ParkMan

Sort of, but I'm sure you know it's more complicated than that. Membership and money enable the BSA to provide programming. Without membership and money, the BSA would be 3 guys sitting around in a tent talking about how great Scouting could be. Yeah, it would be nice if the there was a magic fund that enabled the BSA to operate with less regard for either of them, but it doesn't. This is where a great endownment would be helpful - but alas, it doesn't exist. Membership is also what enables the BSA to fulfill it's mandate of bringing Scouting to the youth of America. If they've got

Which is why I think you have to decide what is more important to you: Lone Scouting based on the BSA advancement model Lone Scouting based on a different advancement model If you care about the BSA advancement model, then you need to do this within the BSA. If you don't, then start your own. Yes - I know this is factually correct. However, I don't think getting rid of paper COs brings much real value to the BSA. The kind of value that will get the BSAs attention is membership growth.

They are council employees.

This is where we need a group of proponents of Lone Scouting to advocate for it. If I wanted to see this happen, I'd get my fellow Lone Scouting supporters together and come up with a description of how it could work and the value it would bring to Scouting. How would it attract new youth to Scouting, what would they do, how many members could it attract, how would it be additive to our current programs? Then I'd call up a progressive local Scouter (a District Commissioner, District Chair, or VP of Programming perhaps) and get them on board. From there we'd take it to the Council Key T

Interesting development. Seems like the BSA has a real opportunity to clean up their IT systems so that the role of the registrar is substantially easier. If ever there was a position in the professional staff that could be made easier - it is that one.

It's very interesting. I gotta wonder why the color choice and shoulder loops though. Color scheme is 100% BSA colors. Good for the GSUSA, but I don't get it. Is an announcement coming I don't know about?

My gut tells me that in this climate, if a group could articulate a mechanism for a lone scout program to work and coexist alongside traditional patrol based programs then it's a possibility. I've been around enough high level Scouters to know that the door is open for all kinds of innovative activities right now. The challenge in things like this is knowing how to talk to the right people about it. You call up your DE or local membership chair and start talking Lone Scouts and they'll go tilt. They are generally not going to have the right opportunities in the organization to even know ho

This sounds like a wonderful program - even in today's uber connected world of 2020. I don't know why this is an either/or scenario. You want the lone scout experience - join up that way. You want patrol method Scouting just a Troop. Both can exist can't they? I'm on board 100% - what do we need to do?

Hi @5thGenTexan, Congrats on getting ready for the course. You have my sincerest hope that you have an absolutely wonderful time. I attended just before I became a Cubmaster and it was a great help for me as I took that role on. Like you, I have a hard time with delegating. I had a blast and really enjoyed it. I've since staffed three times in large part because of the wonderful experience it was. I'm looking forward to hearing about your course as you attend! @BAJ - Thanks for the amazing review. It's great to hear such positive feedback. Those of us who will be involved

What I'd like to see if an agreement that within the confines of this forum, we are all open and encouraged to share our opinions honestly. I, for example, have no problem saying that I think that the professional structure is too autocratic and that this has a very negative result in how professionals interact with volunteers. In a society which is moving in the direction of high skilled, knowledge based workers, too many of the structures we have in place in the BSA run contrary to that. I would hope that we can find a way to generally agree that we have a shared goal of building

Remarkably well said. Thank you for capturing it so well.

I mean no disrespect by this, but that feels like a distinction without a difference. Within the community here, I think open dialog and yes - complaining makes complete sense. Express your frustrations and I'll be here to support you in that. I think that's the benefit of a community like this. The term "inside baseball" comes to mind. By and large, most Scouts, families, and frankly - even Scouters - are not that worried about these things. I'm a pretty with it Scouter and I've got absolutely no idea what the national professional structure that oversees the programs really

Let me get this straight. The strategy is to complain about what we have, hope it fails, and then hope it is the replaced by an organization like you like. If so, I am quite certain that there is no chance this works out as you hope. The most likely path to getting the Scouting unit you want is to be building such a unit now. Then, when there are opportunities for change and influence, provide both. This is part of why constructive engagement is so important.

I expect you are correct that WOSM would likely appoint someone to replace the BSA as our representative the world body. However, I do not think it would result in a successful Scouting program at anything approaching the levels of involvement of the BSA. The national Scouting resources are owned by the BSA and would most certainly be lost. Philmont, Northern Tier, etc. would go away. Since the idea is that councils would go away in favor of this new entity, I suspect that almost all council camps would be lost. You'd have a new Scouting program that is unfamiliar to most.

I don't think there is a Scouter.com problem at all. If anything, I think that what we see here is emblematic of the country as a whole. It strikes me that there is less knowledge sharing today and more debating today. What I cannot figure out is where people go who have questions on how to implement the best program possible. I guess I wonder - when does our interest in discussing the future of the program overwhelm our ability to enjoy the program and advocate for it? I am the first to acknowledge that national policies and structure are important. It strikes me that the cha

Scouting is a strange volunteer experience. Scouting needs volunteers in a number of difference levels in the program. We need people who are thinking about how to take a 9 year old on the best weekend trip ever or how to take a 16 year old on a meaningful backpacking trip. We also need people who are thinking about organizational issues at the unit, district, council, or area level. One of the wonderful things about the program we have is that there are places for all kinds of volunteers with all kinds of skills. I think we'd be better off if we simply recognized that and embraced it.

Yes and no. Legally, structurally, and financially yes - the bankruptcy judge has the primary impact. However, in the hearts and minds of volunteers and members, the bankruptcy judge is a smaller factor. What I expect will be just as destructive to the future of the BSA is how the active volunteers support the program. The more of us that lose faith the more challenging it will be for the program going forward. If the BSA has a committed group of volunteers it can recover from anything.

They may not be different, but they get to the nature of someone's dislike of the BSA and our prospects in the future. For those people who so strongly dislike the BSA, I suspect there is no path forward that keeps the BSA in place as an organization that provides a Scouting program. If someone is upset about what happened years ago, then there is a chance a reformed BSA that demonstrates it's commitment to youth safety can win their trust. For those who strongly dislike (dare I say hates) the BSA as an organization, then I find it improbable that those people can find a way to

Does your dislike of the BSA as an organization all stem from the actions of the abusers years ago and the BSA not being more aggressive in stopping it? I was under the impression you disliked the organization because of it's structure and distinction today.

I don't think that we are even remotely talking about the same here. You seem to have a visceral dislike of the BSA and want to see it fail. I believe that having a strong Scouting program in the USA is a good thing. I'd rather see reform of the BSA so that it can really focus enabling successful Scouting programs in our communities.

Yep - that is true. But the core point is that we are all running around angry with the BSA - lawsuits, anger at execs, whatever. In the process it's the kids who lose out.

That's jaded talk. Just about everyone who has a job wants to keep it. I want to keep my job too. I don't fault those who work for the BSA wanting to continue to do so. But it's not the real reason it exists or at least not the reason it was intended to exist.

On the surface that is correct. But the BSA has become incapable of meaningfully adapting to help kids Scout today. The BSA has become so wrapped up in lawsuits and insurance and fees that it simply can no longer adapt. I look around my area. The infrastructure that is the BSA today has no idea how to meaningfully grow anymore.

The BSA is the congressionally chartered corporation established so that kids could scout. We need to remember why it exists. The BSA is there for kids. Kids are not here for the BSA. This is different from a normal corporation. Normal companies exist to make profits for their owners. That is not shy the BSA exists. So many of the problems in the BSA stem from the fact that we all forget that.

Just catching up on this topic. All programs - get rid of shoulder loops. There is no point. Same with the world Scouting patch Cubs - end level specific belts, hats, and neckercheif slides. Lions-wolves wear the same uniform. Bears-AOL wear the same uniform. Keep the level specific neckercheifs. Standardize on two standard materials- poly/cotton (like is in use today) and nylon (like in venturing). Most of the rest the patches are decorations or badges. No need to change those.