I am curious

[Bob White]

One of the common elements shared often shared by healthy scout units is a healthy committee with members having specific responsibilities.

 

If you are an adult volunteer that works with a commitee I would like to know a few things.

 

1) What type of scouting unit is it?

 

2) Do you feel you have a well functioning committee?

 

2) How many memebers are on it and what are their specific assignments?

 

Thanks

BW

[OldGreyEagle]

In the Troop where I serve, we have some assignments, there is the adult co-ordinator, this person has the license numbers of troop adults that transports scouts along with vehicle insurance information, we have an Eagle Court of Honor Resource (thats me) who has resources to put on varied Eagle Courts of Honor.

We have an Advancement Chairman and an assistant who specializes in the first year program. And we have a webmaster-assistant who helps keep the web page fresh

[mk9750]

Bob,

 

I work with a Troop. We utilize the following positions within our committee:

 

Committee Chair (Does a fantastic job with all of the paperwork for rechartering, Tour Permits, canoe and trailer registrations and such, but hates the "people management" side of the position)

 

Assistant Committee Chair (Me - I run the committee meeting for the Chair, and between the two of us, determine candidates for other responsiblities. I then do the recruiting)

 

Adavancement Chair (Me)

 

Treasurer

 

Equipment coordinator (works with the Troop Quartermaster. Helps the Quartermaster prepare a report for Committee meetings on status of equipment and future needs, and teaches the QM how to repair equipment)

 

Librarian / Scribe Coordinator (supports the Librarian and Scribe. This position doesn't do much anymore. we finally got the Scouts trained to handle most of this themselves)

 

Cub Pack Liasons (4) (We have four adults, usually parents who have a boy in both the Troop and a Cub Pack, to help maintain a flow of communication between the two organizations)

 

Fundraising Chair (This person works with a Scout assigned by the SPL to determine what funds will be needed for the upcoming 6 - 12 month period, and develop fundraising activites to support this.

 

Training Chair (bird dogs the Troop's training, maintains records to make sure everyone stays up to date (common stuff like YP, and more unique things like NRA certification and BSA Lifegaurd)

 

I think that's it. We actually have just about one adult per family registered on our committee, and all have some function. For instance, my wife's sole responsiblity is to cut and sew Scout's names onto our Honor Banner as they advance. But all help out in some way. We currently have 23 boys in the Troop, and we usually have 12 - 15 people at our committee meetings. In addition, our SM, a few ASMs and our SPL attend committee meetings.

 

I'm curious why you ask?

 

Mark

[eisely]

Our troop committee meets monthly, except for July. Responsibilities are currently divided:

 

Chair, Treasurer, FOS, Advancement, Outdoor, Merit Badge Coordinator, Fund Raising for Unit (car washes), Training, Recording Secretary (more limited scope of duties than Guidebook suggests), Newsletter Publisher/Editor, Webmaster, Scouting for Food

 

COR attends regularly and provides good liaison with CO.

 

One thing we do not have is a designated Equipment Coordinator.

 

[zippie2223]

1) What type of scouting unit is it?

Cub Scout Pack

2) Do you feel you have a well functioning committee? It could do better, but heard of a lot worst.

3) How many members are on it and what are their specific assignments? 5

 

DEE-Committee Chair, COR

Larry- Assistant Chair, to agree with the CC (his wife)

Bruce- Treasure, Cub Master, Co-event Planner, Den Leader

Glenn (me)- Assistant Cub Master, Event Planner, Den Leader, Web Master

Connie- Just retired from Pop Corn Kernel, looking for a new one.

(This message has been edited by zippie2223)

[eagle90]

We have a Committee of 20 people, counting SM and ASM's. Some do have specific areas of responsibility - Transportation, Refreshments, Annual Dinner, Pancake Breakfast, First Aid Meet, Advancement, etc. but the others are members at large who will pitch in for various one time events.

[Twocubdad]

Although I'm no longer officially a committee member I "work with a committee" so I suppose I'm qualified to respond. Plus this sounds to be an interesting thread.

 

The committee of our Cub pack runs very well. The chairman is new, but is doing a good job of getting his sea legs under him. We just got through our annual planning meeting and he did a good job. Our strongest suit is that we have a good, active outings subcommittee. Most of the members are BALOO trained. We give them a date, tell them where we want to go and they run with it.

 

Our weakest area is secretary and treasurer, due to those positions being vacant for several month before the to current office holders took over. They seem to be trying hard to make a fresh start with procedures and record keeping this year, but honestly I would like them to be a little more aggressive about making things happen. But hey, the slots are filled and functioning.

 

The bulk of the committee are the folks who come and go as needed -- popcorn, blue & gold, FOS, etc. We have very strong folks in those positions who know their jobs without the need for a lot of supervision. The few times we've had turnover in these slots the old folks have done a good job of finding and training their replacements.

 

But the best part of all this is that none of the above people are den leaders (although quite a few are spouses of DLs). That was not the case two years ago when I became chairman. Not only have we spread the work around, but we've brought new blood into the pack leadership. The DLs focus on program and the boys.

 

At my older son's troop, pretty much the opposite is true. Several of the key positions are vacant. The chairman wants to retire, but until last week wouldn't say so (I sort of outted him). No one is responsible for recruiting new volunteers. Their approach has been to put one line in the newsletter "We need someone to ...." and then be surprised to learn that no one steps forward. Jobs aren't very well defined with several people doing different parts on the same job and none of others.

 

So far we've avoided disaster. One campout was saved when a dad volunteered to go at the last minute. Another one was converted to a day trip after no one remembered to reserve a campsite. In short, it's a mess.

[Bob White]

Eagle 90, Let's get the SM and the ASMS out of the count. They are program leaders, I am interested in how the administrative function of the committee is structured.

 

So what is the count now instead of 20?

 

 

[OneHour]

Troop Committee, we are very fortunate to have a great group of parents:

 

We have:

0) COR (1)

1) Committee Chair (1) - he runs the Committee meetings as well as the committee and is doing a very good job

2) Advancement Chair (1) - he maintains the advancement record, COH, BOR, and presents mb opportunities to the troop.

3) Secretary (1) - records the minutes of the committee meetings and other transactions

4) Outdoor Event Chair (1) (planning the logistics, ie. transportation, tour permits, etc.)

5) Indoor Event Chair (1) (same as OEC)

6) Treasurer (1) - keeps up with our piggy

7) Health and Safety (2 - husband and wife tag team!) - maintain our health forms (up to date) and make sure that each car is equipped with a health book that contains everything!

8) Recruiting/ Membership Chair (2) - as the title states.

9) BOR (we have three sets of parents who rotate each month for BOR, arranged by our AC) (4 + 5 of the current committee officers)

10) Training - me (making sure that our adults are trained, arranged JLT, etc.)

11)future positions to be filled - Fundraiser Chair(s)

 

Scoutmasters:

 

0) SM (1)

1) ASM for new scout patrol (1) - advises new scout patrol

2) ASM for TFC (3) - advise the TFC scouts

3) ASM for Trail to Eagle (2) - advise TE scouts

4) ASM for High Adventures (1-3) depends on or if they show up!

 

There is a definite division of labor! Now, all that we have to do is to get the boys to lead themselves, then we'll be a little closer to Scouting Utopia!

 

1Hour(This message has been edited by OneHour)

[Scoutmaster Ron]

In the unit that I serve..a completly untrained committee (Troop Committee Challenge) which is composed of a disgrunted ex s.m., a COH that is way to involved in the program ie: calls the SPL (S.M.'s son) to remind him of the PLC, advancement person who told a scout he had to wait 30 days between BOR's, does not return scouts calls for BOR's a CC who doesnt like confrontation and discriminates agains other women from attending campouts. I think I covered everything.

[eagle90]

Bob -

 

Taking away the SM and ASM's we have a committee of 15, not including 5 ASM's who are registered but away at college for the bulk of the year.

[NJCubScouter]

I caught up with this thread a little late but here is my answer:

 

I am a member of a troop committee. I will list the members by function performed (if any), as well as those positions that are currently vacant, and add it up at the end. It is possible there are other people on the charter as MC's but I am only counting the people I see actually doing anything or coming to meetings.

 

Committee chair.

 

Advancement chair.

 

Advancement committee member who maintains the Troopmaster records, based on information from the Scribe as well as individual boys who are supposed to report to him on a regular basis when they have had requirements signed off in their books.

 

Advancement committee member who coordinates merit badge "classes," which I know is a controversial subject, but there she is. Or rather, there she was, as she is clearly transitioning into "retirement" at this point, her son having just made Eagle and turned 18 (almost always a virtually simultaneous event in this troop), and she having turned over her paperwork to one of the other committee members.

 

Treasurer (at this point a vacant position; if anyone is familiar with the children's books, "A Series of Unfortunate Events," that about wraps it up for our treasurer position. I think we are currently looking for our fourth treasurer in two years. In the interim, the CC collects dues, makes deposits and keeps the checkbook.)

 

Camping/activities coordinator. I don't know if that is her "title" or if she even has a "title," but that is what she does. She makes all the arrangements, coordinates sign-ups and collects money for camping and other events, completes the tour permits (including making sure there is sufficient adult leadership, etc. She also seems to keep part of the troop records, overlapping a bit with the advancement record-keeper listed above. She also has decided, apparently, to take over for the "merit badge coordinator" on at least a temporary basis.

 

Training coordinator. (Me; though fortunately for me, the new ASM's who have joined over the past year-plus have shown such initiative in getting the necessary training that I have not had to do much. I should do more anyway. Otherwise, I serve as sort of a free-floating committee member and fill in for board of reviews when needed.)

 

Fundraising coordinator; though rumor has it, he has moved away.

 

There is one committee member who was the camping/activities coordinator but currently has no apparent assigned duties; he has taken over as Cubmaster of the pack that shares our CO and his work with the troop lately seems to be limited to liaison work between the two units.

 

Eagle adviser; though I have gotten the impression that this individual may not actually be registered with our troop. He does not attend committee meetings. Given the amount of work he does do with the boys, he SHOULD be registered. I know he was district advancement chair some time ago, and may still be registered at the district level.

 

So by my count that's 9 or 10, one of which is officially vacant, one of which (the merit badge person) is unofficially vacant; and one of which (fundraising coordinator) is unaccounted for at present. The ASM's also attend committee meetings, I know they don't count and shouldn't necessarily be there, but there they are. I'd also say we have one ASM (a former SM) who probably should be registered as a committee member, because his role is really as the "elder statesman" of the troop and adviser to everybody, and does not really participate in the program itself.

 

Is it a well-functioning committee? I'd give it about a B, with an A for good intentions and a C for actual execution. The roles between the committee and SM/ASM's sometime seem a bit muddled, in both directions. Some of the functions depend too much on whether a particular person shows up at a committee meeting or troop meeting a particular week, and with most people having busy schedules that doesn't always happen. The communication between and among the advancement committee and troop leadership is not always what it should be, sometimes resulting in slightly delayed advancements. (I know this because my son passed his Second Class BOR a couple months ago, should have gotten the badge at the latest at this week's troop meeting (the first of the school year), but the advancement chair didn't show up to give the report to the record-keeper who would then inform the SM, etc. etc. Why my son's handbook showing he passed his BOR (signed by the exact same advancement chair) is not enough for him to get the piece of cloth, I am not sure.) The one thing that is really holding things together at the moment is the camping/activities coordinator, she fills in to do what is needed, for example in addition to everything else I think she may end up coordinating our major annual fund-raiser. She also performed multiple functions for the Cub Scout pack of which I was ACM, and when the older of her two sons crossed over, she gradually became increasingly active in the troop, but now that both boys are in the troop she has left Cub Scouts behind and is the perpetual-motion machine for the troop. That's good and bad, of course -- it shouldn't all depend on one person, and there's a fine line between hectic and burned-out. But without a doubt, we would be in trouble right now without her.

[MollieDuke]

As as ex-committee chair, I am appalled at the committee I'm now involved with. We have about 10 members that show up occasionally. We have a huge power play going on right now with a lot of mind games going on between adults. As far as I have found out there is just myself and a lady I've never seen at a committee meeting that are trained in any way. No one will attend training--not sure why. It's really bad, and it's affecting the boys. The district folk know of the problem and so far they've taken a hands off attitude--again not sure why. It's very frustrating, but the SM seems to care about the boys, so that's why we stay mostly although the temptation to move to another troop is getting stronger all due to this mess. Believe me, if you've got a functioning, trained committee, you can count yourselves among the lucky.

[CubsRgr8]

Although there are usually a dozen plus adults at my son's troop committee meetings, there are only three recognizable positions: chairman, treasurer, and advancement. The SM really runs the committee. Despite being so far off the BSA concept, the committee gets the job done, including staffing and running its own week long summer camp every year.(This message has been edited by CubsRgr8)

[Eagle Foot]

1) What type of scouting unit is it? Boy Scout Troop going into it's 25th. year

 

2) Do you feel you have a well functioning committee? ....absolutly not

 

2) How many memebers are on it and what are their specific assignments? Five members...

We have a committee chairman...she is leaving after some ten years...has done a terrfic job.

 

We have other members listed on the charter but with know specfic duties...

 

We can post meeting dates all day long...no one shows up.

 

I'm going in the back door approach and calling for a parents meeting...they show up for those.

 

As this is being written I am re-grouping our committee. Not having a funtioning committee is a real problem...I assumed the SM role in March, and I am going slow with changes. It's like some like it better with out organization.

 

If we don't get a funtioning committee I see the troop not growing, but just a buch of boys who are meeting once a week....going through the motions of calling themselves Boy Scouts. Same problem with ASM's no commitment. ---My thoughts are to lay it out to them. Let them know what will be expected. Hopfully I'll get some takers.

 

As a side note: I recently asked one of my ASM's what part did he see himself fullfilling in the troop, what did he think that he would like to do best? ANS...to plan everything for the outdoors, make all of the decisions as to where the scouts will go, what type of camping, backpacking, hikes, ets. -----I thought that was great...except that most of that I tried to leave up to the boys. Responce was...well then I just don't know,,,,I don't like some of the things they choose.....(I'm trying to get him trained)

 

edidted by Eagle Foot