Advancement Chairmen--an Important Position Requiring the Right
Robert \ (Rcwscouts@AOL.COM)
Fri, 17 Dec 1999 21:05:38 EST
In response to questions and comments about having a District Advancement=20
Chairman, I would like to offer some food for thought regarding this person'=
s=20
duties and responsibilities. His primary responsibilities are:
1) Review and approval of the Eagle Service Projects--this also means he=20
sets the level for the quality of projects that will fly. In our District,=20
which covers several counties and two cities, this responsibility utilizes=20
delegation of authority to two other assistants, so the District can be=20
divided into thirds. This allows the Project to be hand carried around for=20
approval (usually in less than a week) without a great deal of long distance=
=20
driving. Nothing dampens a Scout's enthusiasm more than waiting two or thre=
e=20
weeks to get his project approved.
2) Supply of a trained District Scouter for Eagle Board's of Review--in our=
=20
district, this responsibility is fully delegated to another Scouter who agai=
n=20
divides the District into thirds. He then chooses trained Scouters to sit o=
n=20
Eagle BORs for each area.
3) Approval of District Merit Badge Counselors--the 1998 National BSA=20
Advancement Policies and Procedures (#33088A, ed. 1998) states that all meri=
t=20
badges counselors are the responsibility of the District and Council=20
Advancement Committees. MB Counselors are not approved by the Unit leader=20
process. In our District, the Advancement Committee Chairman appoints a MB=20
Counselor Chairman--a job I now hold. An Adult Application is completed wit=
h=20
a code "42" (which they never put on the instruction sheet) along with a Mer=
it
Badge Counselor Information form (#34405, ed. 1998). [This MBCI form is in=
=20
curious limbo since the requirements for it were deleted from the AP&P in=20
1998 while it was being re-issued. It is a useful tool!] These forms are=20
submitted to me. [NOTE: SMs and ASMs who want to be MB Counselors must go=20
through this process also per BSA AP&P--again SMs and ASMs are unit position=
s=20
while MB Counselors are District and Council Positions.] I prepare a listin=
g=20
of the MB Counselors with a formal approval signature blocks for both the=20
District Advancement Chairman and the Council Advancement Chairman and the=20
Adult Application is signed by the Council Executive or his designee (usuall=
y=20
the DE). MB Counselors are approved for the time of the current District=20
Charter only and must be re-approved only an annual basis as stated in the=20
AP&P. This can be done be a simple letter and mail back post card. I send=20=
a=20
copy of the MBCI to council with the Adult Application and the listing with=20
the formal District and Council Advancement Chairmen approvals. I maintain=20=
a=20
copy of everything! And then add the new MB Counselors to the District List=
.=20
I believe a strong MB Counselor program is one of the unique and strong=20
points of Scouting. A current and on-going research project shows that ther=
e=20
is hunger in youth for an interaction with adults-the youth may just not=20
realize it. Some of the results of this study were introduced at a=20
conference a Philmont a few years ago.
4 Develop a List of Awards for Adult Recognition--it is important to=20
recognize Scouters for their donation of time, talent and funds. This is an=
=20
important responsibility of the District Advancement Chairman. If it is not=
=20
done well, Scouters will see few awards go to their District, while a=20
District with a hard working Advancement Chairman will repeatedly walk off=20
with the lion's share of the recognition. This can damage the morale of a=20
District and reduce participation in District and Council activities.
The key word here is delegation. The Advancement Chairman needs to be a goo=
d=20
manager and a motivator; if he tries to do it all, he may be one heck of a=20
Scouter, but the entire District will suffer as all will be done poorly. =20
Check out Highlights for the District Advancement Committee=E2=80=A6an Overv=
iew=20
(#34724, ed. 1998), a small, 11-page pamphlet
