Owls_are_cool

Did you start on your service project before it was approved by the district? Has it been approved by the district? 

1 hour ago, mashmaster said:

Do you think all this arguing is going to get rid of or change the Merit Badge?

You are right that none of us at the unit level doing most of the work will be given a chance to provide input on this new merit badge (or on even if it is needed). That is the way it is. 

2020 was a hard year on the organization with COVID-19 and the constant radio and TV ads looking for people harmed by the BSA to join a lawsuit. While my troop gained 2 scouts last year, it lost 5 of them due to COVID-19 restrictions. (Actually one was lost due to age out.) My troop did okay in weathering the storm. Myself and my co-volunteers put in a lot of work to make this happen. A number of other packs and troops in my district are not doing as well. This should be our organization's focus in 2021.

If the BSA chooses the road to redemption via adopting left-wing causes, then I will likely leave the organization at the end of this year. I did not sign up to volunteer for the Boy Scouts to prime scouts to support any political ideology. To help scouts to spend time in the outdoors and serve the community is what I signed up for in order for scouts to grow in character, leadership, citizenship, and physical fitness. No need to bring politics into that which will hurt recruitment. 

In my Troop, the SM and ASMs are not the advancement chair. It has to be someone on the committee. It is their job to order all of the patches, rank awards, etc. They must also arrange for boards of review and have some admin work for court of honors. 

The advancement chair in my troop is really busy with her job, so I help her (as SM) out as much as I can. I just let her know what I am up to. 

So assign the advancement chair to someone on the committee and let the ASM help them out if needed. This year I had to step up for the committee, because covid-19 has increased the time committee members had to spend at work. This year, I am sending those tasks back, because it is too much for one person. Whatever it takes for the scouts though.

1 hour ago, mashmaster said:

We should be encouraging youth to join our movement 

Your political movement is free to start its own youth chapters outside of the Boy Scouts and do your own recruitment activities. There are a lot of restrictions on the Boy Scouts in regards to political events and activity. I cannot go door-to-door with my son in our scouting uniforms to campaign for a candidate we like or for legislative initiatives on the ballot. 

Now the Seattle BLM organization has committed to lobbying their state legislature to increase capital gains taxes to give public school more funding. My personal opinion is that states should give minority parents vouchers, so they can send their children to schools that provide a good education. However, I am 99% confident that the Seattle BLM would oppose vouchers to keep minority students in failing public schools. I am also 99% confident that giving failing public schools more money will not improve education. Administration and teachers will be paid more and they will be able to hire more people, but the quality of education will not improve. So who cares more about the education of minority students? Me or the Seattle BLM?

If you are offended about my stance on education funding, then that is exactly why the Boy Scouts should stay out of political matters like this.

If the national BSA wanted to make a statement on racism, then why didn't they make a statement along the following lines...

"Given the increase in racial tensions in the United States over the past year, the leadership of the national BSA wants to give thousands of Cub Scout and Scout BSA units credit for being positive models in our communities. A Scout is kind. A Scout is helpful. A Scout is Courteous. A Scout is Friendly. Every day scouts of all races, genders, etc join together to do activities in the outdoors and serve the communities they are a part of. We are proud of Scouts and adult volunteers for all their work to make this a more diverse and inclusive organization."

Wouldn't this encourage more scouts to join the organization than the actual statement sent out by the national BSA that assumes that everyone is not exposed to diversity, equity, and inclusion principles. It is like national is telling the world that we are a racist organization and that they are requiring training of scouts and adult volunteers to help put the end to that. 

Am I off base here?

My last act in 2020 was to submit our recharter through the internet interface. I have to tie up some paperwork loose ends next week, but the process is almost done. So 2021 is a go for my Troop!

I am looking forward to 2021, which could be my last as scoutmaster and one last chance to get the troop to be scout led. With COVID-19 cancelling district events, it will be a chance for scouts to plan their own calendar of events. I have 7 scouts working on their Eagle rank right now (over half of the troop), so the first 6 months of 2021 will be busy with eagle projects and finishing up required merit badges. Looks to be an exciting year for my troop.

Happy New Year to all.

 The new merit badge is not in scoutbook as of 12:20 am MST Jan 1.

My council uploaded a MBC list to scoutbook on Mar 24, 2020 and since that time, I could not list anyone in my unit as a MBC. Here is an interesting fact, as unit leader, I can sign off on any merit badge requirement in scoutbook. This is important, since I get a stack of blue cards from Merit Badge University or from summer camp and I have to manually enter that information into Scoutbook. Right now, there is nothing stopping me from signing off on any merit badge requirement, but I only do so for MBs that I am approved for by my council. Occasionally, I sign off on MB requirements in scoutbook, when their MBC asks me to (not all MBC have access to tech to use scoutbook). 

1 hour ago, CynicalScouter said:

That will end in March 2021. At that point if they aren't in Scoutbook, they are not a registered MBC.

Conversely, if they are in Scoutbook you'll know they are valid.

I am a big Scoutbook person and would like it to work this way. I will sign up for another merit badge tonight and see how long scoutbook updates. My guess is that a manual upload to scoutbook is needed via the council....or manual entry to scoutnet. Council drops the ball and valid councillors do not appear in scoutbook. Units will do what they have to do for the scouts when councils/national let us down...though i am currently trying to be part of the solution.

@DuctTapeand others,

Let's remember the original purpose of merit badges...to expose scouts to various topics that they find interesting. If a scout takes First Aid merit badge, the goal is NOT an official first aid certification, rather to get the scout exposed to the basic concepts. I have first aid certification through the Red Cross for work and that includes being able to demonstrate CPR and how to use an AED. This MB falls short of that, yet there are unit leaders and MBC that add to the requirements of the MB, because the view it as some sort of certification. 

It is good that scouts are exposed to first aid principals almost constantly in the program and they will get many opportunities to actually need to use them. But to expect scouts to be paramedics can be over the top.

My district advancement coordinator also noted the lax enforcement of MBC approvals. Nobody verifies that the councilor on the blue card is actually a registered MBC and there is no process in place to verify that the scout did everything that the MBC signed off on. Though, as scoutmaster, I have some power given the blue card needs my final signature. However, a scout can find a MBC that I do not know via the scout office, so I have no idea if the MBC is trustworthy. I generally trust the MBC unless I have good evidence that the MBC signed off on requirements without the scout doing them. And even if I have the evidence, I will sign off the scout anyway, but I will report the MBC to the district and council advancement chairs. I can verify myself that the councilor is registered via scoutbook. (Though councilors at camp are never in scoutbook, so I have to trust the camp leadership on that one.) 

The aim of scouting is not the Eagle Rank, rather it is the growth of scouts in character, citizenship, leadership, and physical fitness. As long as the MB causes growth, is it the end of the world if a scout truly does not understand some of the requirements? Or in the case of must of my scouts, they forget much of the information they learned in the MB about a year later. 

I work hard to not expose my scouts to my politics. They occasionally say stuff about politicians that are factually false, but I resist the urge to debate and correct them. I believe keeping my personal politics out of my Troop will make it more inclusive and prime it for growth. I am okay with boys having political debates with each other, but I am quick to shut the debate down when it crosses the line when scouts start attacking each other (as usually happens with political debates). 

I have parents of scouts that are on both sides of the political divide and they appreciate my neutrality with scouts even though I am politically active outside of the Troop. I am bothered that my troop lost a Native American scout last spring, while the troop went online during the covid lockdown. In talking with his mother, it had nothing to do with him not feeling a part of the troop, but instead it was too much "school-work" type of activities associated with scouting. So I have been encouraging my SPL to do less meetings and more activities. 

Unfortunately, national is no longer neutral politically and this is causing parents to pull their scouts from the program. Personally, I am offended that I need inclusiveness training, given I was bullied in my youth and have a heart for boys who do not fit in. While my son is now favoring baseball over boy scouts, this new merit badge starts with the premise that my son is not inclusive and is required to do this merit badge to get the Eagle rank. That is also offensive to me, so I am now inclined to let him leave scouting. Sadly national cares more about appeasing the looters, arsonists, etc of the BLM movement, than leaders like me who have invested many hours into scouts.

@eagle91-A1 Amen. Last year, my troop did 9 short term campouts in a year for the first time I was scoutmaster (in 3 years). The word does get out in the district that we are a troop that does outdoor stuff, which helps with recruitment. My boys troop is partnering with a girls troop on campouts, because two families have scouts in both troops and the adults serve both troops. I was able to recruit one of these families last fall using the partnership, the fact we have an active outdoor program, and the fact I contacted them once my troop's scout pin sent me a notification. 

Newsmax had an article on the GSUSA lawsuit last night and it said that the GSUSA had an issue with the "Scout Me In" promotion and the fact that the Boy Scouts changed their name to the more gender neutral "Scouts BSA". That is more than trademark infringement. 

No doubt that numbers in the boy scouts have been plummeting over the past year. Cub scouts in my district is down by 1/3. Scouts BSA is down a bit too. It points to the fact that online scouting is not fun for scouts, especially being online for school all day. I learned this quickly last spring and got my troop outdoors in May and stuck with through the rest of the year. My troop did some stuff for cub scouts, since their Day camp would canceled this year. But my troop's efforts did not replace all of the activity in the district lost due to COVID-19, so the district lost scouts. The district cannot get into Public Schools either to recruit. So it has been a tough go this past year.

In Montana, the outdoor emphasis of Scouts BSA is attracting girls to the program...girls who would not be in any scouting program had Scouts BSA not offered them an opportunity. Second reason for joining Scouts BSA/cub scouts is having a brother in the program. 

Seems to me that this is sour grapes from the Girl Scouts, but I am not a lawyer or a judge. 

The planning book is where all my scouts start in the process.

Racism violates the scout law...friendly, courteous, kind, so today's scouts and leaders do have a pathway to follow outside this new merit badge. I have only been exposed to scouting for less than a decade, so I would be curious how troops/packs racially integrated earlier than 1970. One thing I do know is we need to give the current generation of scouts credit for: they are more accepting of other races, religions, etc than any generation before them. 

In general, the leadership of the Chartering Organization (CO) through the Chartered Organization Representative (COR) of the troop decides whether or not a chair remains. If the Committee Chair is good friends with the CO leadership, then there is not much you can do. I would bring up your concerns to the COR to feel them out. If the COR refuses to address the issue, then the best thing to do is find another troop. If this is the only troop in the area, then consider starting a new troop with parents pushed out of the troop. There is also the lone scout program.

I was removed (mutany) as scoutmaster of my troop for a month via a vote of the committee. I took a stand that it is the scouts that select their new senior patrol leader and a faction of the committee wanted me to veto that selection on grounds that the scout selected had character issues. The COR and CC went to bat for me to remove two troublesome parents from the troop and reinstated me as scoutmaster. In the end my troop split into two troops and it will take my troop 1-2 years to recover from the event. 

The point of my story is adult fighting does hurt the scouts and the credibility of the scouting program. I wish I handled this situation better...even switched to a different troop, but the scouts needed me to be there for them given all of the issues the troop has encountered before my son joined. If you want to fight, then I would make sure it is for the right reasons. But even if your side is right, sometimes it is better to avoid the fight and find another troop. Help that troop be the troop that scouts want to join. 

The latest iteration of the scout handbook does have several ways for scouts to indirectly measure the height of the objects and width of streams with the use of their own pacing measurements. As I observed my scouts on their course, I asked them how wide is the stream at this point and later on, I asked to determine the height of a tree on their path. I think this minimally meets the requirement, but those developing courses can certainly add these measurements to the next distance/direction instruction. 

Thanks for this excellent thread. I have been a scoutmaster for 2 1/2 years and I think it is time to transition to a new scoutmaster. I think this year is my son's last year in scouting, so it is time for my troop to find a new scoutmaster. I have been filling voids in my son's pack and then his troop for the past 6 years. It took me awhile to get what scouting is about (I was never a scout in my youth) and it took being a scoutmaster before I truly understood the aims of scouting. 

It was a hard 2 1/2 years as scoutmaster as I was asked to do the job after the previous scoutmaster unexpectedly resigned. I (with a small group of other parents) had to clean up a mess that was left behind. Initially I focused on advancement and all was well with the world. Then I actually took scoutmaster training and felt the need to transition the troop from the aim of getting scouts to eagle rank to a troop that does scouting that develops the character of scouts. When I was purely doing things to advance scouts to eagle rank, I had no problems. When I tried to restart the patrol method and took the side of scouts being targeted for removal from the troop, then I encountered serious problems with a parent faction of the troop committee. It turned ugly and I have scars, but it is worth it all to get the troop past 5 years of turbulence and into health. Those of us adults left behind work really well together and the scouts enjoy their program. 

I am hoping for a better transition in the next year than what I as given 2 1/2 years ago.

I believe that YPT protects me as a volunteer, because it teaches me how to avoid contact with scouts that could result in a lawsuit, frivolous or not. Never be alone with a scout, two deep leadership, etc. It is a pain in the butt to follow all these rules, but that is better than shutting scouting down. 

Someone at the unit committee level has to manage training and this task has fallen on me as Scoutmaster the past two years. It becomes a nightmare, when Online YPT Training does not record completions and does not reflect completions in my.scouting.org leader reports. How many wasted hours of volunteers nation-wide must be expended, before someone is held accountable for software issues? 

It is shocking to me to learn the salaries of DEs. Salary levels should be based on supply and demand, not how many zeros are in their council budget. If this causes the cut of employees that actually do the work that benefits scouting and volunteers, then that is a problem. 

MBC lists: I like how scoutbook makes a council's list publicly available to all units. The problem is that the list is not updated constantly (as applications are approved). Anyway, that is how it appears to me, so I could be wrong. I think the application process should be done on scoutbook and approved by the council in scoutbook. Unit adult membership should not have to fill out another application just to be a MBC. Again wasting a volunteer's time and the time of those that have to mail completed apps to the council office, etc.  

@yknot you providing insight here is useful to me. I hope you keep contributing.

With covid-19 restrictions and the BSA's bankruptcy filing, I have been rethinking how my unit should do scouting. My district and council, in the past, provided effective programing that my troop can partake in. Camporees, merit badge universities, Klondike, etc. But with the 25 person gathering limits, difficulty securing facilities for events, and the expensive cleaning/masking regulations, my district can no longer deliver programming that helps units.

Maybe this is a blessing in disguise? Maybe it is a chance for my Troop to get back to basics? Less meetings and more doing stuff outdoors? Camping, hiking, fishing, shooting, service projects. 

I think this is cultural change we should look forward to. I welcome safety improvements to the program and the BSA can advertise that scouting is now one of the safest places to put children in. Though the BSA MUST fix the issue were people take YPT online and not get credit for it. 

Scouts providing meals for campouts is quite important, so I see the value of cooking advancement requirements and cooking merit badge. Interesting how the cooking merit badge was off, on, off, and on of the requirement list. Something similar happened to the required swimming merit badge. 

I suspect that changes to required merit badges should be a harder process to promote stability.

17 minutes ago, qwazse said:

Here's a nice link http://usscouts.org/eagle/EagleHistory.asp

 

 

Fascinating to see the evolution. 

I asked my DE about this and they seem to think that troops can do short term campouts together without these new regs as long as the district and council is not involved. We are actually doing this with another troop next weekend, but we will have enough adult leadership available for each troop. This is something we are trying out, because we have (or will have) two families with siblings in each of the two troops. While we are at the same campground, we will still be at separate campsites. We are planning to do some activities together. So it would be overkill to add these requirements to this type of event.

Now if a district ran a camporee, then I imagine these new regs would apply.

I found myself in a similar situation as scoutmaster, where certain committee members wanted a scout expelled and I was not on board with it. One of their sons was the root cause of behavior issues, but they were blaming it on the scout they wanted expelled. 

They got enough committee members together to remove me as scoutmaster. However, adult positions in a Troop serve with the COR's blessing. So the COR and committee chair went to bat for me, removed the two parents behind the coup attempt, and I was reinstated as scoutmaster. 

So the route you should take depends on where your COR stands on this. If he/she is with the advancement chair, et al, then there is nothing you can do to stop this. You can fight a battle like my supporters in my troop did, but that is not a good example for scouts, especially since my troop split into two troops as a result. If the COR is on your side, they should be addressing this issue with committee members causing problems. 

My gut says that if your scoutmaster has decided to switch troops, then it is likely the COR will not address the issue. If I was in that position, changing troops would be the best option. You might be the next target, so following the scoutmaster might be a good idea.