DuctTape

You are correct that the Requirement as written is unambiguous. The activities in 9b must be done on the trips in 9a. As far as being held to the mercy of the troop, I would say the Scouts should plan the outings as a patrol not the troop. The scout can and should motivate the patrol to do preferred activities with their patrol. If the patrol members want different things, then perhaps the makeup of the patrols is an issue. This is separate from the mB requirement question. And welcome to the virtual campfire!

For how long have we here at Scouter.com advocated for required mBs to be in groups/categories of which the scout could choose?

When an organization's focus is on Quantity; Quality suffers. When the focus is on Quality; Quantity will also improve. Just summarizing our esteemed colleagues' aforementioned experiences.

I do not see how it takes so long to re-Charter. IMO there should not be an annual Re-Charter. Chartering is a completely separate issue from individual memberships.. The Chartering Agreement between the Council and the CO does not need to be redone annually. The Agreeement can and should remain in force until one (or both) parties agree to sever the relationship. Any changes to personnel do not require a change in the Chartering Agreement. Name/title changes can be a separate document and can be modified whenever changes are necessary. As individuals join a Unit either as Scouts or Adult Scouters, their paperwork is submitted to Council for processing. This process should be expedititious for Scouts and the only time issue for Scouters is a background check. If one is on file, then no time needed. The entire system is antiquated, and it is ridiculous how long it seems to process . I bet 3 or 4 of us here could revamp the entire system in a single day. The way i see it, there are 3 separate parts (and before it is suggested that the Annual Re-Charter does all of these, IMO that is the problem.) 1. Chartering Agreement. The contract between Council and CO. This Agreement is done once and signed by the Council and IH on the date of Charter. The Charter continues to exist until one or both parties sever. Re-Charters are reserved for the rare occurence of a former Charter is being re instated. 2. Leadership Documents. Document which details names of IH, COR, SM, etc... this is updated continuously as changes are made not saved for an annual event. 3. Individual Membership Documents. These would include Application for joining. Change in Status/Unit form, etc... These must be processed immediately. For Scouts, membership should be considered conferred when the Unit signs the paperwork. For Adults, the only delay is for background check validation. I have rambled enough.

Grandma Gatewood is legendary!

Whatever system (digital or otherwise), counsel the scouts to reply to comms. If someone does not reply, then the PL (or whomever sent the comm) must then seek that person out. Lack of communication is based on the premise, "I sent it out via..." as the only step. Instruct them how to communicate effectively. Eg. From: Patrol Leader "At our next Patrol meeting we will be doing a gear inspection for the upcoming campout. Even if you are not going, please bring your pack with gear. If you are in need of anything please let me or the APL know. Reply to this message, 'YES' to let me know you understand. If I do not hear back from you by (insert time/date) I will be calling you directly."

Sadly you are correct. SilNylon and SilPoly are not that expensive now, and would be better options than the polyblue, etc...

Add School Board members to the list.

Those LitePac diy gear instructions were/are awesome.

One benefit you have, is that you can "start at zero" to rebuild. I have found this useful in the past: http://inquiry.net/patrol/green_bar/index.htm

The Chartering Organization can conduct a fundraiser and designate the proceeds to the unit. In fact any proceeds from a council fundraiser are owned by the CO anyway.

IH = Institutional Head. Basically the head honcho. If you have the support, have a sit down with the girls troop SM and do a full split. Then have an individual session with each ASM to get them on your page. Do not try to do this as a group. If the ASM is not on board, thank them for their service and let them know they are no longer needed as an ASM. Harsh? Yep. But their job is to support you. If they are not on board, they will undermine you every step of the way.

Yikes! You have your hands full. In order to enact change you will need (at least) one other adult on your side else change will be futile. You will also need the authority to make the hard (but correct) decisions. This requires the unequivocal support from the IH. With these two pieces, you have a chance. You then need to get all your ASMs trained in the Patrol Method.

Welcome. Pull up a stump to the virtual campfire and grab a cup of coffee.

There are sometimes religious reasons for a person to not recite oaths or pledges.

The only merit badge I received that I can say I probably did not truly earn was Basketry. The was done at summer camp. At the time I recall 2 requirements: 1. Make a basket. 2. Cane a chair seat. For #1, we used a kit with a wooden base. For #2, we weaved criss-cross strings over a square platform. Afterwards, as an older scout I learned how to make an actual basket without a kit... Significantly more complex. I also learned to cane a seat from my father as he would restore antique chairs as a hobby. Wow was that a complex process. I never completed an entire chair seat myself, only did a few of the diagonal weaves with the cane. I did make multiple baskets of different designs over the years.

I do not disagree, at least not much. A good commissioner can only do so much. If the unit wants to do a non-bsa program denying the scouts a real scouting opportunity they can and do. You hinted at this by admitting the leaders (sic) only do the basic required trainings. One might argue that if more is necessary, then more should be required. The major issue is even WITH the training, they ignore what they are supposed to do. Often with phrases, "this is how our troop operates", even when it contradicts the training and literature.

I am not sure they can do much more for the local units. IMO the entire BSA structure predicated on the authority of the IH of the CO is the major obstacle for any real reform. Problematic units do not utilize district/council trainings, trainers, etc... They do not see themselves as having a problem even though they are not delivering the BSA program. The district and council have no authority to step in and make real changes when a unit is operating in a way contradictory to the BSA program (eg. adult led & run eagle mills). Perhaps one place where the council & district CAN exercise some authority is true vetting and training of mB counselors. Also in ensuring district & council camps are run in a way to maximize the BSA program with fidelity and not enable the problematic units.

With these numbers, I am not surprised of the difficulties. 2 scouts is not a den, 4 barely. Not to sound harsh, but these numbers do not make viable dens, let alone a pack. The pack needs to either fold or merge IMO.

A BA tent is an ultra-light backpacking tent, so weight will be always on the mind. Even still, it can be set-up rain fly first w/o a footprint, and a cheaper and even lighter than the footprint plastic groundcloth can be found using polycryo plastic (sold as window insulation). Get the giant size and cut it. The stuff is way stronger than it appears. I am veering off from the needs of scouts and into the ultralight backpacking territory.

Footprints are a waste of $ IMO. Easier and cheaper to cut a piece of heavy duty plastic sheeting to size.

Johnson Outdoors, the makers of Eureka Tents is exiting the tent manufacturing. Their Eureka Timberline tents have been mainstays for Scouts for decades. There might br some good deals to be found as they sell off their remaining inventory.

I disagree that the way we experienced it is not useful for todays youth. Den-centric can be just as active as the leaders desire, just as pack-centric can be boring inside stuff. A den is much easier to organize a hike, or outdoor activity too. Family attending a campout is much easier as a den too. I also disagree with the current parent sign-off.

It might have been 3 years for me, not sure. It was the late 70s, so before Tigers too.

My cub experience was vastly different from what I have been hearing the last few decades. Cubs. for me was NOT a family affair, nor a Pack-centric unit. We had a den which met weekly after school at the den leaders house for an hour or so, then walked home or our parents picked us up. There were a couple pack meetings throughout the year, maybe 2 or 3. Pinewood derby and B&G are the only ones I remember. There were also a couple pack campouts, but we mostly stayed with our den. I do not recall ever really interacting with another den. Each den meeting we would do an activity, sometimes a continuation from the previous week. No "requirements" were ever signed off by parents. AOL was an extra award one could earn as a Webelos, and there was only one year of it. There were only 4 years of cubs, iirc, Bobcat, Wolf, Bear, and Webelos.