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Agreed. I had hope that the CST would really help. I would love it if a unit had a question, they go to the district training chair who can't answer it, they go to the district training chair who can't answer it, who goes to the council training chair who can't answer it, who then goes to the CST training chair. They, then, know all of the different resources at national and get an answer. Then roll it back to all the people that rolled the question up. I haven't seen it happen. 😞 I have suggested a few times to go to the CST resource, but everyone looks at me like that would be crazy.

*neckers durn autocorrect

That is what the Chipmunk rank expansion is for -- to boost the numbers up before the end of 2026. Allowing everyone to recharter in February also means that membership numbers from year end 2026 now through to whatever the new recharter grace period is (May?) will be inflated. That means that in 2027, unless Chipmunk completely fails or numbers really continue to trend down and tank, we will likely be seeing and hearing of claims of membership growth.

The 877K number was reported as membership is the Dec 25 report.

My bet is that the number includes multiples. So, a Cub Scout that crosses over this year counts as two memberships. A Scout in a Troop who is also a Venturer counts as two memberships. I suspect it also includes all those who were on the rolls until recently. That is, if a youth had a renewal due in early 2026, but did not renew, they still count as a youth served in the program for the year. It would be telling to see a breakdown of the criteria for inclusion into the 887K number. I'd bet that net is as wide as possible

So the general vibe out of the 2026 NAM is that national, council, and districts support the units and changes are coming between now and this time next year for the organization to align to that philisophy.

@gracebanks You can bring whatever you want! But remember, you have to carry it And everyone hikes his own hike... For a six day trip, I'd bring one set of clothing to wear, some spare things, and one set of clothing for sleep. The set I wear in late spring/early summer Appalachia: Short sleeve shirt (do not bring a long sleeve... if you get chilly, put on your rain jacket) and a spare. Shorts (do not bring long pants... is you get chilly, put on your rain pants) Quick drying fabric. No spares. Socks and an extra pair of socks if they get really wet or you have to wash a pair... Every time you stop for a break, take off your boots and socks, and let your feet dry out a bit. Put a bit of body powder on your dry feet (not foot powder, because I also use body powder on pits and groin before bed... dual purpose) [Don't use foot powder on your body. If you have had any chafing on inner thighs or groin, you will regret the extra menthol in foot powder. If you are a masochist... well, then, enjoy ) Underwear and an extra pair. Once you wear something until stinky, wash/rinse it... hang it on the outside of your pack to dry while hiking. Or, hang it up at camp... always be drying something Try your best to go to bed clean. Sometimes this means just wiping off with a few unscented wipes. Five F's done in this order: Face (and head/neck) Front (torso, arms, arm pits), Feet (feet and legs), Fanny (groin and butt), Fingers (hand sanitize and wipe for your hands if you cannot wash them) Some body powder on pits and groin/butt, and then into your sleep wear. Do not wear anything you hiked in to bed... you'll regret it. Air out bed clothes in the morning before packing up. [And do not put on the powder inside your tent.] Expect to be ripe before the end of the trip. If you don't stink after six days on the trail, you did not do it right. Go back and start over And no, I do not bring deodorant. I do bring a set of water shoes (toe protection) because I'm prone to jump into any body of water I can They serve double duty as camp shoes. Have a great hike!

The actual presentation graphic says "February Renewal of Charters"

Insert a "jump the shark" meme, this has the organization certainly heading in a new direction Originally we only had Scouts, then Cubs came 20 years later, which was for 8-10 years olds. In the 60's when I was in Cubs we did basic things but longed to be Scouts to able to do all the cool stuff. Now it is veering heavily to a Family Program, the original idea to help youth develop and grow into independent individuals equipped to take on the real world and make decisions on their own seems have (or is) being cast aside. SA (sorry I know we're not supposed to abbreviate the name of the organization that lives on abbreviations) is definitely moving heavily to family, moving away from the Scout led program and conceding that the program will be basically (now) 4 year olds to maybe 7th graders

As a stand alone program I dont see this taking off. Cant wait to hear my DE talk about the new great opportunity to start new units.

I would guess that a council has or would do this because the key 3 are not communucating with national and failed to know about this stage of the transition from ypt to syt.

All of your posts help support the argument for eliminating the age requirement on Eagle Scout. If we remove the 18 year old requirement, it removes the focus on the destination, and helps us turn the spotlight more on the journey

Yeah. With such a focus on advancement and eagle, our slogan has taken a back seat. Many years ago I used to do a SM minute relating the slogan and motto. I wish I could find it, but the gist was Our slogan and motto are not separate ideas but intimately intertwined. This is not by accident. Be Prepared is the more common phrase used to describe Scouts, and often it is in context of tools, knowledge and skills. Do a Good Turn Daily is how we are recognized as scouts through our deeds. I challenge us to think of how Be Prepared and Do a Good Turn Daily are not exclusive ideas, but are the flip sides of the same coin; the mindset of being prepared on one side and the action of doing a good turn on the other. Phrased in question form: Have you prepared to do a good turn today?

Yes, unless they completed the new S.A.F.E.guarding Youth training after its release in mid-May of 2025, in which case they will complete an approximately 20-minute refresher on their due date. I have stressed this many times to leadership in my district, as many did not realize that if they did the old course on let's say May 1, 2025, and got an email with a certificate set to expire on May 1, 2027, that as TRON stated that expiration date was changed to May 31, 2025. (This is what I experienced, as I redid YPT at the end of April last year and then did the new course as soon as it was released) As soon as I saw that the refresher was up and available I sat down and completed it. It is pretty well done and has a test at the end. As long as you pass the test (80% to pass) you are good for another year. If you do not pass the test, it will not allow you to rewatch the refresher, you must redo the entire 90-minute course.

The other day I was in the grocery store doing my regular shopping. As I walked in I noticed another gentleman look my way. Not sure if he knew me or just saw me wearing hiking clothing. He asked if I was in Scouting and was shopping for a campout. I said, yes I am in Scouting but if the scouts were going camping THEY would be doing the shopping, I would just be the driver. He nodded and said, "good man". Anyway, thought I'd share the story here with you all.

I am going to guess that it's a teacher/student thing. I know several teachers who are also scout leaders in my community; technically if they are walking down a hall after school when there are barely any people present and a student who is also scout is walking down said hall and there is no one else there; wouldn't that technically be a YPT 1v1 violation? The real answer is that Scouting America was put over a barrel by the lawsuit; a lot of victims were assaulted outside of the auspices of BSA but the perpetrator was someone they knew from within BSA. Now we have these rules that make no sense.

They have been making changes without announcing or annotated the change. Not a great regulatory practice

It's only required by those who are going to expire. The big issue is that as the new safeguarding rolled out as a 12 month requirement the individuals with more than 12 months to expire had their default expiration date changed to 31 May. The big concern is that moat leaders are in capable of reading email.