mashmaster

1:10 is in BSA Water safety guidelines.  That is the only 1:10 ratio I can think of that is required.  Could you be mixing up the guidelines?

Maybe there is a ratio somewhere that I am missing.  Now personally, I enjoy the adult company on campouts far away from the scouts.

Welcome to the Forums.

My understanding is that once the project has been approved by the unit and district to move forward, they can't come back to say it should be a different project.

Once it is complete and both the beneficiary and Scoutmaster sign off on it being complete, then the project is complete.  It needs to be very well understood between the beneficiary, Scoutmaster, and yourself about what the project is and what is complete.

I agree about talking to your Scoutmaster about working with your units Eagle Advisor.  They typically are an experienced scouter that have gone through this process before and can provide you great advice.

Good Luck on you journey!

14 minutes ago, InquisitiveScouter said:

Dad-brag...

Son has been with it since Tigers...Eagle BOR last December.  Is 15 and has 143 nights with BSA.  This does not include all the camping we have done just Dad and son.

Dad-shame...

I have failed to communicate to him the value in pursuing the NMOA.   Just not his thing, it seems.

Brag away. 

No Dad-shame.  My kid probably won't get it either.  He is a 16 year old now and is more interested in girls, mountain bikes, and sailboats than BSA advancement.  It is their adventure, not ours 🙂

So Cub camping counts?  It would be interesting to add up all of my kids time camping.  It is probably a lot since he would do summer & winter camps as a Cub/Webelos/Troop scout.  And the last two years doing high adventures with his Crew and Ship.  I probably won't calculate it, because that would be a lot of research.

When we have done high adventures we have kept the adults to the minimums.  But that depends on the activities.  Water based activities require more adults for supervision.  When we are in the non-water based part like camping or hiking we are at a minimum of adults but we only have 12 active scouts so our ratios are lower.  It is fun for us adults to hang way back and watch the scouts get lost on a hike.

I remember last year our scouts walked us in a big circle and I pointed out how that truck looks a lot like mine.....  They asked why didn't I say anything, I mentioned y'all look well hydrated, my job is done. 

That ratio seems off to me as well.  But in my unit we are almost always sailing or by water so we have to follow the guidelines for water safety so maybe I am confusing the ratios.  I also have to ensure that we have male and female adult leaders since we are co-ed.

Along with ensuring boy tents (blue) are on one side, adults in the middle, girl tents (pink) on the other side.  No purpleing....(mixing of pink and blue 🙂 )

5 hours ago, qwazse said:

My main interest in this thread is determining if this MB improves scouts' abilities to address problems of the day.

I doubt that it will, but it could really depend on the MBC for it.  For instance, I have seen First Aid MBC's do great jobs and scouts get great value from it.  I have also seen it run so badly that the scouts learned nothing about First Aid.

One of the best things that happened to our Cub Scout den way back when...was when a Muslim scout joined and the scouts got to learn first hand about religious differences.

That is a lot. 125 nights.  For an active scout, 25 nights a year is a lot.

It is hard for the scouts to count all the stuff with the under the auspices of BSA for some things to.  Have to go back and count up all the nights, hours doing things when they occured a year or more ago.

I know my son have earned two segments and is close on completed the final three segments.  The riding one is hard for all the hours riding under BSA auspices, since his crew and ship don't do that (so he probably can't get there), he rides all the time just not with the scouts.  Camping he needs e-Prep and it fed up and done with merit badges. (he already has BSA Lifeguarding, Red Cross First Aid, and Wilderness First Aid certs) so who knows if he will finish that.  For adventure, he just needs one more adventure (Jamboree this Summer was supposed to be that final one).

Oh well, just patches really at this point.

8 minutes ago, fred8033 said:

I am strongly leaning in the same direction.  This may be my opporunity to find somewhere else to spend my time. 

I will still be here teaching youth to sail, camp, and lead as best I can.  I am in this for the youth not the organization.  Maybe you should look into Sea Scouts, we have no merit badges.  We do have mad sailing and leadership skills though.

My best success is to rely on older more experienced scouts or recent scouters to help guide them early in their position.  I typically have conversations with my Boatswain (SPL) the day before the meeting about what the plan for the meeting is.  Our Boatswain has taken the initiative to hold weekly meetings with our Quarterdeck (PLC) over discord.  It is amazing when then work together.

Sadly I know of no PLC videos.  

We need more videos like this one 🙂  

9 minutes ago, Bowsprit said:

Ok, then who's making vile comments? You painted the whole conversation with that brush. I can tell you for certain that people not coming together and having this conversation can't change anything. Shutting down the conversation because you don't see the value isn't very scouty. We're teaching kids to think and lead not be silently accepting of whatever the world throws at them. In short, your comment was pessimistic and dismissive, hence you coming across as righteous.

Lots of talking, not a lot of listening.  I haven't seen people listening to the other side, on either side of the MB on this thread.  That is the lesson that I would want scouts to learn, leadership is about listening and well as talking.  There are valid points to both sides of most issues.

You chose to take it a pessimistic.  That is your choice.  I stated facts with no side one way or another.

And trust me, I am a sailor, If I wanted to call names I can do that very well.  That is a better discussion to hold over an adult beverage at a bar.

9 minutes ago, Bowsprit said:

No, you are getting downvoted for resorting to name calling and insisting we don't get to be skeptical about DEI training. In effect, you're trying to shut dow the conversation and declare your position indisputably righteous.

No, wasn't name calling at all.  And how was my position righteous?  Do you think all this arguing is going to get rid of or change the Merit Badge?

This was a good week for our Ship.  One Scout attained his Eagle rank and another attained his Quartermaster rank.  The Quartermaster rank is very rare.

And one of my scouts applied for the National Boatswain position.  

Weeks like this are a rare and special.

4 hours ago, mashmaster said:

Frankly, the vile I am hearing from the scouters on this forum disgusts me.  

o    The merit badge exists whether you like it or not.

o    The merit badge will evolve over time (all have)

o    The basis of the black live matters movement is sadly based on fact and is an important issue to get addressed

o    We should be encouraging youth to join our movement 

Let's move on to support each other rather than resort to name calling or calling this to be the end of scouting as we know it.  

Funny people downvoting this, because I suggest people more forward an work together.  I choose to embrace our differences and support my fellow scouters.

How many units do you know where it is a husband and wife that are the Scoutmaster and Committee chair?  I personally know of five units that way.  I don't agree with that.

Frankly, the vile I am hearing from the scouters on this forum disgusts me.  

o    The merit badge exists whether you like it or not.

o    The merit badge will evolve over time (all have)

o    The basis of the black live matters movement is sadly based on fact and is an important issue to get addressed

o    We should be encouraging youth to join our movement 

Let's move on to support each other rather than resort to name calling or calling this to be the end of scouting as we know it.  

In our council it takes usually 2-3 days to get the merit badge approved.  It shouldn't take very long to do.

3 hours ago, CynicalScouter said:

The idea is that you will no longer be able to add yourself as a MBC directly into Scoutbook. Your council, when it puts your application through Scoutnet, is official Then Scoutnet updates Scoutbook.

So yes, it still relies on Council (or District depending, I know some districts process MBCs) getting it into Scoutnet. But it also means that if you are not in Scoutbook, you are not officially registered as a MBC. It also eliminates units being able to put MBCs into Scoutbook (which was a problem as tons of "unofficial" MBC without YPT were working with scouts).

https://discussions.scouting.org/t/upcoming-scoutbook-mbc-actions/185362/3

 

That is how it has been in our council for a while now.  

11 hours ago, fred8033 said:

Maybe I'm just sensitive to this.  I just experienced nine months of people calling all cops bastards and accusing the right of violence when the left was violent, censoring and intimidating.

We need to review the requirements and learn from each other the best way to run the Merit Badge instruction for it.  I don't see anything inherently wrong with the merit badge. All youth should feel that scouting is a safe place for them.  I have had a scout persecuted by adult leaders in a prior unit because of his orientation.  That was backed by their Church COR and they attempted to defend it when they were called out for this anti-scouting behavior.  

Inclusion of youth is a good thing, IMHO.  It is also a good thing to get rid of systematic racism and razing awareness of the existence of it.  Sadly, police departments have a long history of this and can be made better.  I have plenty of friends that are police and they agree that there are good changes that still need to be made.

I am tired of the old story of "Left vs Right".  I am in the middle and can see both sides.  The Right is not necessarily racist and violent,  The Left is not necessarily violent and anti-patriot.  The most "Left" wing people I know actually graduated from West Point and served for many years in Iraq and Afghanistan.  They are certainly not anti-police or military, but they happen to be very Anti-Trump, very pro-inclusion.

People need to stop being so sensitive and listen to all sides.  That is what we teach out youth to do, we can learn from them.

3 hours ago, The Latin Scot said:

Good bye, Boy's Life. You will be sorely missed.

Not really, most of my scouts thought it was boring and didn't like it. 

I am ok with this change.

I like how Sea Scouts do uniforms.  I get a 5.11 tactical shirt, sew on patches and ready to go.  The shirt is really comfortable.

IMHO, don't do Philmont, Northern Tier, Summit, Sea Base....  I have done Philmont and Sea Base.  

I am a huge fan of having the youth plan and roll their own high adventure.  We have backpacked in the Gila Wilderness, paddled the Buffalo River, and sailed in the Puget Sound.  All those were cheaper than the BSA bases and the youth learned a ton more than on the BSA trips.  The BSA trips were all a ton of fun don't get me wrong.  but the experience and planning on the trips they planned were priceless.

Honestly, I think holiday cards or videos for nursing homes would be very welcomed.  They don't get to see anyone for the holidays

Roger Staubach he is the guy, they can name anything after him.  

There are good days and bad days.

For instance today was a good day.  I have a scout working on his Quartermaster project and eager beaver adults that kept presuring this young man to get started even before he was there.  I had to tell them to stand down, even though these adults have many years of scouting.  One is even in on the national committee.  Grumbling happenned but the scout showed up when he said he would and directed them to work on what he wanted them to do.  

Afterwards, the three previous Skippers in our unit and the scouter on the National committee, thanked me profusely for doing everything I do for the kids.  That felt nice.  Much better than any other the silly knots on my uniform I have been given.

My advice is have bad days, learn from them.  And realize that is you work with the kids first, you will have great days.  Even SMs that have been there forever need a reminder about the purpose every once in a while.