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Your representation and reasoning is correct. And I suspect the legal situations follow your reasoning. Like many, I'm frustrated because the connection chain does not exist. The simple fact is many of these cases were not pursued back in the time when it happened. Not by parents, police or society. Also, often the cases could not have been pursued. Laws were different. Society were different. Infrastructure was different. Mandatory reporting was not a concept. Extended automatic data analysis was not possible. This is only possible by applying today's environment to a past world th

I wish they made a magnetic holder for service stars so I had an easy way to remove them for washing or to change shirts.

The top-down comes in after the bottom-up council restructuring. National or Regions lack the overall picture of council performance that units experience. How many times have units said if only they could be in another council? Another $0.01,

"Top down thinking" has been restructuring councils for as long as I can remember. The promised economies (locally), service improvements, and increased membership and resources have not been proven, but let's get it right in the next merger, e.g., The Spirit of Adventure Council (unless they merged again and changed their name since I started writing). I expect all Mass will be one council as neighboring NH is (except for one or two counties). Remember how councils were required to develop strategic plans? JTE? If a council met their five year plan or is a Gold Council, why merge it or wa

While I agree that councils should be merged and downsized, I think there is an important step that must first take place. Rather than focusing initially on the poor performance of ABC and XYZ Councils, a centralized board should first examine the records of all executives above the DE level. Only the top performers should be retained, say 30%. These top ranked execs can then be divided into regions and develop a game plan for merging councils. As important as the merger exercise is, it would ultimately prove fruitless if bottom tier execs were allowed to continue in any position o

For that reason I have some trouble with some of the cases being pursued as noted above and as stated in the new reports. Many were in fact never reported to family, police, councils. Sadly that is the truth. Did this happen, we have to believe the account of the abused. Is the Scout leader still alive? If so pursue criminal charges. Does the abused person deserve counseling and support, absolutely and that does appear to be happening if media reports and BSA National releases are accurate. Does this make the abused one eligible to get a large cash settlement? Not sure about that.

I'd adjust it slightly: What services essential to carrying out the Scouting program are most effectively performed by councils? Which of those essential services that are most effectively performed by councils, if any, can only be performed by paid council employees? In the ideal post bankruptcy structure, we're not trying to get rid of councils. The idea is to right-size their tasks, reduce the institutional instinct that professionals need to run things, and then proactively deal with some of the chronic issues like financial planning for the reduced membership.

I guess a question first of all: If a Scout is dual registered as both a Venture and Scout BSA (or Boy Scout at the time), do they earn a Service Star for each program for the same year? If not, do your current Green Stars overstate your number of years as a youth in Boy Scouts, which should be reflected as Red Stars?

Oh no, I'm sure all the information was available to my leaders - my local leaders were just incredibly dense. As in, pitifully so. I don't know if I've ever gone into much depth about my own experiences as a young Scout, but they were mostly negative ones, mostly due to the utter negligence and ignorance of my local Scout leaders. But that was a community problem, not a church-wide issue. The Church itself would never have adopted the Venturing program if it hadn't understood its program entirely. And in places like Utah and Idaho, as I've mentioned, with incredibly large LDS populations, the

Desertrat77: In bankruptcy you do not normally follow written or unwritten long-term employment promises or practices. Weak performers are outplaced. It would be great to go through every employee and make a stay/go decision before the structural decisions are made. However, I anticipate that the practical implementation of new structures is going to take place fairly quickly and on a rolling basis. There is not really going to be time to conduct the kind of review process you envision. I think your priorities can still be achieved -- but yes, people will need to make and implement those

I'm definitely tracking, Cburkhardt. I'm approaching this from the standpoint "council X is a poor performer because of a weak exec team." Could these poor performing councils be turned around with a team of aces at the helm? If we're downsizing organizational structure first and execs second, we're allowing weak performers to stay on board and probably under perform again in the new structure.

Desertrat77: I think that we should base mergers and combinations on what makes best sense for the Scouts in that geographic territory. Poor performance metrics of a council (as opposed to individual professional performance reviews) are objective and can't be fudged. They are really good measures of what is going on. I'd put the needs of the Scouts in the geography above the pool of professionals. When a charter is withdrawn from a council, all is on the table. No volunteer or professional has a claim to any particular position. A larger council needs only one SE and will always need a

Well, it could certainly help when it comes to the administrative end of things. If you have a bigger council you might have enough work and money to actually have a staff person dedicated to the areas that tend to be frequent problems with the work actually getting done. For example, getting MBC applications processed accurately and correctly.

This is really an inaccurate and unfair characterization. Any hammock out there designed with camping in mind is designed so that the sleeper lays nearly flat. Obviously some folks might still be uncomfortable in a hammock, but it's not because they are bent into the shape of a taco or banana or anything else like that. At least, they wouldn't lay like that if they actually read the instructions that tell you to get in the hammock and then shift your body about 30 degrees of the centerline of the hammock.

Thanks

Sorry for the confusion. By "communal development," I was specifically referring to overnight camping, of which council, area, and regional officers did a good bit. Leaders who firmly believed in sex segregation on overnights would not be pleased with council officers. I suspect, top LDS scouters made a point of keeping your leaders in the dark about what Venturing was simply because of the potential of overnight camping with the opposite sex. Now that I think about it, the Venturing division might have been more successful if they produced two additional handbooks: Venturing for Young Me

My concern is that strong, healthy councils may eventually be forced into adopting weaker neighbors that could hinder their continuing success. For example, my council (Orange County Council in CA) is actually doing pretty well - we are financially stable, we have strong and healthy volunteer numbers, a good reputation in our community, and all of our districts earned gold or silver in their JTE scores (save for one bronze district). Last year we served more than 17,000 youth, and almost 43,000 Scouts attended the various camps in our council last year. We have more than 10,000 adult leaders i

I can see how merging councils can result in financially stronger entities. I don't see how merging councils can result in better unit service.

Good list. For the sake of this discussion, I am going to accept that there is another, district level, list which is separate. One item I'd suggest need not be a council professional: signing contracts for goods and services on behalf of council (with council board approval / delegated authority) This could be a volunteer role.

Exactly. Any lawyer is going to make that a significant point that somehow the council chose now, this event, as the opportunity that they are trying to hide assets. My understandings from what I have seen posted on social media is that the attorneys involved with the Abused in Scouting organization are focused on liquidating the BSA, and that includes any assets held by Councils. I've seen comments on their SM over and over that "the world doesn't need the BSA", etc. My interpretation is that they believe that everyone involved in Scouting in the past, as well as those today, are all

@The Latin Scot You were properly registered, and you were active. You should definitely wear service stars for those two years. The question is what color backing should you wear for those years. On the one hand, you were registered as a Venturer. As that was your primary (and only) registration, then you could wear the 2 year star with red backing. On the other hand, it sounds like your crew was mostly playing basketball and continuing the Boy Scout program (with maybe some Varsity stuff mixed in?). It sounds like a judgement call to me. I would probably just roll everything up into

As you may know, TLS, I became a crew advisor because someone had filled out an adult application for me to sign explaining that I didn't have to do anything else, they were setting this up just so some girl scouts could go to Seabase (which my son and his buddies had blabbed about at the lunch table one day). I told her, "You know I hate paperwork so much that I won't sign anything I don't mean. You and I are going to learn what this program has to offer, present it to everyone, and give the youth right of first refusal." They didn't refuse. And I owe them a debt of gratitude for a wond

Thanks to everybody who has commented so far; I value the questions asked and the insights given. It's fun being spoken of in the third person! In truth, I have never worn any service stars representing the two years between 16 and 18 because I haven't been sure which stars to wear, let alone if I deserved them. In a ward of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, boys were automatically raised from the troop to the Varsity team at 14, then again to the crew at 16. Not that they ever told us this was happening, mind you (even for an LDS unit my leaders were particularly inept). S

I could go with that - but I do believe we'd find a relatively short list. There are very few things that only a council can do that a district or that national cannot. Similarly, the only time you really need a professional employee is when specialized knowledge or dedicated focus is required. Accounting, Youth protection, fundraising, etc. - these all require specialized skills. For example, I see: councils: serve as focal point for all registration issues in the council provide advanced, council level training classes Oversee, develop, and coach dis

@The Latin Scot's friend may be thinking that if the youth is active in both programs, he/she should have a service star for each program, with the numbers on the star representing the years in each. Once an adult he/she can add another star representing the years serving as an adult -- or can consolidate the consecutive years of BSA membership into one star. So, by that logic it might be possible to see a 21 year-old with yellow-back 7, green-back 7, brown-back 7, red-back 7, and blue-back 3 stars who would have served as a youth in a pack, troop, team, and crew/ship, and was probably an A

I concur. Every one of these big increases invite yet another family conversation of - "do you want to continue in Scouting?". Given our general membership issues today, this will have consequences. I am not sure how much longer I'd continue with ever increasing dues that are going solely to pay for lawsuit settlements.

The other thing that this says to me is that the other troop was very organized. That counts for a lot. I've always believed that recruiting success is a lot about having a plan and simply keeping at it. Our recruiting plan looks something like: 1. Make sure the Scouts in the troop are active and having fun. The single best indicator of recruiting success is program success. Make sure to have a few really cool "wow" events. These don't have to be expensive or far away, but they need to be something that the Scouts will probably only do in Scouts. Also make sure you're thinkin

Something I turned around when I was on District was what I called "stealth Scouting for Food". District (council) started streamlining the process by dropping off donation bags at the home mail box or door on Saturday and picking them up at the door the next week. First off, that requires TWO weekends of a unit agenda, not one. Second; the public never met any of the scouts during either days. We found that folks really enjoyed meeting our scouts when they went door to door asking for donations. The community got to actually meet and talk with the scouts. Our scouts introduced themselves

Hmmm. Hammocks again. Just a reminder to folks that hammocks might be a good solution for some folks, some of the time, but do take the time to think about how you camp and where you camp, because they are definitely not a good solution for everyone. As others have mentioned, the hammock can be less comfortable than sleeping on a cot, or even flat out on the ground. Do you like being bent into a taco shape at night? We also need to be aware that hammocks damage the environment in many areas. There are places where their use is so short-lived or where the trees see little hamm

How is it different? What activities did that LDS crew do? Did they elect officers according to the leadership manual? If so did their president attend venturing officers associations? Or did they have a modified leadership manual? Did they adhere to that? I'm sorry, but just because a CO has a peculiar interest in the program, they don't get a pass on being part of the problem that made a program seem to be booming when in fact getting crews that venturers were proud to be in was no slam dunk at all! Every paper crew existed at some point. Some club filled out paperwork for their yo

More specifics on service stars: https://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2014/04/02/service-stars-for-scouts-and-scouters-pins-with-a-point/ I'm going to go the opposite direction. Paper venturers were the mechanism of choice for false inflation of program growth for DE's wanting an easy pat on the back. I wish you really were a venturer like the kids in my crew -- whose applications I would not accept if there was any hint that the parent filled out anything other than his/her signature. You would have made a great one! Do you really want a star because your good name was used to help some pr

I concur - wear the star. When that application was submitted you were a member in the program. Yes, it may not have been the experience you'd have wanted - but that's ok. Service stars are our participation ribbons. You participated - you wear the star. The quality of your participation is evidenced in other awards. You don't have those.

I think if you are going to wear stars, they should actually add up to your years of service. I am a combined under the scouter blue man myself, but that's mostly laziness.

@The Latin Scot, I'd recommend swinging by the scout shop, picking up that service star, and pinning it on your uniform. I understand your concerns but the truth is, oftentimes scouting is a pick up game. And as much as I respect and enjoy the Norman Rockwell paintings, scouting is rarely that organized or cut/dried. We still have great scouting experiences.

Another corner heard from.... https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/02/19/what-boy-scouts-taught-me/

And when you're taught how to right a swamped canoe, turn your flannel shirt into a life preserver, make tea from the bark of a sassafras tree, and read animal tracks, cairns and trail signs, you're gaining the confidence that you'll be able to adapt to whatever life throws at you. That's still relevant, not at all anachronistic. Boy Scouts needs to confront its painful past. But it might also be true that in the past it finds its future. ~ Michael Dobie , Newsday editorial board https://www.newsday.com/opinion/columnists/michael-dobie/michael-dobie-boy-scouts-of-america-bankrup

One very bad example: my council. Through the wisdom of one staff they had one council property put into a conservancy (they can't add or increase any structures) and were paid around $750k to go into a trust. The council spent all that money. Recently, they did create a $6M endowment. They have already started spending it. To add insult to injury our CE got his job (some 10 years ago) because he was going to clean up the financial aspects of the council. Incompetent or corrupt? I understand the sentiment from people that say councils should have a lot less to do. This is why I think

I didn't ask my son. I just signed him and the older one up. The younger needs social interaction in his life, goals to work toward, and things to do. Also my brothers were eagle scouts and I think it's a good program. The sentiment I hear among the church members here is that bsa is bad and they've ruined it with letting in girls and others. (I have 5 daughters and am not afraid of girls or even differently gendered people.)

They aren't. My unit has high hopes for the scouting movement. These aspirations just don't include the council. Many people make the assumption that the scouting movement and BSA are inseparable. Not true.

We attend at out Co and they make a big deal that we are there and talk about the other things we do during the year. Its one of the few times I get a lot of people thanking me for what I do for scouts.

I worked on tort reform as a national public policy issue some years ago. Nothing happened then, nothing has improved since. It's only gotten worse. In parts of Europe and Canada, the legal liability system works differently and organizations like scouting don't have the same kinds of issues and challenges that we have here. We would have to change our system and also our cultural outlook. Americans like to sue. It's why I have always carried a very large personal umbrella policy. I don't like a lot of the changes National has made over the years, but I can understand why some of them happened

I was going to write something about council camps and management and all that good stuff, but I stopped. There really is only one problem that needs to be solved at the council level. The person running it (and this includes the board as well) needs a very unique set of skills. For one, they need good, real experience running non-profits. Balancing budgets, hiring good people, replacing bad people, working with volunteers and poorly paid employees, drumming up donations, solving problems and, most importantly, making a positive impact in the area of the non profit. This does not come fro

Merit Badge counselors (MBC) should be properly registered at the District level. It is not a troop level position. If a troop does not recharter, it should not affect their registration. They also need to keep their Youth Protection training current. Your son's SM should be able to get a list of currently registered and approved MBC from the District Advancement Committee. These are the ONLY people who should be signing off on blue cards.

Liz: Remember that your recruitment commission (what? The SMS didn't tell you about the commission for every Scout you enlist? Well. let me get my tongue outta my cheek) does not depend on ONLY AOL/Webelos crossovers. Make sure you have some notoriety in the middle schools . The School Counselors should know of your existence. Take home flyers? Ask about the backpack requirements and see your DE about getting some flyers printed up. Post cards for your Scouts to hand to their friends with an event invitation. Campfire hotdog roast, flag retirement, nature hike , something like that, e

@dkurtenbach - thanks for bringing up back to the original topic. I believe that in looking at what Councils do, we need to weigh an important factor. What are our members willing to pay for the Scouting program? To start, we need to recognize three important points about councils: Most services a council spends money to provide are not visible to Scouts and families. Most programming the Scouts receive from councils is done at a fee to Scouts. Unit support from a professional is usually the least cost effective way to provide that service In addition to my minor p

I think I've got the answer to the "One Hour A Week" axiom. Where did it come from? The answer is one must use the right clock. In 2Peter 3:8 we are told.... "But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day."" So you see, it depends on whose clock you use.

We're probably thinking too hard if we're trying to figure out what district executives should be doing versus what they shouldn't be doing. The DE's job is to do whatever the council needs done. That means that DEs spend a lot of time trying to get the district volunteers on track doing their jobs, and fill critical gaps in district operations and activities wherever they appear. And other duties as assigned, which include support for council activities and events and operations wherever bodies are needed. The key point is that district executives exist because district volunteers a

The main change was back in 2005, when the Illinois ACLU pointed out to the BSA that public schools couldn't legally charter units that excluded atheists. At the time, roughly 10% of all Packs were chartered by public schools (in Texas, it was 25%) -- this figure does not include PTAs/PTOs or private schools. PTAs/PTOs can charter units and can meet in public schools on the same basis as other groups.

Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's troop, nor her Crossovers, nor her helicopter parents ....

Ahhh, a scouty question There are quite comfortable backpacking pads. Get an insulated one. That and a down quilt and you should be quite comfortable with little weight. And, when you finally get your troop backpacking, you'll have the right gear.