What do you learn at Troop Committee Challenge?

[theysawyoucomin']

I'm scheduled for two Thursday nights in a row in October. What does this include?

[NIscouter]

Is it like Wood Badge - if we tell you, we have to kill you :> OK, sorry for the interuption - back to the serious replies!

[EagleInKY]

Troop Committee Challenge is - I believe - a vastly underutilized training tool. It helps committee members (and SM/ASMs) understand the role of the committee by talking about the different functions and their responsibilities. It ends up with a board game, where you are given scenarios like "I need to organize a BOR" or "We need five new tents" and you discuss whose responsibility it is.

 

Our committee went through it last fall (our troop was about 18 months old at the time). It was a worthwhile experience. We had lots of good discussion.

[SeattlePioneer]

That sounds like an interesting program, Eagle. Is it a "canned" program like JL Training for a Troop, or do people make up the program content themselves? If it's a defined program, where am I likely to be able to find it?

 

That sounds like something I might work at for the District to provide for Scout Troops.

 

Any pointers as to the best time to present this program during the year? It sounds like it would be a good training device to precede doing a Troop annual planning session.

 

 

 

Seattle Pioneer

[ScoutNut]

Troop Committee Challenge is a National training course.

 

Contact your Council Training Chair, I am sure they already offer it.

 

 

[EagleInKY]

I first heard about it from a troop in another district. I did some searching online and found very little information. I spoke to that troop again and they said they got it from their District Training person. So I called ours, and he didn't have a clue. Then I found out (I think from this forum) that it was available through the scoutstuff catalog. I ordered it myself. It comes with a ready-made curriculum. But, like JLT, I tailored it for our troop. I believe I found some material online, if I can locate the links, I'll post them here.

 

Edited part:

https://scoutnet.scouting.org/BSASupply/ItemDetail.aspx?ctgy=PRODUCTS&c2=BOOKS_LIT&c3=LDRS_TRAINING&c4=&LV=3&item=33643(This message has been edited by EagleInKY)

[BSAChaplain]

I recently attended the Troop Committee Challenge, and not two weeks later sat in our Troop Committee meeting, during which a long discussion about policy was held. I could not help but think that if this group were Trained, including NLE and TCC, the discussion would have lasted 15 minutes rather than 90.

 

For the person who has done SM/ASM training it's mostly review, but for the average parent it's great!

[theysawyoucomin']

Thank you BSACHAPLAIN,

Being that the (fill in your favorite unscoutlike term,ajective) ACLU (plural noun, another unscoutlike term) are merely threatening to sue on behalf of nobody all municipalities that charter a scout group our commitee had a good 25 minutes wasted discussion on what constituted a charterO. If we all were all trained it would take a moment. So what we have here is a bunch of untrained "leaders" (what program are they leading?) wasting my time learning what I learned at Sm/Asm training. What a fool I am for getting training!

[eisely]

I have been an instructor for this for three years now. In responding to the first post, it can be done in about three hours. I don't know why it is scheduled for two evenings, unless they are offering the same thing two evenings in a row to enable more people to participate.

 

It is a nationally distributed syllabus. It is perhaps more open than most such syllabi since it generates a lot discussion among trainees. I find myself cutting off discussion to move on to the next step. As far as I know, everybody who ever took it found it worthwhile.

 

In addition to the training materials there is also a "Troop Committee Guidebook" that is very helpful. The Guidebook should be available at your local scout shop. If your district training committee can't come up with the training materials, you can order them directly from BSA.

[Bob White]

I too have taught this course since it was released. As mentioned it takes 3 hours. The course covers an overview of the structure of local scouting including the responsibilities of the CO and Committee, explanations of each committee position, an interactive game, an overview of the committee meeting, Q&A, and an evaluation.

 

It is an excellent course designed for the entire committee to take at the same time. Our District schedules the course at the request of the unit committee, we explain the time needed (2 hours for New Leader Essentials, 3 hours for Troop Committee Challenge). We meet where and when the troop requests.