Cub Scouts - Quality/Quantity Discussion
Bob Nieland (rgn@MCS.NET)
Wed, 4 Dec 1996 16:28:22 -0600
Most of the discussion on the change in the Quality Unit award has been been
from the perspective of Boy Scout troops. Cub Scout packs have somewhat
different criteria to meet for the quality award, although unit growth is
one of them. As with Troops, this will change from an optional to a required
(asterisk) item in 1997.
Because packs seem to operate somewhat differently than troops, you may have
opinions and suggestions for packs that wouldn't necessarily fit a troop
situation. If you have an opinion (pro or con) on the change in quality unit
requirements for Cub Scouts, you can write to:
Gene Stone
Cub Scout Division
Boy Scouts of America
1325 West Walnut Hill Lane
P.O. Box 152079
Irving, Texas 75105-2079
Our pack recently sent a letter asking that the change be reconsidered, for
many of the reasons previously posted on this list (bigger isn't necessarily
better, a change in numbers doesn't necessarily signal a decline or
improvement in quality, etc.). We offered up the following alternatives:
* Return to the former requirement (i.e. make unit growth an optional,
rather than an required, item).
* Use penetration rates, which may be better indicators of a program's
quality. For example, we set as our own annual objective having at least 30%
of the 1st through 5th grade boys at our school in the pack. (Obviously this
would only work for packs that draw from a fixed, measurable base like a
school, which is the common practice in our District.)
* Require growth in two of the last three years or a pack split within the
last 2-3 years.
* Use ideal pack size (e.g., at least X but not more than Y Cub Scouts), as
the size/quality indicator. The point here being that the ideal size of a
pack for a quality program would be somewhere within the specified range. It
also would provide more formal encouragement for splitting when a unit gets
too big.
* Provide flexibility by permitting a pack to meet the membership
requirement by achieving one of several alternatives.
This is a great forum for exchanging ideas, but I suspect that nothing said
on the Scouts-L list is going to directly influence official policy. Writing
to the national organization probably will be more effective.
Bob Nieland
Committee Chairman, Cub Scout Pack 101
Naperville, Illinois
http://www.pack101.org/
mailto:rgn@mcs.net
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