SeattlePioneer

So we're going to find out what happened, right?

Ummmm. In our pack the dens usually meet in a large, common room. But they meet separately. I typically had a gathering activity which often was stretched until ten minutes into the regular den meeting time because families were commonly later arriving. ( I often had FUN gathering activities, with the hope that parents would show up on time, but that's always been a forlorn hope.) We had an opening flag ceremony to call the den meeting to order, and went right into our planned activities. To the greatest extent possible I avoided "announcements" because they are usual

You need two dens. My theory is that the thing to do is to find one person who will DESIGN each den meeting, and another person (two is better) who willpresent the program as planned. It takes less ability to presnt a program than to design it. And it's a lot easier to have two dens of seven boys each than one den of 14. For o0ne thing, with two dens you can easily design competitions between the two dens, and low stakes competitions between dens make for easy program and a lot of fun for boys.

<< If one mails paperwork to the council office for processing. get a postal receipt which will come back signed and dated it was delivered. Make copies of everything before giving to the office.>> Sorry, not interested in doing that. By and large these days, when the council screws it up I'm letting it sit there, uncorrected. I just don't have the energy to try to fix all their goofs. Meanwhile, they keep piling on more administrative complexity that THEY can't manage, let alone volunteers. In my opinion, BSA is strangling itself with all the admi

At our district committee meeting last night, it was confirmed that our council requiring annual YPT beginning THIS year. The idea is apparently that people need annual training or they wont abide by YP rules. Now, I was tested before I could get a driver's license, that was uhhh, fifty years ago. This strikes me a contempt by the council towards volunteers. We are too STUPID to only be tested every other year, apparently. Of course, National BSA apparently isn't going to show that people need to take YPT, and may not even allow people who have taken YPT within a year

Look at the hypersensitivity of feminists, routinely shouting "rape" these days on college campuses for the most trivial reasons. Girls and women have their own program, which they apparently manage poorly. Keep the feminist influence OUT of BSA, or we'll all be taking rape "sensitivity" training before long. The policy goal of feminists is CONTROL by women over men, establishing a matriarchy. Web don't need to give that yet another leg up in BSA.

<<Photos from the inaugural session of our new STEAM Day Camp, TechLab: Oceans!>> This from the Capitol Area Council. STEAM presumably = Science, technology, engineering, ARTS and math. The arts advocates seem to be envious of the STEM idea, and are promoting the idea that they should be included in such program as well. I'll agree with that as soon as I see the Museum of Modern Art rename itself the Museum of Modern Arts and Sciences. Until then, I have NO sympathy for the arts establishment trying to latch on to someone else's program and idea

<< Members 1,537 posts 15 thanks Local time: 07:06 PM 337 Excellent @Mention Posted Today, 03:31 PM After consolidation, the new district that contains the area in which I Scouted for thirty years has had no Training Chair or Scout Training Chair for almost four years and no Roundtable Commissioners for the same period. The vast majority of units have no Commissioner service. Correcting this situation seems to have no priority. >> A new District Chair and District Commissioner are needed. Google "district nominating committee" and read

I keep an eye on the websites for neighboring councils and sometimes their districts to see what they are up to. Sometimes I find ideas and activities I can use. Farther afield, sometimes I'll Google up Scout Councils in cities around the country, to see what they are doing, and often I'll check district website to see what districts are doing. Some are doing well, other poorly. I'm pleased to be able to say that few seem to be doing as well as my own Chief Seattle Council. http://www.seattlebsa.org/ So who has council websites that deserve a look?

<< SeattlePioneer, on 26 Aug 2015 - 2:25 PM, said:

Our district has an annual planning meeting in January. We plan activities for the next year or two. That's an opportunity to decide WHAT the district should be doing. What kinds of things is your district doing that aren't worthwhile?

<< My opinion: We've lost the real intent Baden-Powell wanted for Scouting: A game with a purpose. I don't care if the emphasis is historic camping or STEM: If it can be a game with a purpose, it'll support the youth. If it's not a game, then it won't capture their desire to participate.>> Personally, I don't think that just any old game will work. Hiking and camping appeal to the adventurous nature of a pretty significant percentage of boys ---and adults. But BSA rolled out "Soccer and Scouting" a few years ago with the aim of appealing to Hispani

<<If your district committee is NOT helping your units deliver and develop solid programs for your units then they do not belong in their current positions and should be replaced ASAP.>> That's what my district does. A couple of years ago, we had district leaders too worn out to do much. We got new leadership, and they are doing a good job.

<<Good luck to the volunteers trying to make this new program work out in the field.>> BSA is built around volunteers organizing and conducting programs. Our council made a real effort to make "Soccer and Scouting" work, before abandoning it. But it was mostly conducted by paid staff, not volunteers. Not many parents stepped up to provide the leadership and continuity that makes Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts work. <<[Personally, I think something vaguely like STEM Scouts is probably a good idea generally (there is a place for more STEM related activities for yo

<< We did procure a Cub pack for our CO. So now we have an in-house feeder pack and will be able to work directly with the Cubs and their program to develop a seamless transition into the troop. We haven't worked out the details as yet, but we will both be meeting at the CO on the same night. As an adult in the program, I'm really excited about the potential of what we have here. >> Sounds like you have the resources that make a FIGHT worthwhile. Look for ways to help your Cub Pack be successful. Good luck!

<< What do effective commissioners do? What would effective RTs do? What would they consist of? District and council screw up my recharter paperwork. If they stay out of the way I get it done first pass. When they get involved -- which they do only to get what they want out of my unit -- they lose stuff, screw it up or otherwise delay it. >> Well, an effective district doesn't screw up your recharter paperwork. A couple of years ago, I couldn't complete my unit recharter because an adult leader's training couldn't be identified on line. I wound up calling

<<https://stemscouts.org/>> Well, here's BSA's latest brainstorm to replace regular Scouting. Open to boys and girls grades 3-12. Not a WORD about camping that I saw. This is BSA following the latest fads. Remember Soccer and Scouting?

<< Speaking for myself, I don't care if they go or stay as it does not affect my unit. But part of me would like to see them stand their ground and show BSA they made a very bad decision. There's plenty of a "total lack of scout spirit" on both sides of this argument for you to be disappointed about. >> Personally, I think BSA deserves credit for standing its ground. BSA took the issue to the USSC --- and won. However, cultural norms shift, and for good or ill it has shifted in favor of including homosexuals in the program as youth and leaders. BSA has deci

<<Flag ceremonies are never "incorrect" if people take time to do it respectfully. >> This is my priority. I've been a Tiger Cub Den Leader the past EIGHT YEARS. Guess what? I've never drilled Tiger Cubs so that they follow the US Flag Code. I looked for simple ways boys can learn to respect the flag. I've posted two examples of how I've done that. They've worked quite well for me. If you are unhappy with such things, follow you own standards in your own program.

<<No, that's not my problem, it is the problem defined by the U. S. Flag Code adopted by Congress. And no they do not prescribe anything other that what's written in the Code. For further reference, review the document, it's on-line.>> I'm not bound by the US flag code adopted by Congress. I'm a BSA volunteer and I do things that carry out my program.

So what are your prospects for recruiting more boys? Is there a nearby Cub Pack you can cultivate and perhaps get crossovers? Are your two boys willing to find and invite boys they know to come to a quality Boy Scout activity? Will near by schools co-operate by letting you visit the school and invite boys to an activity? Are there other adults that can help you with the program and activities? Nine years ago I began an effort to rescue a Cub Pack that was down to a single boy. That has led to a quality program for boys, but I haven't really found enough effective

So... When did you and your boy join your pack? How many Tiger Cubs in your den? What activities do you have planned or would you like to do? Is your Cubmaster or other Pack leader helping you get your den plans worked up? Does your pack have some good activities planned that your den can participate in?

<< But what does this mean? How does any of this help the units? How does any of this further the goal of scouting? From my experience "district goals" have been more around JTE than anything substantial felt at the unit level. I was looking for concrete program ideas and execution by "good districts" which help the units.>> Things that districts should be doing to aid units: 1. Effective Unit Commissioners 2. Effective Cub Scout and Boy Scout Roundtables 3. District activities units can participate in such as Klondike Derby, Cub Scout Day Camp and dist

<< 2. Functioning UC's for every unit. 3. All units chartered on time. 4. Day-long JLT twice a year with best possible adult and Scout staff. 5. Recognition of troops using the Patrol Method. 6. Patrol Method training at two or more Roundtables. 7. Youth-planned and led district camping events (camporee & klondike derby) with all events sponsored, planned, and carried out by units. 8. Back-ups for all key district leaders. 9. Scholarship fund to insure that no leader missed week-long JLT for lack of funds. 10. Outstanding Roundtables largely focusing on unit program. Savag

<< So what happens when a district has no members on district committee except the key 2.5?>> The DE and the District Chair or Commissioner had better start beating the bushes to find new people to fill positions. If they can't do that, they need to be replaced with someone who can. If you Google "District Nominating Committee", you will find a procedure to have an election to fill the position of District Chair. If you have a District Chair who isn't doing much and wont turn over the position to a better person, that procedure can be used to find new l