What Would You Want in a New SE?

[John-in-KC]

IIRC there are West Coast UWs which have removed the area Boy Scout Councils from their membership...

[shortridge]

My instinctive answer was "Someone who camps." I know in the logical part of my brain that's not always going to be the best person for the SE's job. The best membership/fundraising/volunteer manager in the world might HATE camping. But I still want to see the person in charge of my council out there at least visiting during the day, showing that the outdoors is VITAL, not just "a part" of the Scouting program.

 

The fellow my council has now is like that. He's a leader with his son's troop, visited summer camp regularly and even attended with his son's troop one week. During my five years on camp staff, I don't recall seeing our former SE there even once.

[Eagle92]

Short,

how about an SE actually doing manual labor at an ORDEAL? Yep I got photgraphic proof of that one.

[WAKWIB]

Eagle92,

Never lose that picture. Something that rare will be worth a fortune someday.

 

[Eagle92]

Yep it is VERY RARE. Sometimes I feel like either posting it on FACEBOOK, as he does have an account, or giving it to the OA lodge,s icne it occured at an OA event. BUT we already got a picture of him on the lodge website with him working at an event, altough it was taken 30+ years ago.

 

As for challenges in my council, the biggest one I see is the lack of coordination with programming. We got a decent program, but there is little coordination in the fact that at times you have 3 or 4 events overlapped the same weekend. Now some of that is OK, i.e. having a Outdoor Skills Weekend for scouts AND NRA instructor class for adults the same weekend, but having a District JOTA event, council family camp, and an OA Fall Fellowship is one example of the coordination challenge.

 

Also we need improved programming, esp. on the CS level. Now I admit I've overlooked the CS for a long time, being focused on OA. But more opps were needed. And are on the way.

 

So I think Mr. Franks is the ideal person for the job in my council. He has connections in the business world due to his scouting expereince as a youth and young pro. He is for programming, trying to improve activities that are being done and creating new ones, and is procamping, trying to keep and improve the 6 council camps we own as well as well as challenging the OA to do an even better job of camp promotions and raising camperships.

 

The only "disagreement" I've had with him is the name change to our camp. Camp Bonner will be renamed Camp Boddie Janurary 1, 2010. And from the sources I have, that decision was made BEFORE he got here, and he got stuck with the implementation of name change, as well as the blame from some Scouters. So even in that aspect, I sympathize with the position he has been placed in.

 

If only all SEs were like mine.

 

And NO you can't have him

(This message has been edited by eagle92)

[eaglescout1996]

You're very lucky to have him.

 

I once knew a SE, who was quick to tell everyone he was the "Supreme Chief of the Fire"...but you never saw him at any Lodge events, except the occational Winter Banquet.

 

Never worked or even showed up, and wouldn't support the LEC, often saying that at the SCotF, he had "veto" power.

 

I'm very optomistic about our new SE, and hope the good work from our previous one will continue.

 

Eagle92, sounds like you've got a great one!

[SR540Beaver]

Eagle92,

 

I feel your pain on the camp name change. We are going thru it....kind of. Our council's oldest property has ben around since the early 1930's. We had a gentleman make a sizable.....and I do mean sizable donation to finish up our 10 million capital campaign. He asked for nothing in return. However, the board of directors (non-scouters) thought it would be a nice gesture to rename the camp after his family name without polling the volunteer base. It of course went over like a fart in church. As a result, the camp is inded renamed......but the formal announcement that had been planned never happened, the sign at the camp and any reference to the property on the council website still bears the old camp name. But if you ask anyone at the council, they will tell you that the name has changed. I think the plan is to let the new name creep into existence. Why do the folks on the business end of the council seem to not understand how much decisions like this hurt their cause rather than help it. They could have just as easily taken the gift and built some much needed infrastructure at the camp and named it for the man and made everyone happy.

[Eagle92]

As I said, apparently the person who started the process left and the current SE is left to deal with it.

 

Now the Boddie Family are super great supporters of Scouting, and I am not trying to dishonor ANYTHING they have done, both publicaly and privately. While I did not see one of them walking around at the council's family campout in OCT. as I was busy having a blast with my TC , they were there seeing the Cubs have fun and trying to see what can be doen to improve the camp. Yes I like the Boddies.

 

But I think a better idea would have been to rename the entire reservation BODDIE SCOUT RESERVATION, b/c they do so much for Camp Bonner, Pamlico Sea Base, and the other facilities.

 

But back to the original post.

 

I think someone who can work with the volunteers and manage the assets in order to provide a quality program to attract and keep youth involved is the #1 thing to look for. And we got an SE who can do that.

[BrentAllen]

I think that this has been stated in different words, but someone with a strong vision, and the ability to articulate that vision. If I understand a leader's vision for the organization, then I can usually make sense of their actions - do they support that vision, or not? In a volunteer organization, the volunteers need to understand the direction they are heading, and what steps need to be completed along the path. Without that kind of communication and understanding with and among the volunteers, the entire organization will never get beyond Storming, and chaos. Hopefully, we will have that strong vision with our new SE.

[John-in-KC]

Brent,

 

I want the Exec Board and the Council Commish to have some vision as well: This should not be an easy decision; it should be determined by where the Council thinks it is and where it wants to go.

 

The broader the buy-in, the better the search and the tenure will go.

[eghiglie]

My two cents

 

What would be great in a SE is someone who:

 

returns phone calls/emails or at least gets the message to the right person

talks to the common scouter on a regular basis, not just the ones that are well off

 

Sorry if it sounds like I'm being a cynic or negative.

 

 

[Narraticong]

Some really vital ideas so far as to the business end of BSA. But my first interest would be whether he can recite the Oath and Law. I would like his resume and recommendations to show how he has lived the Oath and Law in his daily life, especially outside of his career. How does he live up to his Duty to God? I believe to really be a success the BSA needs SE's who can do the above.

 

Ken

[BadenP]

Ken

As admirable as that sounds its like looking at the world through rose colored glasses and is not very realisitic, not to mention those traits would not necessarily make him a good or successful SE.

[SR540Beaver]

BP,

 

Leadership should come from the top down. We lead by example.

 

The mission of the Boy Scouts of America is to prepare young people to make ethical and moral choices over their lifetimes by instilling in them the values of the Scout Oath and Law.

 

Yes you want a person with business acumen.......but what is the point if you have someone at the top who doesn't support or believe or participate i nthe program?

[BadenP]

SR540

 

Usually a man who has chosen the BSA professional scouting program as his career path has and does know and follow the scout oath and law as well as any volunteer, usually he was a scout as a youth and many were volunteer scouters as well. Granted there are those pros who leave a lot to be desired, but that is true in every profession. Someone who wants to be a scouting pro does so in the belief they can contribute something of value to help make scouting even better. My point was that if you want your council to be a thriving one the man at the helm better have sharp business, finance and people skills or you will find yourselves in a whole lot of hot water, I know this from first hand experience. So your criticism is not valid and your point moot.