Webelos Transition to Troops

[Cubber]

Hello everyone- I am a cubmaster with my first crop of Webelos that we are supporting in their transition to boy scouts.  We are very fortunate to have several troops inviting us for visits with their troops.

Recently, our committee chair has the program leaders to not to visit with any of them, and instead send all scouts to a troop associated with our sponsor organization that just graduated its last two boys. That's right, there are no boys currently in that troop. They are trying to recruit and restart it from the ground up.  However, the parents we have talked with are not interested in starting a program from the ground up. We are caught in a bit of a catch 22.

My question is: does the committee chair have the right to direct us to transition to a particular troop, especially if it has no boys in it? Has anyone else run into this resistance to allowing Webelos to check out multiple troops to find their right fit?

Thanks for sharing your experience!

[RememberSchiff]

Welcome to scouter.com

[Hawkwin]

2 hours ago, Cubber said:

does the committee chair have the right to direct us to transition to a particular troop

No.

At the end of the day, each individual scout picks his own troop.

[numbersnerd]

In short: No.

Scouting is a voluntary activity. Allowing for the freedom to choose the type of Scouting experience they want is part of it. Scouts (and parents) are allowed to choose what unit they want to be a part of. Not every unit is going to be a good fit for every boy and vice versa. In fact, BSA makes it pretty clear that level of comfort is a key consideration in deciding what Troop Webelos are going to join:

By the time Webelos Scouts are ready to cross over, they and their families should be familiar and comfortable with the youth and adult leaders of the troop, their role in the troop and troop activities, and feel excited about beginning this new adventure.

Now there may be some preferences, but that in no way should be mandated. A CC that issues such a restriction has stepped outside their authority. Maybe they need referral to some documentation. See page 79 of the document.

[Tampa Turtle]

Absolutely not. The CC is out of line.

Each family should visit Troops to see which will be the best fit. Each Troop culture is different. That said if a guy and a few buddies cross over together it helps but even then if it is a problematic Troop they may eventually drift away.

Now if it is corresponding religious based Pack and Troop you will have to weigh the implications of that yourself. 

The transition to Scouting is hard enough without reinventing the wheel. I would only do a 're-start' as a last resort. How does that Troop feel about recruiting some girls?

[WisconsinMomma]

Scouts can choose their own troops, and your district should back you up on that.  

 

Have fun! 

[mashmaster]

No, he is in the wrong.   All the scouts should visit and camp with the troops they are interested in.  Give us his info and we will school him on scouting :-)

[NJCubScouter]

Cubber, I agree with all of the above, I just wanted to add a comment on the word "send" in your post.  No Cub Scout leader (whether den leader, Cubmaster, CC or anything else) has the authority to "send" anyone anywhere.  It is between the Cub Scout and his parents.  In the case of my son, after we visited the troop that most of his friends had gone to in the previous 1 or 2 years, he decided he did not want to visit any others and just go with that troop.  That is not necessarily "by the book" but I decided he was sure enough that it did not make sense to try to "force" him to visit others.

 

[Tampa Turtle]

9 minutes ago, NJCubScouter said:

Cubber, I agree with all of the above, I just wanted to add a comment on the word "send" in your post.  No Cub Scout leader (whether den leader, Cubmaster, CC or anything else) has the authority to "send" anyone anywhere.  It is between the Cub Scout and his parents.  In the case of my son, after we visited the troop that most of his friends had gone to in the previous 1 or 2 years, he decided he did not want to visit any others and just go with that troop.  That is not necessarily "by the book" but I decided he was sure enough that it did not make sense to try to "force" him to visit others.

 

I know a family that "jumped" from the traditional feeder pack to expected Troop just because they wanted to be 'free' of some parents. While I hate to use the term "shop around". My boy wanted the Troop with ragged uniforms but an ambitious outdoor program over the nifty well known Eagle mill. It was his choice and while he was a bit over his head he stuck it out more than if I had made the selection.

[WisconsinMomma]

My son picked his troop because they played some ball oriented game in the gym before their meetings and he liked that. 

[NJCubScouter]

10 minutes ago, Tampa Turtle said:

I know a family that "jumped" from the traditional feeder pack to expected Troop just because they wanted to be 'free' of some parents. While I hate to use the term "shop around". My boy wanted the Troop with ragged uniforms but an ambitious outdoor program over the nifty well known Eagle mill. It was his choice and while he was a bit over his head he stuck it out more than if I had made the selection.

I guess I should have added that our pack was not a "feeder pack" to any troop, in the sense that there was (and is) no troop associated with the same CO as (or meeting in the same place) as the pack.  At the time, my son's pack was sort of a de facto feeder pack for the troop that he joined.  The troop is the second-closest geographically to where that pack meets, and for the previous 10 years or so about 80 percent of the crossovers from that pack went to that troop.  But tastes and habits change over time, and now about 90 percent of crossovers from that pack go to the other, slightly closer troop.

This may have gotten slightly off-topic, but maybe not, because it shows Cubber an example of how there are choices to be made.

[David CO]

3 hours ago, Cubber said:

My question is: does the committee chair have the right to direct us to transition to a particular troop, especially if it has no boys in it? 

Yes. As a cub master,  you volunteered to support the scouting program of the Chartered Organization. It is not unreasonable for your CO to expect you to promote both of their registered units. You should agree to speak up for the troop.

I am not saying that you should lie to the scouts or their parents. Be truthful. Tell them that it is their choice, but leave no doubt in anyone's mind that you volunteer for and support the CO's units.

 

 

[Eagle94-A1]

The CC is wrong for all the reasons above. It is the Scout's decision to join the troop of his choice.

That said, "Be Prepared" to be called a "traitor," "thief," "underhanded," and a hatred to be established. Even if you try and help the troop out,  you will be blamed for their low numbers. We couldn't have joined the troop my pack's CO has because they meet on Tuesdays, which at the time was a very bad night for us. Plus the troop took a 180 degree turn around from Boy Led to Adult led, to the point where PLs and SPL were appointed by the SM. Despite my apprehension, I still wanted my son and his den to visit and camp with that troop. I had to beg the troop to allow the Webelos to camp with them. Only way I got them to let the den camp was when I told them I would ask another troop to camp with. Long story short, camp out was a disaster, and son refused to join them. He and a friend eventually crossed over to the troop we are with.

Within 10 months, 2 of his den mates who joined the  CO's troop quit and two transferred to my son's troop. I was blamed for stealing his Scouts. That troop did nothing with the pack for 2 years, and they shrank and shrank. They finally started working with the pack, and got 3 Scouts. But I am the reason they are now down to 4 active Scouts.

 

[Tampa Turtle]

David CO, While it is a "Free Market" I see nothing wrong with a CC using their position to encourage one Troop over another as well as it is above board. As long as folks know they have a choice. 

[Tampa Turtle]

We thought for years we were brilliant in our recruiting and program but it turned out we met at a night that had less conflicts for most folks LOL.