4CouncilsScouter

Back pack, I agree with you 100% that we have resources developed to help our volunteers and professionals. However, every "what-if" can't be covered. Several moons ago, a few more than I'd admit , I was advancement committee chair for our district. We had a similar case happen: a young Scout, very involved with his church, was unable to attend troop meetings due to other, important commitments. He had missed the date for a change in requirements, but all he lacked was a board of review. His committee chair asked our district what to do in the situation. At the end of the day, the dis

@@Back Pack Why would Venturing need these changes? Having been an adult leader in a crew currently and a youth back when Venturing was Exploring, I have to again ask why? The current programming in Venturing is designed for older youth. Adding younger ages to Venturing defeats the program's purpose. That being said, Venturing, by its nature, is meant to be adaptable and flexible. Before the updates to the Venturing program, less than 1% of Venturers actually pursued advancement. This isn't so much an issue on the BSA-side but more so a testament that most Venturers join Venturing for

I'd go to the Guide to Advancement for a clear-cut answer. Off the top of my head though, my answer goes to what's been said. If the youth, through no fault of his, was unable to have a BOR, then I would probably say no to restarting the requirements. However, he should be afforded the opportunity to have a BOR as soon as possible, including via phone conference or video conference. That's my two-cents.

I like the idea of more hands-on or job-relevant requirements but that being said. I don't believe BSA wouldn't be in the business of putting youth in the position to work on gas lines. Sure a youth could find a good MB counselor who's a certified or experienced contractor/plumber, but there's a the risk of an "all-knowing" parent signing up as a counselor as well. That's frankly a pretty unsettling prospect.

Fishing for thoughts here: I am looking over the Venturing Personal Safety Awareness, and a couple things come to mind... The syllabus references "Suicide Prevention" which is not included in the linked video. Am I the only person that thinks the video is a bit dated and out-of-touch? Should crew advisors be presenting this? Honestly, these are fairly sensitive topics and probably deserve someone comfortable/knowledgeable/experienced in said topics to facilitate this training. What are your crew's experiences and thoughts?

Hey OldScout448, Here is the link to the application for meritorious and lifesaving awards: http://www.scouting.org/filestore/pdf/LifesavingAward.pdf. Hope this helps!

Just reached out to my council about, as far as they can tell it's legitimate. My council had already reached out to national about it.

I don't think he's too worried about the professional Scouting. I know I catch him at council camporees and other Scouting events chatting up professionals like its no one's business. I know he caught the last chief Scout executive at Jambo 2013, and asked him about professional scouting; so, this career has been on his mind for a while. Honestly, I think it'd be good for him to go through it. Especially because he's considering professional scouting pretty seriously. He's been admitted to the State University and is entering as a outdoor program management major this fall.

Thanks for the advice, To add some additional insight, the young man has served on summer camp staff the last three years, and, unfortunately, my council only does their NYLT during the middle of summer. This makes NYLT and NAYLE staff difficult to say the least, especially since NAYLE is a two week commitment at any of the high-adventure bases. He's also considering professional Scouting or wildlife management as a career, so I think he wants to be as much of a volunteer as possible befor he has to "step back".

Hey Mashmaster, I'm a volunteer for my council's outdoor adventures committee, and these are the requirements we use from the Summer Camp Staff Training Guide 430-037. "The list of don’ts include: • Toilet humor—anything that involves bodily functions, toilet paper, etc. • Water—where the audience or participants get wet • Embarrassing an audience member • Racial put-downs, making fun of mental or physical disabilities, religious groups, and others • Portraying violent behavior • Anything with sexual overtones • Anything that is not in keeping with the ideals of th

Hey everybody, I want to pick your brains on scenario going on in my crew. Our Area Venturing President, equivalent to an OA Section Chief, is a member of our crew and recently completed NAYLE this last summer. He'll be turning 18 in May and has expressed interest in the idea of attending Wood Badge. Having formerly staffed Wood Badge, I know 18 year-olds can attend Wood Badge, even if they are not registered as an adult leader in a pack, troop, or team. However, I know his parents are stand-offish to the idea of him attending Wood Badge so young. The course he would like to attend wou

Hey Latin Scot, I can confirm this. The "Scouting Service Award" knot is new, official cloth insignia for the Asian American Spirit of Scouting Service Award, Vale la Pena Service Award, and the Witney M. Young, Jr. Award. When I was Philmont Training Center over the summer, one of those awards came up during a discussion and the professional from the National Council did confirm that all those awards' knots are being consolidated into one. The picture showed to us matches the on Scoutstuff.org. Hopefully their applications/literature will reflect this soon.

The FAQs did come straight from National. They actually came straight from Michael Surbaugh's assistant. I got forwarded a copy from my Scout executive due to me serving on the council executive board, and Michael Surbaugh's assistant was the original source of the e-mail.

I think like many other council committees, a lack volunteers/interests have led various council committees to dissolve, be absorbed into another, or stagnate. I think a lack a volunteers willing to serve on council committees from both inside and outside of Scouting has contributed to this. In my council's case, a core a group of "council favorites" head-up the majority of the remaining council committees, events, and projects. I believe my council likes to keep its avid supporters close and insulate themselves in the process. I can't say the same for other councils, but I do know the cou

Just curious how other chapters, lodges, and sections are going so far in 2017, I feel this year has been a struggle for OA leadership in my local area. Lodge officers were a stretch to be found, and lodge committee chairmen are dropping like flies. My district's chapter is having very little luck with unit elections. They are also talking of cancelling or significantly scaling back their Cub Scout service project that they've done for 10+ years now due to a lack of youth volunteers. On the national level, I know Operation Arrow is still only 2/3 full with about half a year left be

Deaf Scouter, I did attend a course this last summer. It was a membership training. Since the first conversation, I haven't heard anything from my SE since that conversation. I'm heading out to a region meeting next week. I'm gonna see what information I can dig up. If anything, any insight to the life of a PTC faculty member and what its like would be greatly appreciated!

You're best bet in determining whether an Eagle Scout project is finished would determining the following: What were the goals/parameters of the project when approved by the unit and by the project beneficiary? Were the those goals/parameters met or accomplished to the satisfaction of the project beneficiary? Those would the rules of thumb I would use. Hope this helps!

Hey Beaglelover, The unit Scouters reserve (position code 91U) would be the way to go, in my opinion, based on the information you've given. The unit Scouter reserve is designed to be used for Scout parents, transient volunteers, and community members who want to give back to Scouting. Any Scouting unit will tell you the more volunteers a unit has the better the unit's program can be, and this is where the unit Scouters reserve can play in. That being said, any other den leaders, assistant den leaders, committee members, cubmasters, or assistant cubmasters should also satisfy the Youth

Quick question for those who are Philmont Training Center savvy or are former PTC faculty: when do you find out if you've been selected for faculty? I was at a council event over the weekend, and my council Scout executive mentioned he had a letter pass his desk about myself "teaching at Philmont". Having only gone through NAYLE and a membership course previously, I wonder what course could I be asked to teach. Any thoughts or insight is appreciated. Thanks.