Leaderboard

I view this differently. I do not see it as the SM stopped them from being on the ballot, I see it as the SM recommended others to be on the ballot. In other words, being first class and having minimum other requirements met does not automatically get you on the ballot. Instead, the SM recommends certain scouts to be on it. Viewing it from this perspective, no scout should assume they will be recommended by the SM and thus there is no obligation from the SM to tell all the scouts ahead of time who isn't recommended.

Nail hit right on the head there.

I fully agree that boys & girls are different. I have two daughters and a son - I've seen that myself. Somehow we think that the kinds of activities we do in Scouts BSA are particularly suited to boys. I just don't see that in my experience. Take for example the eight methods - which of those do you think a girl wouldn't enjoy as much as a boy? What I would suggest is that when many of us were kids, girls were not exposed to many of those same activities. As such, by the time they hit middle school they felt uncomfortable in them and so didn't want to participate. From wha

That was in fact the bet, that the girls will be a growth opportunity. All the chips for the future were put on G and the wheel was spun. Honestly the ball is still bouncing and we do not know if that bet will pay off. As was noted in the bankruptcy conversations several months back with the exposure on insurance, dwindling numbers, spending at the Summit, and unfunded pension liabilities the BSA needed more members. The registration fee went up significantly in 2017, so that was a lifeline toss. Recruiting more boys to the program has been a challenge. During his listening and speak

Of course there is! Here's my quote (with emphasis): For most parents that will be enough to assuage their need for involvement. If you feel you can go farther, you can train for the Scoutmaster Corps. BTW, I'll fix my quote to read "the PLC with support from the Scoutmaster Corps will take it from here."

It depends on the unit. My Troop is open to allowing recently crossed over leaders to become ASM's, but they're going to get alot of instruction and guidance from the SM or other experience ASM's. There are Crossover parents who have a hard time adapting to the Boy Scout program and the role of adults in Scouting. Some never do. @AltadenaCraig comments seems to indicate that Crossover parents often need an adjustment time, and if they want to contribute straight away, the Committee can be a great place for their energy and enthusiasm, but frankly, a lot of the Cub leaders I see cross ove

Yes, I agree. One thing l learned about adult leaders is that they need check-offs to measure their performance. That is why the "Advancement Method" is so abused; the Scouts' advancement checklist in "his" book is an easy way for the adults to measure how they are doing. I was a little surprised that National took away tour permits. Maybe the bureaucracy was more than the councils could handle, but it was a good preparation checklist for traveling with a troop full of scouts. The PLC filled out the Tour Permit in our troop. Barry

Interesting dynamic. Our CO holds a product sale in the spring and fall (think gardening) and our troop is expected to be out selling, selling, selling to generate funds needed to run the troop. The CO does not give our troop any money other than to have someone from the chartering org to be the coordinator of these sales. We don't even meet in a building owned by them. But they do provide a signature on the chartering documents each year. A monthly commitment is a lot to ask, IMO, because I would hope that the troop has a full calendar of camping, merit badge events, merit badge

https://www.reddit.com/r/scouting/ is full of posts from scouts from various nations saying hello.

...at least until the flag ceremony concludes.

Son #1's buddy got to 1st Class ahead of the rest of that class. He asked to not be put on the ballot. I can't remember if it was his 2nd or 3rd summer camp. (We never pushed 1st class, 1st year. Most of our scouts took at least two years to get there.) Anyway, he knew that year was not the right time for him, and the next year he was willing to go with the rest of the boys. As I mentioned earlier, I'm ambivalent about blanket age restrictions for O/A. An SM may have his reasons. But, having such a rule (unwritten or otherwise) does not absolve the SM from a quick conference with each 1st

We had some of our female BSA Scouts at a community event that involved a fundraiser for our troop. Don't forget the advertisement of being out and doing things in the community. Good turns = good publicity.

That is so true...Cubs is really a PARENTS program and Boy Scouts is a BOYS YOUTH program. Remember your customer and serve that customer. Once you burn out the Cub parent, they and the youth are gone forever

Yes, the problem is absolutely the fault of National. I spend a great deal of time on this very problem, so I can speak directly to it. Because of how our education is structured, the maturity difference between a 1st and 2nd grader is huge. 1st graders don't have the patience, maturity, focus and communication skills for the Pack program that 2nd graders developed in the first grade. Oh, you don't think communication has any affect. Try handle out songs and skits for Tigers to "read" with the rest the pack. As a result of the huge maturity difference, the pack has work three separate programs

My assumption is the BSA learned that if you don't engage them while they are in K or 1st grade, you can easily lose them to other activities and commitments. With so many sports now starting in K and 1st grade (soccer and even wrestling come to mind), I think BSA has little choice to offer options at the ages when families are making these commitments.

Added topic tags "Faith", "Chaplaincy" - the most we lowly Members and Moderators can do.

Yea, some of us don't live in the pristine world you believe in. Here is the thing - a new troop likely doesn't know what scouts is about. They don't know what program they want. They don't know how to begin to assemble it. Follow the standard shrink wrapped advice and you end up the norm: new troop dead in under three years. For all the posturing there are a number of realities that keep getting glossed over. First is the Baden Powell came to a movement which was already happening without him and happened to use his book. Second, kids are different now then they were then. The world

Grade school activities have changed dramatically over the last 15-20 years. In my Tiger den, half the youth are signed up for weekly ski lessons (in Wisconsin); most have at least 1 organized travel sport... some have two. Add in a martial art and a musical instrument for a few. Parents are already starting to cut activities by 2nd and 3rd grade.... they are not looking to add. It would be interesting if there are successfull packs who only started recruiting in 2nd or 3rd grade.

That isn't sexist. It's the truth. I roll my eyes when folks suggest "fixing the girl Scouts." A majority of the girls involved in Girl Scouts, and their professional leadership are happy with how things are. Therefore, there's nothing to "fix". If making the Girl Scout program more outdoors-centric would halt the GSUSA's membership declines, they'd have already done it. That doesn't mean there aren't any girls out there that want to hike and camp like Boy Scouts do, and that's why we now have Scouts BSA as an option for them.

That! I realize that sometimes we worry about stepping in when a parent is present. We don't want to do something to that makes the parent uncomfortable. But as adult leaders, we should always look at these scouts as ours in our capacity as the adult leader. The other thing that I've seen happen is some form of retaliation when the parent is in a position of authority or power. That's another mess. As "adult" as we all are, it happens. I'm more of a binary type of guy dealing with an analog world. It's either "this or that" to me and I struggle all the time with the points in betw

Why create bylaws? its right in the OA rules that the scout master has to give approval - At the time of their election, youth must be under the age of 21, and hold one of the following ranks corresponding to the type unit in which they are being considered for election: Scouts BSA First Class rank, the Venturing Discovery Award, or the Sea Scout Ordinary rank or higher, and following approval by the Scoutmaster, Crew Adviser or Sea Scout Skipper, be elected by the youth members of their unit.

One of the tenants of Catholicism is that each of us has an obligation to attend Mass on Sunday unless grave circumstances would prevent it. Going camping does not typically constitute grave circumstances, but Clergy can provide dispensation to miss mass. (Which is how practicing Catholics attend Philmont). Plenty of Catholics don't attend mass every Sunday, but it's a requirement of our faith and teaching of our Church. So it's less of the CO in that particular case trying to be "Imperial" and more of the CO and Troop Leadership making sure that the Catholic Scouts meet their duty to God. May

Be prepared to find another CO. My $0.02

In the spirit of @LeCastor's post on positive thinking, I thought I'd start a discussion on how to grow Scouting in a community. Here's the premise. Say your district is like many districts out there today. Membership slowly declining, the number of units maybe two-thirds what it was 20 years ago, round table participation dropping, volunteers helping organize things outside of the units are decreasing (camporee, day camp, etc). Let's further assume that the community itself is doing well - population is growing, people are generally well employed, etc. You have some units that are

Yo, moderator folks: @SSScout has been a trustworthy contributor to this forum for 13 years and has patiently asked for a sub-forum regarding "Faith and Chaplaincy" for most of those 13 years! Maybe it's time? Stuff regarding faith, duty to God, reverence, etc. is very much a key component of the Scouting experience. I think it might be a good idea to give it some attention outside of the Program or I&P sub-forums.