CJamesP

I think that girls are needed in boy Scout camps, after all the Boy Scouts vision states; "responsible, participating citizen and leader" and in reality it is not a "Boys only" kind of world, and a scout involved in scouting at the age where he is able to staff at a camp is at the age where he needs to know how to work with a girl in a professional environment, and it would be difficult for a scout to get the opportunity in a Boy Scout environment otherwise. Also there may be times at a Scout Camp when you made need a girl, for example if a scout is extremely home sick, a girl may be able to comfort him better than a boy.

Keep in mind NYLT is now coed, and as such it requires male and female youth staff members if it is going to be able to provide a positive experience for girls in venturing that may attend.

Take White Stag for example, they first allowed girls to attend in 1978 and became the first coed scout camp, and that same year a staff member from the Western Region of the Boy Scouts said: "Something that somewhat shocked me was the use of girls as part of the staff and as learners. They are incorporated very smoothly into the program, the only problem being showers. This was easily remedied. The girls and the boys seemed not at all uncomfortable about the coed situation. It had no apparent effect on learning." White Stag currently has a large number of girls on their staff, some as young as 14, and is constantly growing with coed staff.

In the long run I think we need to accept girls a vital part of scouting and should support their participation. As in reality when it comes to leadership we need to be training scouts in a real world environment if we are to fulfill the Boy Scout's vision.

What I would do is during a PLC is to go over the expectations of a PL and other things like an expectation of having a fruit, vegi, and protein item at every meal on an outing. Having a clear set of expectations for them will help them know what they need to do and hopefully make it easier for them to break things down and get things done on their own.