Re: Roundtable Expectations
(no name) ((no email))
Sun, 7 Mar 1999 20:21:44 -0600
"Keith D. Kaiser" <kkaiser@SOUND.NET> asked a really great
question:
>What do you expect from your Roundtable. Please don't tell me what
>you are getting, tell me what you want. Go wild, be creative, tell
>me the things you really need or want from your District
>Roundtable.
This is what I expect from the monthly Roundtable meetings:
*ONE HOUR of just "stand around and talk time." This is perhaps
the ONLY time of the month that many Scouters get to stand or sit
around and talk SCOUTING without being told from spouses "We've got
to go, honey...," or from co-shares in car/van pools "Hey...I'm
leaving in five minutes..," or without constant "Hey you folks down
in the back...hold it down!!"
This is the "PRIME TIME for Scouters to exchange information
concerning everything from "Did you read yesterday's note on
Scouts-L about the dude being tattoed?" *grinning* to "When are you
guys going to summer camp...I need to be paired up with a Troop
that knows what's going on...can you help out?"
Give us an HOUR toward the END of the Roundtable; bring us back for
the District Commissioners/Executive's minute, awards, and closing.
But we come not just for "the established program" but also so that
we can compare notes with each other and just VENT AND TALK!
*More discussion on programming and ideas for programming and less
on financing the Council, on "admin stuff" nor on "what not to do."
Those things are important, but not as much as telling me where I
can take my Cubs, Scouts or Venturers and have them to have a good
time at a reasonable overall cost!!
*Don't present the training or service awards at Roundtable. Save
it for the unit's Pack Meeting, Court of Honor, or recognition
ceremony! It detracts from the meeting, many of the Scouters there
don't really care, and it has more of an impact on the Scouter to
have his or her award presented in front of the peers he or she
*works with* (and the youth they serve!)
*Sit a computer kiosk in the backside of the room, have it
connected to a server that has summaries of all of the discussions
from various discussion lists, groups and a "freemail account"
handout so that those wanting to do so can respond back or add
their own comments. Okay....that's pie in the sky, Keith. But in
reality, provide paper copies of those summaries so that people can
take it all back to their units and discuss them amoung
themselves!!
*Once a quarter, a teleconference and "shared Roundtable" meeting
with another District in another Region (not just in another nearby
Council...but someone where in the USA or outside the USA!!). Now
that costs associated with teleconferencing have been reduced
significantly, this isn't as bad an idea as it sounds! I wouldn't
recommend doing this every month, but as "something special"; for
instance, in talking about winter camping, whom else would be in a
better position to talk winter campin than those Scouters belonging
to Councils here in the northern part of Minnesota or Wisconsin!
Likewise, there isn't a better set of Scouters to talk about stuff
to bring to Philmont than those RESIDING there at Philmont!!
*Videotape the Roundtable meetings and provide a tape as part of
the Fast Start stuff given to new Scouters. This could be very
effective, because new Scouters would immediately find out what
goes on at Roundtable and relieve their "fears" that "I'm not ready
for this stuff....Roundtable...sounds like to me like I'll be
talking about my Troop to other people...I don't know those
people!! I don't know Scouting!! I just won't go to it!"
*Holding Roundtables at "untraditional places." One of the most
memorable Roundtable meetings I've ever been to was in your
Council, Keith (Heart of America is headquartered in Kansas City,
Missouri, for those unaware). There was a new Holiday Inn Plaza
hotel being opened and that District's Executive worked out a deal
whereby two times a year, they would host a District event. The
District decided to hold ONE Roundtable meeting in the "open plaza"
area of the hotel, which was full of greenery, waterfalls and open
space...lots of seating and it "felt like" we were all outdoors
even though we knew that the restrooms were right across the way
and up the steps; or that the coffeepots and soft drinks (which the
hotel charged but nobody seemed to mind!) were over in a corner.
There was enough space for "breakout sessions" and the BSA's "flag"
was shown to those people staying there (which brought up
interesting discussions between many of the guests and the
Roundtable participants). The hotel, thinking "marketing" even
gave each Roundtable participant a coupon good for 15 percent off
their visit to the hotel facility!! I went there to speak to the
Roundtable assembly, and it was just great! The only thing needed
was to have a fire going in the place!! *broad smile*
Aw...that's enough for now...GREAT QUESTION!! I'm curious to see
what others have thought up!!
Settummanque!
(c) 1999 Mike Walton ("no such thing as strong coffee,...") blkeagle@mninter.net
http://www.mninter.net/~blkeagle Burnsville, MN 55306-7130 (612) 435-3068
privately at kyblkeagle@aol.com or waltonmi@usarc-emh2.army.mil
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