How do you run your committee meetings for packs and troops?

[fred johnson]

How do you run your troop and pack committee meetings? I've tried to use the BSA agenda format which is similiar to this.

 

"BSA committee" approach

 

---- Call to order

---- Welcome

---- Approval of previous minutes

---- Reports

---- ---- Scoutmaster

---- ---- Secretary

---- ---- Outdoor / activities coordinator

---- ---- Treasurer

---- ---- Advancement coordinator

---- ---- Chaplain

---- ---- Training coordinator

---- ---- Equipment coordinator

---- Old business

---- New business

---- Announcements

---- Adjournment

 

Most people don't do "reports". They use the time to raise any topic that interests them. The result is a meeting that bounces around and seems very dis-organized. I find the following to be much more successful.

 

"Walk the calendar" approach

 

---- Call to order

---- Welcome

---- Solicit hot topics

---- ---- Not to be discussed immediately but to be planned into the meeting.

---- Walk the calendar

---- ---- Start a month in the past (reviewing how things went)

---- ---- Continue a few months past anything we might care about discussing

---- ---- For each calendar entry, review plans, commitments and coordinators.

---- ---- The more imminent -> the more careful review.

---- Announcements

---- Business - new and old

---- Go around the table (watching to make sure we cover these topics)

---- ---- Treasurer

---- ---- Outdoor / activities

---- ---- Advancement

---- ---- Chaplain

---- ---- Training

---- ---- Equipment

---- Adjournment

 

 

I've had great success with walking the calendar approach, but at best limited success with the traditional approach.

[dedkad]

In our pack, the meetings centered on calendar activities - what are we going to do this year, who is in charge of each event, what worked last year, what would we change. The meetings still tended to bounce around a little, but after a short distraction, we would always come back to the calendar.

[Eagledad]

For both the boys and adults, if someone wants to raise a discussion or new topic, they have to call the SPL/CC to get on the agenda. The SPL/CC will put the topic in the appropiate place on the agenda. The SPL/CC need to be forceful enough to stop a discussion that is not on the agenda and move it to new business or ask to bring it up again the next meeting. It only takes a couple meetings for everyone to learn this structure and the meeting move a long a lot faster. Barry