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USMA_Eagle

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Everything posted by USMA_Eagle

  1. Thanks for the resource-- I know recruiting is a constant worry for Scouting in general, as it seems that membership is declining. A difficulty that we're having in our council is with the troops that aren't pack-fed, and we're looking for any ideas out there on how to grow troops without that natural feeder unit. Would welcome any input on that! Thanks, Paul http://www.scoutspirit.com
  2. I'll also submit a couple other solutions for this-- there's a lot of good software out there that does event management, too. A lot of it is also online and accessible, such as http://www.bigtent.com , http://www.wildapricot.com, and so on. I'll admit to being biased-- I'm interning with the non-profit developing ScoutSpirit, which has a lot of event-management functions, and Advancement tracking w/personnel records, etc., besides--but you shouldn't have to use an Excel spreadsheet when there are programs that do registration, email lists, etc. Hope that helps! Paul Lukehart
  3. Concur with Scoutfreakdad... If the boys are not using packing lists, particularly in areas where weather is a real concern (wet, cold, etc), then that's probably where the direction needs to go. Coming from a military background, packing lists were built by leadership and then inspected by lower-level leaders, and gave a great framework so that we knew that everyone had what they needed to survive and prosper. Over time, lists can be modified for continuity purposes and tailored to specific events, and can be annotated with "essential" (i.e. Scout can't go without it) and "recommended
  4. I'm a big fan of bivouac ("bivvy") sacks generally... I've used them quite a bit, and they're great pieces of equipment. A good technique is to have one person in a group bring a tent, and the rest bring bivvys, just so if you need to provide shelter you can--but the group isn't weighed down with tents. Pros: Very light, portable, durable, and will keep you dry and warm. Great for trekking, not so much for fixed campsites. If you're doing some serious backpacking where you're moving around a lot, these are a great solution. Your mileage may vary with your tolerance for camping in the
  5. Hi! In addition to doing some work in my District's advancement, I'm working with ScoutSpirit to design Event Planning and Unit Management software for cloud and mobile platforms, so here's a shameless plug for that... http://www.scoutspirit.com'>http://www.scoutspirit.com ... but am also interested in what everyone else is currently using as far as Scouting or Event Planning and Registration software. Is that something that's made its way into mainstream scouting yet? What sort of features do troops and councils need? Thanks for your consideration! Paul Lukehart
  6. @BadenP: I welcome the critique... Here are my sources for perusal : Regarding student loans being marketed as low-risk non-dischargeable securities, which entice students to take on debt they can't afford: http://nplusonemag.com/bad-education Notable quote: "The Project On Student Debt estimates that the average college senior in 2009 graduated with $24,000 in outstanding loans. Last August, student loans surpassed credit cards as the nations single largest source of debt, edging ever closer to $1 trillion. Yet for all the moralizing about American consumer debt by both parties,
  7. This is sort of near and dear to my heart-- thanks for posting it. I think we have started to neglect the proper recognition accorded to our MoH recipients. They are real heroes. Unfortunately, media focus is not so much on them and what they have done in service to their country and fellow soldiers as it is on our military's shortcomings in other areas or on policy. I've had an opportunity to hear some Medal of Honor winners tell their stories, and read citations, and they're simply incredible. Very modest, and humble, too--but real men. Medal of Honor Archive Regards,
  8. @PackSaddle: Hm, no, not so much saying the practices were good or fair or just, particularly in the way they were used--but that the court-ordered actions afterwards had the effect of robbing companies of objective, low-cost means of measuring employee potential. So now we have bachelor's degrees from schools costing $40k/year as a legally valid means of judging individual worth--the aforementioned proxy for ability. Not the intended outcome, but an outcome nonetheless. I feel this is a tragedy that has had the effect of misleading many kids and making them believe that they HAVE
  9. Not a Troop Site, but... http://www.scoutspirit.com'>http://www.scoutspirit.com It's something a buddy put together-- he was building some Scouting software services to address some needs that he saw, and came up with this. Cheers- Paul Lukehart http://www.scoutspirit.com
  10. Too many kids are indeed going to college. This is the reason that college tuition rates keep on rising-- supply and demand curves = price, etc. If more people are demanding the good, then prices will rise. This is because as a society we've decided that a college degree means that you're going to "make it." As we continue to use the Bachelor's degree as a proxy for intelligence, aptitude, and initiative, and more people who have few of those things earn it, it becomes devalued--but because it's still used as a signal, people have to continue to seek it, like in an employment arms rac
  11. Hey Everyone- Hi! I'm recently out of the Army, and started getting back into Scouting through volunteering with my local troop. I found this forum and decided that it's got a lot of good resources for dealing with the issues that Scouting Leaders frequently encounter, but don't usually have someone else to talk with about. As mentioned, my background is that I was in the Army--I went to West Point right out of high school, served as an Infantry platoon leader in Afghanistan with the 82nd Airborne, then learned Intelligence and Operations in Iraq. I'm headed back to business school
  12. I am a District Advancement Committee Chairman. I have been doing this job for about 7 months, and assumed it shortly after I got out of the Army. I am an Eagle Scout, and have worked in the Army as well as an executive in a large retail corporation. I am the guy who approves or disapproves Eagle Projects and conducts the Boards of Review. As such, when I see a project, I judge it solely by the requirement-- a Scout must Plan, Develop, and Give Leadership to others in a project beneficial to... etc. The length or size of the project is immaterial to me, as long as the Scout demonstrat
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