Cub Master

[Ekmiranda]

Hi all,

I have been CM for this pack for 4 years. In the 4 years all of my Dens from Tigers up to Webelos have moved up in rank as a Den meaning Bobcat tiger wolf bear Badges.

 

I have a Wolf Den in which all the Wolves are scattered around in achiving thier wolf badge. I have one child that has earned his and his parent Mother is adament about getting it with out the rest of the Den. This parent has pushed the child and made him work harder than the rest. The den leader Who I mite add is an Eagle has promised the badge to the parent without contacting me or the A.C.

 

I know the issue of giving out awards when they are due and when they are earned. But my problem here is how will the other boys feel and now I am also concerned about the leadership in Den now.

 

My pack is all about team effort and doing things as a group and all the leaders are in agreement with that and the C.C. feels the same way. Cub Scouts is also a way to learn to work as a team and giving an award to one boy because his parents worked the heck out of the book will only teach him to scrape and claw his way up on the backs of his peers. We are supposed to be helping to instill values in these kids even if the parent doesn't get it (I don't mean we clash with the parent or their beliefs, we gently remind them of the goal of scouting). Specifically the purpose of Cub Scouting is: character development, spiritual growth, good citizenship, sportsmanship and fitness, family understanding, respectful relationships, personal achievement, friendly service, fun and adventure and preparation for Boys Scouts.

 

Thanks EKmiranda

[mtm25653]

Give the boy his rank when he earns it, always.

 

Earning Wolf in Feb is not out of line (if this was Sept and he was already done, that would make me think the parent was pushing it.) Tiger/Wolf/Bear rank advancements are done primarily with the family, not with the den, so if anyone complains the other boys aren't done, point out that their families could have worked on the advancements just like this boy's family did. In Webelos, most requirements are worked on in the den, so it is less likely one boy would be done early (though some boys may finish later, because they missed meetings/activities).

[ScoutNut]

Hi & Welcome Ekmirand!

 

I am a bit confused. On the one hand, you say that you "know the issue of giving out awards when they are due and when they are earned". Then you go on to say "how will the other boys feel" and "My pack is all about team effort and doing things as a group".

 

If you "know" BSA's policy on recognition for earned awards, than what exactly is the problem?

 

"How will the other boys feel"? Maybe they will feel like THEY should ALSO get recognized for things they have earned ASAP after they have earned them & NOT be made to wait months on end.

 

BSA's Cub Advancement Program is that boys work mainly at home with their families on rank requirements & electives. Cub Scouts use the Methods of Advancement & Family Involvement to achieve the Purposes of (among others) Family Understanding & Personal Achievement. Boys & their families work at their OWN pace (not the Pack's).

 

Sorry if I sound harsh, but instead of your Pack being "all about team effort and doing things as a group", you should consider being all about the boys & doing things they way the BSA has written them.

 

Good for the Den Leader! Give the boy everything he has earned, with an appropriately cool ceremony, THIS MONTH!

 

Edited to add - Include any other boys who also have things they have already earned, but have never been awarded!(This message has been edited by ScoutNut)

[Ekmiranda]

Hi again,

You do not have to start to quote BSA rule to me I know them full well. When the boys in my pack earn something they do get it right away. Please the underlying suggestions is not what this is about. I think that you should go back and re-read what I have wrote because the special awards for rank advancement is what we do as a den. And the coment that you made about all for the boys well I do not even have a son in this Pack he has been out for to years and further when I took this pack over it was about to be closed for lack of leadership. So don't start that stuff because you have no idea of the back round or the integrity of the people that you talk to.

[ScoutNut]

"When the boys in my pack earn something they do get it right away."

 

Fine! Great! That is the way it should be!

 

 

"I think that you should go back and re-read what I have wrote because the special awards for rank advancement is what we do as a den."

 

Why would you treat a rank award any differently from any other earned award? When the boys finish their requirements for their rank award they are supposed to receive it at the very next Pack meeting. They are NOT supposed to wait until everyone else in the den or Pack has finished theirs too.

 

I'm with the Den Leader & the boy's parents on this one.

 

[Lisabob]

Hi Miranda,

 

Welcome to the forum. You'll find a lot of people here who are ready to offer you their perspective. Many of us, too, have worked long and hard to revitalize weak or dying packs, or to maintain strong ones, and I think you'll find that folks here are extremely generous with the knowledge they've gained from their own hands-on experiences. Remember - feedback is a gift.

 

As for me, I'm not sure I understand the dynamic here. It seems you are upset that one boy and his family have been very enthusiastic and active participants in the program, and/or that you don't see eye to eye with the den leader. While I think it is important that all leaders communicate and are working from the same page (or at least, a similar copy!), I'm not sure I understand why you want to withhold this boy's rank advancement. On this one, I'm with ScoutNut that a boy should not be forced to wait until all the other boys in the den catch up. That simply punishes the eager beaver types who might have been so excited about the program that they dove in with both feet early on. Ideally we want to encourage that excitement rather than diminishing it. Maybe seeing their den-mate have his wolf badge presented to him will light a fire under a few other boys who will want to become full-fledged wolves, too. (On the other hand, I also don't believe that most boys' egos are so fragile that seeing their peer receive something he earned will damage them. Generally, the ones who get upset about these sorts of things are the parents, not the boys.)

 

Keeping in mind that in cub scouting the parent is "Akela" and that the DL has apparently agreed with the parent in this case too, I think it is important to back them up. If they say the boy has earned the rank then he has earned it. Neither the CM nor the AC have the authority to withhold it at that point, although as a practical matter, the AC is generally the one who purchases pack awards.

 

As for "clawing up the backs of his peers," well no we wouldn't want to encourage such ruthless, self-centered behavior. Are you sure though, that this is really about the boy? I have a feeling there may be other issues here. Remember that at the end of the day, no matter how much of yourself you put into this pack, it is not yours. Speaking from my own experience rebuilding a pack on the edge of extinction, I know it can be hard to remember that at times.

 

 

[Jeffrey H]

Ekmiranda,

 

If your Scout has earned his badge, present it to him as soon as possible. In our Pack, we also like it when the boys earn their badge together, but we do not hold back a badge to any boy who earns it before anyone else. I wholeheartdly agree with you about teamwork and cooperation, but earning a badge is a personal effort that sould be recognized right away. As you stated, one of the purposes is "Personal Achievement".

 

You mentioned the boys being "scattered around" in achieving their badge. Here's my approach to a little teamwork:

At our first den meeting in September, I told the parents and boys that I would be like to see all of them to receive their Bear badge by the Blue & Gold banquet in February. Our Pack encourages all Dens to try to receive their badges by the B&G. To help the parents and boys, I gave them a "suggested plan of action" along with a few of the achievements we would work on together as a Den. Periodically, we would check our progress. If they didn't make it by the B&G, no big deal, but they were usually close to achieving it and will have plenty of time before crossover in May.

 

We actually had one boy who earned his Bear Badge in September because he worked on it during the summer. He opted not to receive it until February with the other boys. That was his decision, not mine.

[JeffD]

dejavu all over again....

 

i am a tiger leader and we started the year with 20 scouts. the plan that was set up encouraged all of the boys to attend the meetings and, assuming they attended at least 3 of the 4 per month, they would earn their rank by our blue/gold as we would be finishing up sometime in december.

 

after the first week in december, we had 1 tiger who had completed the requirements; 2 tigers who were 1 requirement away from their badge; 9 that were 2 away... you get the idea. 1 boy received his in december, all but 3 received theirs at blue/gold. 2 of the boys realized they needed to get working and finished by the next meeting, and 1 boy is more into things other than scouting right now.

 

rather than worry about what the other scous thought - we took our scouts that had completed the requirements and used them as mentors to the others and had them help out and encourage them to finish up.

 

i am sure we will have a similar issue next year as many of our parents want to continue with the program over the summer once they become wolves. there will surely be 2 groups of boys - those that earn wolf in the first part of the year and those that start when school starts in august.

[Eamonn]

Advancement in the BSA is not a group activity.

In Cub Scouting until the Lad becomes a Webelos Scout, Akela is the person who should be doing the signing off and ensuring that the requirements are met.

In most cases Akela is the Lad's parent or parents.

When we look at the methods of Cub Scouting they are based on strengthening family understanding as adult family members work with boys on advancement projects.

When leaders no matter how good their intent might be act as road blocks they do both the Cub Scout and his family a disservice.

Making a Cub Scout wait to be recognized is not the way things should be done.

Maybe taking the time to read and take a long hard look at the methods of Cub Scouting might be in order?

Ea.