Council & District Organization

[wrhatfield]

Does anyone know the break down of the Council and District programs and what their responsiblities are? You know: Council President, Council Executive, District Chairman, Commissioner and so forth.

[jmcquillan]

The best information on the subject can be obtained in two publications by the BSA.

 

"The Council". publication No. 33071A, Copyright 1977, 1998 printing.

 

"The District", publication No. 33070, copyright 1977, 1997 printing.

 

Both should be available at your local Scout Shop, Council Office, or through the current Scout Catalog.

 

[eisely]

Going to the publication is useful, but I've got some time to kill so here goes.

 

First the structure. Councils are actually legal entities incorporated under state law, and simultaneoulsy receiving a charter from BSA National to operate a scout program, as defined by National. Another set of laws affecting council operations is the Internal Revenue Code, whereby the council qualifies to accept tax deductible donations. Councils are defined geographically, and usually follow local political boundaries to some extent. I have done very little work at the council level, so I may be in error here.

 

Councils are divided in districts. Districts have no separate legal existence and are set up to facilitate the delivery of services and programs to scout units (troops, packs, etc).

 

Concerning the positions you mentioned, only "executives" are paid. Councils are run by self perpetuating boards of directors, consistent with their legal status and charter from National. Council presidents are elected by the boards and presumably are the senior volunteers at the council level.

 

At the district level, the senior volunteer is the district chair who works through a committee. The composition of the committee will vary. Districts maintain a volunteer commissioner staff. Commissioners are volunteers who work with multiple units, advising and helping without running anything.

 

The major things the council does include operating major summer camp programs, volunteer training at the council level, and chartering units. Much of the time of the executives is spent dealing with charter partners (churches, clubs, etc.) that receive a grant of authority from the council to operate a unit. This charter is renewed annually in a process called "rechartering." As a legal entity the council can own or rent real estate, run a payroll, operate a tradiing post, and that sort of thing.

 

The district also runs training programs. If you are a new scouter, this is where you will most likely receive your initial training. The district also runs a monthly leaders roundtable, which provides some formal training and is a vehicle for discussing and implementing district programs. The district also typically runs district level camporees annually for scout units, and often similar events for cub scouts. Districts may operate day camps in the summer for cub scouts.

 

Hope this helps.