…
When 9-year-old Sloan Summerall started a small business selling eggs, his goal was pretty simple. The Webelos from Pack 3217 of Cleveland, Tenn., wanted to save $300 to buy a Nintendo Switch. But along the way, Sloan had a change of heart.
Robert Podboy loves Scout summer camp. This month, he’s attending his 59th consecutive one at Sinoquipe Scout Reservation in Pennsylvania. “I do enjoy camping and still go hiking as long as it’s not too strenuous,” the 88-year-old retired optometrist says.
They’re called early adopter Cub Scout packs. These Scout units, with council approval, have been welcoming girls since Jan. 15. Early feedback from this soft launch of Family Scouting has been excellent. One den leader told me the girls in her den “are curious and want new experiences in a fun and positive environment.
Michael Costello accomplished a lot in less than 15 years. He never let anything — certainly not a heart condition and other chronic health issues — stand in the way of his goals. Michael died March 11, 2017 — just a week shy of his 15th birthday.
One of the most persistent problems in keeping a troop or pack going is obtaining sufficient adult leadership to get all the various jobs covered without causing burnout of the small group of people who usually get stuck with everything.
“All in favor, say Aye.” How often do you hear that in your committee meetings? If you’re doing things right, you shouldn’t. That’s because the troop committee isn’t a legislative body and doesn’t make decisions based on what most of the committee members agree with.
It doesn’t happen very often, but on rare occasion a troop’s committee withers away as Scouts leave or age out and their parents, who served on the committee, also depart without being replaced. Sometimes, others just take on the added responsibilities rather than recruiting a replacement, until the burden gets too great and they themselves…
If you’ve ever transitioned from being a rank-and-file employee to a supervisor or manager, you’ve undoubtedly run into some rough spots as you made the transition. Taking on a managerial role is a big step, because you’re now overseeing the people you used to work alongside.
No sooner had the Boy Scouts of America published the 2017 revision to its omnibus reference work Guide to Advancement, which we reviewed in a recent article , than it announced a few changes. Eagle Palms There are some important changes to the way Eagle Palms are earned and awarded.
From left: Ernest Thompson Seton, Robert Baden-Powell and Daniel Carter Beard on Jan. 31, 1912 — the day Arthur Eldred (inset) had his board of review at BSA headquarters. When Boys’ Life announced in its May 1912 issue that Arthur R.
A while back, we ran a couple articles about the role that other adults play in a Boy Scout troop. By “other” adults, I’m referring to assistant Scoutmasters, committee members and parents of Scouts. But sometimes, you encounter a situation where adults like to stick around after their sons have aged out and moved on.
Let’s say there’s a Boy Scout who has completed all the requirement for the Eagle Scout rank. He finished the merit badges, service project, active participation, Scout spirit, position of responsibility and unit leader conference. But he still lacks one step: the Eagle Scout board of review.
At certain critical points in a Boy Scout's journey through the program, he's asked to stop and think. He looks back on where he's been and looks ahead to where he's going. We call it the board of review. The board of review is a chance for adults to talk with the Scout about what…
As the annual School Night To Join Scouting approached I told the current Cub Scouts that we should try to double the size of our pack, which is currently at 17 members. I explained that they are our best recruiters and that they should talk to their friends and bring them to the event.
The unit committee is where the business of the pack or troop takes place. While the Scouts are busy doing the things Scouts do, the adults are taking care of things like finance, logistics, equipment and recordkeeping. And just like any other committee, meetings are unavoidable. In fact, we're expected to meet monthly to help
Yes, your official title - the position indicated on your BSA registration - says you're an assistant Scoutmaster. But now a Scouting colleague has asked you to sit on the troop committee as well. You agree (just an hour a week, right?), but when you try to register your second position, it turns out the BSA's registration…
I like working with the Scouts. I think it is one of the best organizations for a boy or young man to be a member of. That is why I was a scoutmaster for thirty years, and than stayed on as a committee member.
Feb. 17, 2009 It was my first committee meeting as a parent and scouting volunteer (sort of, I had been an ASM and "adult leader" when I turned 18 and was registered for about a year and a half in that capacity, but I didn't much feel like and adult, and didn't have the parent…
Shortly after I retired as the scoutmaster of Troop 68 a few years ago I became the troop committee treasurer. It did not take me long to realize that I did not care to hold that position. It was not that it took a lot of work.
________________________________________ Dear Andy, I have a question about one of the Q&A's in your December 1st column about the relationship between chartered organizations and the Scouting units they sponsor. This is the reference point I'm using: www.scouting.org/About/FactSheets/operating_orgs.aspx Your advice about the service projects for the chartered organization was great, up until your "by the way" comment…
Marci sent me this question: Hi, my son is up for an eagle BOR very soon, and I was wondering what type of questions they ask parents. I was informed the scout steps out of meeting while the reviewers ask parents questions.
Three little letters. One big impact. FOS, or Friends of Scouting, is the council-level annual giving campaign. In most councils, Friends of Scouting represents the council’s largest source of income. The Friends of Scouting campaign typically begins in November and ends in March (though councils can shift this slightly).
Friends of Scouting is your council's annual giving campaign. In most councils, Friends of Scouting (or FOS) represents the council's largest income source.
Anyone who serves on a troop committee has most likely participated in a rank advancement board of review. To me, it is an honor and a pleasure to serve on one, for it is through this process that we can gain insight into the youth experience. That is, if we ask the right questions and
As you know, chartered organizations are the backbone of Scouting. There has never been a more important time for all of us to engage with current and potential chartered organizations. Over the next few days, your council will be receiving a shipment of kits designed to help your staff in these conversations.
A reader sent in this question: Hello! I am new to the role of CC and have been told my only purpose is recharter. However, on this site and the BSA site the CC role is much more in-depth. Do I follow the role as outlined by BSA or what the CM has stated?
This is seventh in a series of posts about the new rank requirements that take effect on January 1, 2016. Scout | Tenderfoot | Second Class | First Class | Star | Life | Eagle Exactly how the new requirements are phased in is explained in this PDF document – Notes on Transitioning to the New Requirements .
On Monday, July 27, the National Executive Board ratified a resolution that removes the national restriction on openly gay adult leaders and employees. The resolution was recommended for ratification by the Executive Committee earlier this month. Of those present and voting, 79 percent voted in favor of the resolution.
Ask anyone who’s been a Scout, and they’ll tell you just as surely as they can recite the Scout Oath and Law: to reach Eagle Scout, you must fulfill all requirements before your 18th birthday. Period. And yet, recent news coverage highlighted one man, Hugh White, who received his Eagle Scout Award at age 65…
Minnesota Troop 283 has a unique approach to Friends of Scouting that has lifted participation from less than 50 percent of families to nearly 80 percent.
________________________________________ Dear Andy, Does a troop have to accept any boy who wants to join? (Name & Council Withheld) "Have to" is an interesting way to phrase your question, so let me ask… What's the situation that's prompting the question? In other words, what's "the question behind the question"?
Each year all (I assume) of the local BSA councils have a "Friends of Scouting" campaign to raise money to support the daily administrative functions the council provides, as well as maintain their camps and facilities that the scouts use for summer camp and such activities.
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