Eagle1993

Yes ... we plan to use this as our build it adventure next Monday month.

Heard this Sunday on NPR. Great relevant topic that applies to many of the topics we have discussed here. Even those who avoid NPR may find some interesting points in this audio. https://www.npr.org/programs/ted-radio-hour/600090006/turning-kids-into-grown-ups

They were on our local news last night (canned national story). Lead into the story was “BSA admits they errored” but when you listen to the story it only said that BSA stated there was confusion. It could easily been taken that Logan’s parents miss understood the message. Who know but I’m not sure why this is still national news. This lawyer seems to be milking this for as much fame as he can get. I think he is probably disappointed the BSA didn’t fight.

@glider90 That is how we handle it. We have a leader (or multiple) help ensure safe operation. The parents pump up the rocket and we keep the pressure to ~40psi or so. Model rockets we allow the scouts to launch it at the full extension of the Estes launch cable. Note that our DE has been present at both activities so I never thought it was an issue. We even had a parent who created some sort of air cannon that launched candy 40 feet in the air. Not sure what rules that falls under (he operates it himself and the scouts are down a hill ~30 yards away) but it is a blast watching candy shrapnel rain down on our scouts.

Agreed with the above. We have used both model rockets and water rockets for an August activity and join scouts night. We do not see this as a shooting sport unless you aim them horizontal (intentionally).

I just want through our Pack inventory and have a bunch of old patches. I was thinking of simply throwing them out but thought I would first ask if anyone had previously thought of creative uses for old patches.

I think the question right now are your options. Assuming this is the only local pack then first try sitting down with the Committee chair and cub master. If that doesn’t work you could talk with leaders of the Charter Organization. If they also push back on your boy friend you could try to reach out to the council (district executive) for support, but as he is not the parent then I’m not sure they would get involved. This completely changes with his own son. Is the boy’s mom in the picture? If not, then banning the boy’s father essentially bans the boy as well. I think the council would probably be more likely to get involved in that case. I would definitely recommend the softest approach as possible. Even if he “wins” by escalating the issue you’ll be stuck in a pack that may not be fun (with leaders resenting the outside involvement). BSA does not ban parents who had felonies from being Adult Partners. I saw a few comments that seemed to allude that is policy.... it isn’t. My sister who has a felony (credit card fraud... she had a bad drug issue in her late teens/early twenties) was approved to be a Den Leader. In the end, scouts are for the kids. Find the best path possible to have your children enjoy scouting even if you and your bf have to deal with some humiliating situations. That is the role of a parent sometimes.

I didn’t say it did. @perdidochas stated speeding isn’t a crime. It can be at certain speeds and in certain states. That statement was wrong. I would be much more concerned about a parent in my Pack who systematically has current speeding tickets than a 40 year old parent who sold some pot to a friend when he was 17. I have no idea who this person is, what they did or if they are “good” or “bad”. I tend to think it best to limit judgement of people you don’t know the details on. I’m not sure judging this person is even needed to answer the questions posed.

Depends on how fast you are going and which state.

So, my wife just completed the annual GSUSA survey. This is the first year my daughter is is GSUSA so I’m not sure if any of these questions are new. One question was if my daughter was in another scouting organization. We answered yes and then another question popped up asking which organization (from a list that included BSA). We selected BSA. Then a series of questions appeared asking us to compare the programs (leaders, activities, impact on community, etc.). For most we answered the programs were equal but a couple my wife stated preference for BSA. Again, not sure if this is new (perhaps this was a generic question that could have included Venturing) but if so, I was impressed that GSUSA is asking about parents thoughts already. I’ll be curious to see if there is further follow up or if GSUSA makes any changes to address the loss of members.

@Jameson76 Does JTE reflect an “ideal” Troop? If not, then BSA should address the gaps and emphasize the true key metics. At that point, they should have their District Commissioners (hopefully retired from the best Troops) work with units who don’t score well to identify the gaps and work to improve. I think some of the framework is there, but not sure if they are driving the right attributes and commissioners are hit or miss from my experience.

I understand that this is out of necessity, but that can drive innovation and solutions we can learn from. Perhaps we (my pack) underutilized the Den Chief model. I know they don’t run the meeting, but t having Den Chiefs come in and assist could be a great help to overworked den leaders and also give Cub Scouts a older peer mentor. While what you stated could be extreme I think there could be lessons there.

@Eagledad I agree with the summary above.

This actually sounds pretty cool. I would love to see more older scouts get involved with the Cub Scout program. I’m not sure if it would work but it sounds like a great idea. We see this with soccer camps and teams here where high school students help coach youngsters and are the primary resources at camps. That said, I do think you can burn out as SPL and PL. I was ASPL at 14 and SPL and Eagle at 15 in a “Boy led” Troop. At 16 with three varsity sports, NHS, etc. I had no desire to also teach 11 year olds to tie their shoes. I wanted HA outings and mentor the new SPL. Most of my friends quit by then (girls and lost interest in scouting). I stayed on board until I aged out. Few in my Boy led troop did. That program is long as well, even in boy led Troops.

Not necessarily true. If scouts have to deal with 11 year olds when they are 16-17 then they could burn out as well. Just because 14 yo scouts start dropping doesn’t mean they aren’t running the Troop. Perhaps that is why the UK breaks this group up, but not sure that is the answer either.

There is a lot of shade being thrown at Tigers and Lions; however, I’ve seen these at net positives for my pack. 1 - My den leaders when first starting are green and are essentially learning (along with the parents) on the job. Yes there is training and materials they use but for the most part they are absorbing everything that Cub Scouts offers. So, by the time they are Wolf den leaders they are strong den leaders with two years of experience. Any bad den leaders can be rooted out. If my den leaders only started out with the Wolf den they I don’t see them hitting their stride until Webelos. 2 - It isn’t the same program for 5 or 6 years. Each year the scouts get more options. You can’t even have den overnights for the first 3 years. Parents stop attending den meetings at Wolves. As long as you ramp up the experience each year you can make it fresh. Experienced den leaders (see #1) helps with this. 3 - Kids in our Pack recruit their friends year after year. Every one of my dens have been growing at each age. My smallest den is not the one that started with a ton of Tigers... it is the one that started with the fewest Tigers. More young scouts who have fun talk about scouting and that builds excitement. One could argue Boy Scouts is too long (7 years). Perhaps that is why we see so may 14+ year olds drop out. I see that as the bigger attrition issue vs the Lions or Tigers.

I think hockey and the fact that Dallas stole their team.

This is somewhat like our Pack and was started probably 10-15 years ago. The Troop we feed keeps the majority of the scouts we transfer and many of those achieve Eagle. While it “works” I don’t agree that ranks in Cub Scouts should just be handed out to all scouts each year. The issue I’ve had is with the previous leadership who does not agree. “Cub Scouts is for fun with families and Boy Scouts is about boy led patrols and earning rank.” So, as you say, the kids understand and it doesn’t negatively impact the Troop. (The current Troop leadership was the ones who started the Cub Scout rank policy for our Pack.) The good news is that I’ve been able to softly influence the younger den leaders who have been tracking attendance and following up with parents/scouts to ensure they do their homework if they miss. Also, my girl dens are ensuring they follow policy. The last of the old guard leaves this spring so this will be a topic of my annual planning meeting. I’ll look to add an advancement chair who helps drive this change. Adventures are not hard, there is no reason we can’t expect those who rank advance complete the requirements. I actually had fun with my son helping him with the adventures (while the Pack policy is loose, mine isn’t with my own son). I think other parents will find value one they start seeing the adventures and working with their scouts as appropriate.

Keep watching for more options for girls this summer. In my council, there are only 2-3 packs that are early adopters and accepted girls. However, I know many Packs planning on adding girls for 2018-2019. So, I would expect you should see options starting this summer. If financial issues prevent you from joining you should reach out to the council or even the Pack leadership. I know for our Pack we would never want financial issues preventing participation and we actively tell parents if the charges are an issue we will work with them.

I thought girls wouldn’t be in OA until 2020 but was told that Explorer and Venturing would start OA elections next year. Has anyone else heard of that change?

My father was a shop teacher in the 70s-80s. One day a teacher came in with a towel on his hand asking my father if he could watch his class while the other teacher went to the nurse. My dad said sure and went to the classroom. The kids were all silent and pale. My dad asked what’s wrong and one of the practical joking students said ... Mr. XYZ ‘s finger is over here. My dad said “well why don’t you bring it up and leave it on the desk” (thinking it was a joke). He did, it wasn’t. I’ve always tried to be careful with saws after hearing that story.

The new books are printing as we speak. They should hit the shelves in June. I’m glad to see the requirement updates integrated. It will also be nice to see the gender updates for those of us with girls in our pack.

We had our annual Bear carnival with the boy and girl dens combining forces. It was by far the best Bear carnival we had in years. The scouts were having fun but in control. Both girl and boy cub scouts were working and playing together... no issues. It was the first meeting (Pack or den) since adding girls that I felt comfortable that it was no longer “special”... it just was. Our next Pack outing is our overnight (cabin) camping. We have a cabin reserved just for the girls and several for the boys. I’m brushing up on G2SS and YPT before this one.

No idea what this will be, but thought I provide the link.