Committee... What Committee??

[WDL Mom]

Hi All,

 

Our Pack has a committee that is so inactive, that it is basically nonexistent. Last 3 meetings have consisted of myself, (the Web. I DL) and the Cubmaster.

 

We also have a trained CC who is also our COR. We do have a treasurer as well.

 

We have monthly meetings and all parents are invited to attend and participate.

 

No one shows.

 

Events, campouts, advancements, BG, Pinewood Derby are all planned and run by the den leaders and Cubmaster. I know that this isn't "by the book", but, it is what we do.

 

How do you change this? We are so used to doing "everything" I could see it being difficult to give up the control...

Has anyone tried having a parent representative to the Committee required from each den?

 

It seems with my limited knowledge that Committees are more important at the Troop level, and not so much at the Pack.

 

Looking for suggestions to improve this situation.

Thanks.

[Lisabob]

Boy I've been there! We did try requiring each den to have a parent rep. on the committee (or at least, to attend the committee meetings and report back to the den). It didn't work - they just didn't show up.

 

The best thing we were able to do was to be very targeted and persistent in recruiting new adults. We asked specific people to be involved in specific jobs with clear starting and ending points. We would tell people that "so-and-so recommended you for this position," which surprisingly, worked pretty well in many cases. There were still times when it was the same three or four people who ended up doing everything.

 

I don't know if committees are less important in packs than troops? I do think they're less likely to be well organized. By the time we get to the troop level, most of us have experience as adults in scouting - which isn't the case, by and large, in the cub pack.

 

 

 

 

[AntelopeDud]

When I was a Webelos Den Leader, a majority of the committe consisted of parents of my Webelos (or cubs in earlier years). We really worked our tails off and every year, the committee kept getting smaller and smaller as the years wen ton and parents of the older kids left. When our kids were Webelos IIs, we saw the potential storm on the horizon of all the active adult leaders moving on to Boy Scouts leaving a Pack to dissolve if we didn't start recruiting.

 

We decided to have a Scout outing in a neighborhood pool with lifeguards. We decided to have a committee meeting at the pool party to go over issues, but more importantly, to explain to parents that are at meeting but don't do anything that we need help with certain manageable tasks. It actually worked and we recruited some parents that became regular. It turns out that as our committee dwindled in size, the parents saw what all that we were doing and were fearful of committing to help becuase it looked like alot of time to dedicate. We just asked them to handle certain things, like one to organize the Blue and Gold and one to organize the Pinewood Derby, etc. Before we knew it, a committee formed.

[Novice_Cubmaster]

Hi WDL Mom,

 

Your CC/COR may be trained, but they aren't doing their job. Our pack has the same problem.

 

In our pack, I don't think its a problem with "giving up control" - I think our CC has a hard time asking for anything, not just help.

 

We've had a couple of events that probably should have been cancelled because our CC didn't round up any volunteers - but some of our Den Leaders always jump in at the last minute to save the day. Unfortunately, this has convinced our CC that we can get by without additional help.

 

Might want to try getting a discussion going at roundtable with your CC & other CC's about how to set up committees and keep them going.

 

Good Luck,

 

NC

[Jeffrey H]

Events, campouts, advancements, BG, Pinewood Derby are all planned and run by the den leaders and Cubmaster. I know that this isn't "by the book", but, it is what we do.

This is common and welcome to the "real world" of Cub Scouting.  We had this problem last year with an inactive CC.  This year, our CC is great along with a few parents in various committee roles. 

Committees don't happen.  You have to ask.  Parents won't step up unless you ask. 

If you want folks to show up for meetings, you need to tell them why it's important for them to be there and how they can make a positive difference. 

[Its Me]

 

We have had two committee meetings in three years. None this year. When we did have a committee meeting if we got half the den leaders we thought it was a good turn out.

 

Of course the results of this neglect is that we won't have a blue and gold this year. The Cubmaster and his wife the CC run the pack meeting and while at one time they did a good job their interest has waned. They have put three boys through this pack and I believe can't wait for their last to finish.

 

The Webelos leaders are pretty good. I think that after you have a couple of years under your belt you learn what needs to be done and how to get it done. You develop relationships and learn who to depend on within the pack. Just like the boys maybe even more so, leaders grow in their ability.

 

 

 

 

 

[Fuzzy Bear]

Single parent family or Two parent family or extended family?

Choose one of the above to help do all of the chores.

Choose one of the above to make life easier and more fun.

 

Same answer in Cub Scouting.

 

Just in case I was not clear, a committee is like an extended family.

 

One parent per Scout signs on to do one job, one event, or do one big thing every year.

They get to resign at the end of each year, be recognized and then they get to choose what they want to do for the next year, no exceptions.

 

The main job of the CC is to coordinate all of the people/work and the main job of the CM is to make sure that the CC knows what jobs need to be filled. They may also work together.

 

When the CM and DLs do all of the work, then there are more chores to be done by the few and like the single parent family, everything can be done but everyone is exhausted all of the time. Cub Scouting needs to be fun for everyone. It is a great program. fb

 

[WDL Mom]

Hi,

 

I knew we weren't alone in our lack of committee. I also know that we need to do more targeted asking of individuals.

 

As the Web I den leader, I know my parents best, and I would feel comfortable asking them to commit to a specific task. I don't know the parents of the other kids nearly as well.

 

One suggestion I made to our CM was to have each den "run" a particular event. So that the parents for that den would be in "charge". The Web. II's would do Blue Gold because it includes their bridging ceremony. Web I's would run the Derby, because they have seen it done for a number of years. The younger dens would have activities that would be easier to manage.

 

CM didn't like the idea... I think the loss of control is an issue. Sometimes I feel that way myself. If I do it, at least I know it WILL get done and the way I want it....

 

Fuzzy... How does that go over requiring every parent to commit to something? Had anyone refuse? I think it is a good idea. It sure can't hurt.... They don't show up anyway. Maybe this would be a way to get everyone to buy in.

 

Thanks for the help.

[Lisabob]

I'm not Fuzzy (couldn't begin to compare either). But we've done the "every boy must have one parent/family member/friend involved in one activity" approach. My experience: you will not get 100% involvement. Some families will simply refuse or worse, they'll sign up but you'll never get their actual help. Others, you may be thankful for their lack of involvement. We've had a very few over the years that scare me and I wouldn't necessarily push for their involvement. THat's rare though. However, taking this approach will net you SOME volunteers. If you do this, I've found it helps to have someone already in place as the "lead" person for the event. People will sign up more readily as "helpers" than as "leaders," though in reality the difference between the two is not much.

 

It also depends on how and when you make the pitch. We tried it at round up night and found it fell flat. Too much going on, too many brand new people unwilling to take the plunge. We had better luck doing it at some very popular event a little later in the year.

[Fuzzy Bear]

How we kept our ship afloat by fb

 

People will show up to watch a one man show anytime but you will find that the Cubs get really bored.

 

This is what I call a sinking ship. Nobody, not even the rats, stay on board during that drill.

 

We had a CM that was good but he did it all. The Scouts sat on tables and watched and so did the parents. I asked the CM over for coffee one night and we discussed using the themes of the month. The big idea was to ask each den to do one part of the meeting only. (Eureka!, No. Show Me you Dodo.) The first meeting was October and everyone dressed in costumes, including the parents. For the next few meetings we followed the themes and dressed up and built costumes, props and had games. Everyone joined in the fray.

 

This is what I can a ship that is not sinking. When people find fun they want to be a part of it. It is like a party! People like parties.

 

We began to ask people to do one big thing per year (time limited). We identified a few that were enjoying themselves and they accepted. Their defenses were down but they knew that we were going someplace fun so they wanted to do their part which made it even more fun.

 

This is what I call a Group that is aboard a ship that is having fun. People like to join a group. People run when they see a few brave souls doing everything. Martyrdom is not fun. People avoid it like the plague or something.

 

Then we had a few meetings to plan our fun and we called it a Committee Meeting but we made that fun as well. We had cookies and punch and kept the fun down to an hour.

 

That is what I call a ship that is sailing smoothly that has a destination.

 

Our activities and plans got bigger and so did our group. More Fun.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(This message has been edited by Fuzzy Bear)