Guidelines for troop websites

[markm]

I have volenteered to be webmaster for our cub scout web site. Where can I find guidelines for webmasters of scouting sites? In particular I need to know what level of personal information should be allowed on the site (obviously, not the boys full names, for example). What about pictures? Is it OK to post the scout calendar, meeting time/places, leader phone numbers, etc.? Are there BSA policies for webmasters? I searched the BSA site but could find nothing about this topic.

 

Thanks!

-Mark

[NJCubScouter]

Maybe DS can provide something, but I once tried to find guidelines when my son's old pack was re-starting its site, and this is basically what I learned.

 

The BSA web site does have web site guidelines but they are only for use by councils.

 

http://www.scouting.org/webmasters/standards/04.html

 

This document mentions unit web sites but only from the standpoint of the council in determining whether to link its web site with unit (or district) sites.

 

The adoption of web site guidelines for units is therefore left up to each council. I just did an internet search and turned up several. I am pretty sure I have seen the guidelines for my own council but I could not find them when I looked just now. My suggestion to you would be to either go on your council's web site (I believe they all have them at this point) and search and see if you can find it, or call someone at council.

 

The guidelines that I have seen are pretty specific regarding personal information. You can probably guess what the rule is regarding any information that would allow someone to locate a named boy (and I do not recall whether you can even have the name -- in our pack we decided to omit ALL names and photos of boys and anything beyond just the names of adults.) We did have our calendar on there, but now that you mention it, someone could abuse that information as well. Of course, even without the web it would not take a rocket scientist to figure out when a school is being used for meetings. You can't protect against everything, that is why the rules on leadership and supervision are so important.

 

Good luck with your web site!

[NJCubScouter]

One more thing, when I was looking for council guidelines for unit web sites, the few I read gave me the impression that national provides the councils with a standard template for these things, for their use. Guidelines for guidelines, if you will. But it is the council that actually adopts (or doesn't adopt) the guidelines and could potentially make changes to fit local needs, though I cannot think of an example of what such a local need might be.

[EagleInKY]

Our council used to have guidelines, but I can't find them anymore. They were the stipulations to have your unit website linked from the Coucil's. I noticed that they don't do this anymore, so I can only assume it became too much of a burden to police them.

 

To the best of my recollection, the main rules were:

- Only first names of Scouts

- No phone numbers (even leaders, if I remember correctly)

- Parent should sign a permission slip for the release of their child's picture (we do this each year with all of our youth)

 

[markm]

Thanks for all the input. I finally got our council guidelines (they were in an obscure part of the council web site).

 

Thanks!

[dsteele]

Mark:

 

I had to dig pretty deep for it, but here's what the National Web Site says about unit and district web sites.

 

"District and Unit Web Sites

Guidelines for district and unit sites, and the decision as to whether districts and/or units may maintain officially representative sites at all, are completely at the discretion of the council. If these sites are permitted, and especially if the council site provides links to them, it is highly recommended the council provide guidelines for these sites and to recognize and link only to those sites that meet the council's guidelines. Guidelines and advice provided in this document may be appropriate for districts and units as well, so councils may consider passing this information along with any additional council guidelines.

 

District Sites. The degree of a district's identity to membership and to the public should be the primary factor in deciding whether it would be useful to have separate sites for each district. This largely depends on how districts have been marketed, which may differ among councils. Specifically, if the identity of districts to participants and supporters is such that they identify themselves as members/supporters of "the X district of Y council," having stand-alone sites to support district-level marketing and service initiatives may be worthwhile. Otherwise, it is recommended that the council support its districts on the council Web site, accommodating unique information for the districts (such as calendars, contact information, etc.) in district pages or sections.

 

The best solution may be for the council to provide districts "directory-level" Web sites (http://www.council.org/district), so that districts may have a self-contained module of information that suits the needs and goals of the district, but enables the council to control the information published by its districts just as closely as any other information on the council site.

 

Unit Sites. It is not recommended that councils acknowledge "official" sites for units. There are currently tens of thousands of unit Web sites on the Internet, and it would be difficult for a council to allocate sufficient resources to monitor all the various sites developed by units in its area. Furthermore, since most units lack adequate resources to develop respectable and safe Web sites, a vast majority of unit sites are wrought with safety and liability issues that could become problems for the council were the sites endorsed as officially representative.

 

While it is permissible, by the guidelines, to provide links to sites that provide content that is appropriate to the Scouting movement, it is especially important to clarify (perhaps through an explicit disclaimer) when linking to Scouting-oriented sites that units as well as youth and adult members do not represent or serve as agents of the Boy Scouts of America when disseminating information over the Internet.

"

 

You'll need to consult with a professional in your home council to find out what guidelines, the council may have.

 

DS

 

[Fat Old Guy]

" Furthermore, since most units lack adequate resources to develop respectable and safe Web sites, a vast majority of unit sites are wrought with safety and liability issues that could become problems for the council were the sites endorsed as officially representative."

 

Considering that our council web site sucks and many, if not most, unit web sites look pretty good, BSA is behind the times.

 

BSA should come up with a set of guidelines: post this info but not that info. No names/names. Etc.

 

In my council, they say don't identify the kids. Makes sense. We are considering putting the troop calendar behind a password just to keep the weird people away.

 

Are you planning on using the web site as a marketing tool for your unit or as a communications tool for the unit. I'd guess the latter. The two are very different.