Category: Scouting in General

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Promoting your own ideas for change

Scouting has seen a lot of change in the first hundred years, even though the mission and aims have remained the same. Within our units, changes in the program often affect us too. But while the methods and values of Scouting remain constant, we often find ourselves in need of changing things within our units to more closely align ourselves with those values.

We also find that we may need a better way to do some things in order to facilitate a better experience for the boys. For example, we might need a different approach to equipment, fund-raising, or procedures.

Change can be led by anyone with a valuable idea and the support from others, but for various reasons, the committee chair is usually in the best position to advocate change. Continue reading “Promoting your own ideas for change”

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The 4-1-1 on big changes ahead

Say goodbye to the Law of the Pack.

By now, you may have heard about the BSA executive board’s approval of the resolution to have all programs – Boy Scouts, Cub Scouts, Venturing and Varsity Scouting – use the Boy Scout oath and law. The change, one of many on the horizon, was recommended by volunteers and adopted by the board this past week.

Gone will be The Cub Scout helps the pack GO and other familiar phrases that we pounded into our boys’ heads (and our own) for so many years, to be replaced by “A Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful…” at pack and den meetings. Cub Scouts will also be reciting the words “physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight” before they can even grasp what those words mean in some cases. Continue reading “The 4-1-1 on big changes ahead”

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Conflict management and unit parents

We’ve recently discussed some situations you might run into on your troop or pack committee where members have a difference of opinion and you, the committee chair, need to step in and help resolve it. What happens when one or more of your parents blindsides you with a gripe?

Parents who aren’t as involved in Scouting as you are sometimes don’t understand the program as well, and can see a unit working normally as being dysfunctional. Friction can also develop among parents, or even between boys, and the people “in charge” are looked to for a solution.

Frequently, these problems arise as the result of an incomplete understanding of Scouting’s mission, aims and methods. Continue reading “Conflict management and unit parents”

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Conflict management and the unit committee

Anytime two or more people come together, there is potential for conflict. This is true of all organizations, including Scouting units. Everyone is likely to have a different idea of how things are supposed to work, and when personalities clash, decorum can go out the window and we can lose our focus on why we are Scouting volunteers: to help the boys have a successful program. Continue reading “Conflict management and the unit committee”