John-in-KC

IF your troop is running to recommended practices, THEN: Scoutmaster and Assistant Scoutmasters are "by their office" members of the committee, and do not have a vote. Scoutmaster and ASMs do not sit Boards of Review. Does every troop run to recommended and best practices on something like this? Nope. Many do, but many don't. I'd ask your CC directly. He'll tell you how your unit actually does business. John

FWIW, Our Council advancement committee, through the staff advisor, sends us a MB Counselor renewal every fall. We validate the MBs on the list (including adds/drops as needed) and return it. Those who do not return the response form get purged and then have to re-qualify (YP and MB Counselor training). Our Council is also minimalist on "memberships at large." District Directors have to justify each "at-large primary" adult membership to the Council Exec. As far as the app every year, that is part and parcel of District/Counicl At-Large membership, even as a secondary. I do it every fall as a RT staffer for my district. My two cents.

FWIW, Our Council advancement committee, through the staff advisor, sends us a MB Counselor renewal every fall. We validate the MBs on the list (including adds/drops as needed) and return it. Those who do not return the response form get purged and then have to re-qualify (YP and MB Counselor training). Our Council is also minimalist on "memberships at large." District Directors have to justify each "at-large primary" adult membership to the Council Exec. As far as the app every year, that is part and parcel of District/Counicl At-Large membership, even as a secondary. I do it every fall as a RT staffer for my district. My two cents.

Fuzzy, I'd bet on your third scenario...

Have to agree that Supply Division is out of control. Neckerchief for every level of Cubbing Cap for every level of Cubbing 2 different shirt TYPES during the course of Cubbing... Units have to have bodacious uniform closets anymore. The "uniform" method can be a tool, but National seems to be working really hard to make that tool a dull rusty knife. My two cents.

I'm in a relatively young unit, both in terms of time organized and in terms of leader experience with our primary Council camp. The commissioners at camp who gave us the greatest help are those who know every nook and cranny of their council camp ... they can help the SM, the SPL, and the PLC find additional opportunities for fun and growth. Doesn't matter if it's a hike, an overnight out of the main camp, or even a midnight swim ... the commish can find it and can help the SPL coordinate with the Camp Director and PD.

Here is a website where your Chaplain's Aide can download free STUFF: http://www.nlas.org/resource.htm His Peace be with you, John

Cut and paste this one: http://www.woolrich.com/CGI-BIN/LANSAWEB?WEBEVENT+L0921564598670938DF20494+PRD+ENG Cut and paste as appropriate. Sorry for the dead link!!! John

Ed, it may not apply to BSA, BUT... if a unit is hours out of position from home (high adventure expedition) and youth/adult is hospitalized, HPPA applies to the hospital. It's worth it for BSA to look at changing...

Best litter cleanup: Not the daily unit trash to the dumpster, but what they find on the trails, in the lakes, and so on. Measure by weight or cube

FWIW: At Woolrich website: http://tinyurl.com/435pc(This message has been edited by John-in-KC)

Heart of America Council, Kansas City, offers Venturing Blast every summer. Same property (H Roe Bartle Scout Reservation, Osceola, MO) as we use for one of our two Scout camps. Our council offers it the week after Boy Scout camp is finished. www.hoac-bsa.org

My Council has a local rule: No more than six merit badges per counselor. I'm old school here. MB program used to be a forced opportunity at socialization for youth. It forced them to do the very things they'll have to do later in life at job interviews. There are times and places for a troop having a healthy "in-house" MB capability (rural units come to mind) ... but for urban/suburban/exurban units ... push the youth to new experiences. My $0.02.

FB, You made a key point above: The interrelationships between us who are Scouters are the saving grace of more than a little training. Over the years, I've learned more around the campfire after the youth have gone to bed than I have in formal presentations in several training sessions (not all, old Cub Basic was a great package, and the CCS package on Roundtable service was a huge winner). While interrelationships are a key, You hit a critical point in your post: "Preparing for a class of 25 may exceed most budgets, which are generally nothing. The arrangement of the room may also provide unique problems to most. Generally, rooms are on loan and cannot be rearranged. Equipment is mostly out-of-pocket' **** (emphasis added here) 'and the material, even out-of-date material, is given to the instructor by the coordinator of the event, sometimes the night before." *** (end of added emphasis) THIS IS ABSOLUTELY UNSATISFACTORY ON TWO LEVELS: 1) BE PREPARED. We teach that to the youth. WHY, when the audience is paying good money to attend these events, is the coordinator not running STAFF DEVELOPMENT??? 2) THE TRAINING AUDIENCE IS PAYING COLD CASH, in addition to giving their own time (perhaps away from their units) to attend. Since my local DD is one of the staff professionals supporting our CCS, I asked him about funding breakdown. Big part of it is reproduction costs. Training executed right provides information to the Scouter to take back and use in his primary units. It helps forge a network of inter-relationships between people who care about raising young men (and women in Venturing) to adulthood and independence. The prep we who teach give to our task helps make or break the quality of our product. I have no doubt the Scouters foto trains will be better for the time invested YIS(This message has been edited by John-in-KC)

KS, To add insult to injury, I know a Council that managed to dump its entire adult training record out of ScoutNet. Of course, you and I are used to Services that can audit our entire careers rather well. John

Foto, I don't know about your Council ... mine charges about $75 to take CCS. In my day job, when I take training, if my firm is footing the bill, they want my feedback on the quality of instruction and facilities. Why? Simple. They're not going to pay for unsat facilities and unsat classes. Ditto when I go and get skills improvement on my own. There is competition for my buck. Scouting training is a monopoly. District trainers ask me "why did you send your adult leaders to xyz District for training?" Answer was simple: You didn't offer it when the leaders could take it. At least at the District level there is choice by attending a different district. Council and Regional training is another story. It truly is a monopoly. Most of these people have not taken any form of training to be corporate trainers. They know their subject (with exceptions, see my post above). You were asking if someone had a powerpoint that supported your class. I truly hope you have someone sit in the very back of your classroom and check to make sure the typefaces are legible at distance. I also hope you check the InFocus machine to make sure it projects the size dimensions of your PC. Have fun teaching. I know your dedication to the program, you post in many fora here. I hope you make the training package exciting, stimulating, and thought provoking. John

Waring, red riders: RANT mode ON. Time for my hobby horse: Clueless trainers at Commissioner's College!! Last year I took a course from my Council's CCS. Two class sessions ruined the day for me ... and made me think that the College WASTES MY TIME: 1) G2SS class: The instructor, wearing the neckerchief of a Doctor of Commissioner Service, didn't have the lung capacity to speak in a normal voice in a classroom of 25 adults. Who checks these folks to see if they need sound system support??? 2) G2SS class, content: Same teacher had her head where the sun does not shine. The handout G2SS was a "just print the website" dating back to 2001! She didn't know that she could download the Guide as an adobe PDF document (which is just as current as the website guide, since I understand National updates both of them concurrently). She insisted that the G2SS mandates all members of Venturing have Class 3 physicals. The associate dean for curriculum is a friend. I let him have it with both barrels. The critique sheet ripped the instructor to shreds. Lesson learned: Trainers need "Train the Trainer 101" and what we in the Armed Forces used to call a "Murder Board" ... where everyone had to certify they could TEACH the class to standard. Rant mode off.

I'm a staffer for my district BS Roundtable. Some thoughts: 1) One stop unit service! Give leaders more and more reasons to come to RT. Our standard modules that we integrate into RT night are: - YP training - New Leader Essentials Common Core - Professional Staff table (access to our DD, SDE, and DE) - Commissioners table (access to our DC and/or his designated ADC) - Membership table (district membership chair with access for apps, recharter issues, and so on) - Eagle Project Review - OA Chapter meeting 2) Then we have special activity support: - GTFA gets a table every month - Recharter gets tables in Jan and Feb (our council has all districts recharter in the same month each year) - Camporee and Klondike get tables "in season." 3) Then we get on to program: - We're working one month ahead right now, we'd like to make it two. - We regularly have two program packages dedicated to the monthly theme: In February, we will have Pioneering Review (by our immediate past DC) and First Aid for trauma and burns (some Scout somewhere is going to have a log fall on his arm, or get a rope burn ... sad but true). - We try to have something for the committee as well as the program. In January, our membership chair is teaching: Maintaining unit files with Troopmaster. - WE HAVE FOOD. Too many folks these days work too many hours. We sell food as a fundraiser for the goodies we'll door prize at June program fair. - We have units do Flag Openings, and we give prizes for best Troop annually. We also give a special Patriotic epaulet for the field uniform (red/white/blue) after Scouts come to three RT flag openings. 4) Finally, we are horizontally integrated across the District: Cub/Boy RTs and Venturing Huddle all happen on one night ... one stop service. Hope all this helps (This message has been edited by John-in-KC)(This message has been edited by John-in-KC)

I've been an activity leader for five years... wood and cooking. Key points: 1) 100% turnover every 4 years (tops). Once you have a catalog of activity ideas, you can rotate them on a cycle. As an example, when I had woodcraft we did: - A windvane for the back porch - A birdhouse - A toolbox - A stepstool In Cub Grub, we've done or will do: - Hot dogs on the grill - Biscuit on a stick - Dutch oven cobblers (a perennial favorite) - Foil dinners 2) Good planning and coordination between the staffer, the Director, the PD, and the activity leaders. 3) Adequate staffing to support the area. NEVER allow one staffer to do it "by him/herself." I promise burnout (particularly on full week camps). 4) Make sure unit leaders (CC and CMs) understand that the walking leaders are part of the team!! If they are hanging back and not supporting the activity leaders and helping the Cubs, or are concentrating on their own "Johnny or Jimmy" when there are kids whose parents can't/won't/don't help out, then some activities will not get from here to there!

Think of us over-40 types. Class 3 check-up is annual requirement. I, for one, am happy BSA forces me to spend my health insurance for preventive vice reactive medical care. The benefits are part of my policy (provided by my employer but paid for about 1/2 by me). I probably would be too lazy to use them if I was not forced to.

Laurie, Superb start. I'd emphasize three elements of patches: 1) THE BASICS. Heaven help me, I've seen youth who wear the Council shoulder patch BELOW the numerals. I've seen numerals be vertical. These are from people who have the various Cub Scout handbooks! The basics need coverage every bit as much as the various temporary patches. 2) USING A BRAG VEST. Maybe this is local to my neck of the woods, but most patches end up on the brag vest instead of the shirt pocket. Biggest reason is there are sooooo many patches out there. 3) PROGRESS TOWARDS RANK: The plastic blivet obliterates most of any temp patch on the r/h pocket. Another good reason for the brag vest. KISMIF!!!! Thank you for the wishes of Christmas. May the Naming of the Christ (sometimes called New Year's) be just as joyous. John

I'm someplace where I can write without having the truncating server hit me. The Western Los Angeles Area Council (long ago the San Fernando Valley Council) runs its major LT camp facility in the low Sierra Nevada, near Kernville and Johnsondale, California. It's called Camp Whitsett. As stated earlier in the thread, the Council sponsors the Silver Knapsack Trail. It runs close to 50 miles in length, and takes a week to do. It's worth looking into. Another option, not run by BSA, but rather by the Pacific Crest Trail Association, is the John Muir Trail. Here's a URL for it: http://www.pcta.org/about_trail/muir/over.asp The penultimate source on this trail is Starr's Guide, written in the 30s by Walter Starr, and updated since: http://www.ucpress.edu/books/sc/pages/SC61727.html Have fun wherever you go! John

Siver Knapsack Trail URL: http://hat.bsa-la.org/PlacesToGo/Hike%20Guides/SilverKnap/SilverKnap.html

2nd the motion on Western LA Council, Camp Whitsett, and their Silver Knapsack Trail. Another option -Sierra Club John Muir Trail.

MEMO FOR UNIFORM POLICE: "Uniform" is NOT a method in the Venturing Program. See Position specific training for Venturing's 7 methods.