Are you in a council that has a positive or toxic culture or something different?

[Eagle1993]

On 1/20/2024 at 9:47 PM, Ojoman said:

Does your council/district foster a positive or toxic volunteer environment? What can be done to improve it and make it more positive or take it from toxic to positive or are you happy with where it is at?

My council has sold off 3 of its 4 camps over the last decade or so.  Each time, they promised to reinvest the funds in the remaining camp(s).  I saw nothing of the sort, only investment in new hires whose sole purpose seems to be gathering videos to help fundraising efforts. 

We had some tremendous volunteers in my district who planned an amazing celebration of our Cub Scout camp many years ago (when the camp was turning 100 years old ... before it was sold off).  The idea was a council wide camporee, climbing walls, various scouting events, food trucks, fireworks, etc.  Council leadership cancelled it as it had the chance to lose money (ignoring the publicity it would have generated).  This led to a few of our key district volunteers leaving, never to return.

Our council does almost nothing for Scouts BSA outside of merit badge clinics.  They invest heavily in Cub Scouts but seem to think the program ends at 5th grade.  

Our Troop has a few members of the executive board, but it seems like they have become disillusioned with what they have been able to impact.

Personally, I hope my council is absorbed my one of our neighboring ones, which seem to be better at putting on events for Scouts BSA and investing in their camps.  

[Ojoman]

2 hours ago, Eagle1993 said:

  I could see volunteering at council/district level at that point.

Please do... district committees are vital to the health of the district. 

 

[Prime00]

On 2/16/2025 at 3:05 PM, Eagle1993 said:

I think one issue is that too many try and recruit from unit volunteers, many if not most are parents of youth.  District/council would be best served finding younger adults (21 - 30) before they have kids or former unit volunteers (50+).  I used to be more active at the district level, but as my kids got older and their interests were varied, I ran out of volunteer hours to give ... and all of mine will be at the unit level.  That said, my kids are aging, one will be headed to college in 2026 and the other a few years later.  I could see volunteering at council/district level at that point.

The bad thing is that in some areas the paid scouters are running out the volunteers because they question what is going on. By the time they get to the 50+ years old with their kids out of the unit level stuff, they have seen enough of the districts and councils to ask "why do we do this like this?" Many times it's not a slam, just an honest question. The paid scouters get mad and see it as rebellion then they start over reacting to things. 

[Tron]

I ran across my councils strategic plan last night. With what I learned from it I ask the question; are toxic district and councils the product of DEI? My councils strategic plan is a decade old, about a third of it has to do with "leadership and membership reflecting all of our community" and a SOLID smidge of "we need to implement plans where 'regular units' take scoutreach units on campouts". 

My council has been on the chopping block for several years, we're shrinking year-over-year, every attempt to merge with a surrounding council is rebuked because no other council in our area will touch us with a ten foot pole. Is this strategic plan why no other council will work with us?

Forget the reflecting our community part; how does the make regular units take scoutreach units on campouts even work with YPT and GTSS? Was it that some maniac wrote this garbage or were the early 2010s a YPT wild west? 

[Eagle94-A1]

@Prime00, 110% correct. But sometimes, just sometimes, the pros are so bad, that new Scouters with kids still in the program back away.

As to why it happens? Sometimes the pros move from one areas where stuff they are proposing/mandating/changing is successful, but in the area they move it doesn't work. One example I can give is packs having designated schools they recruit from. Great idea when you are in an area with neighborhood schools. But when you move to an area with forced bussing, not such a good idea.

[Eagle94-A1]

47 minutes ago, Tron said:

Forget the reflecting our community part; how does the make regular units take scoutreach units on campouts even work with YPT and GTSS? Was it that some maniac wrote this garbage or were the early 2010s a YPT wild west? 

Until recently, multiple units could camp together with no issues. I think National tightened the multiple units policy because some were creating their own events like camporees and summer camp  even. As long as the YPT policies OF THE DAY (emphasis, YPT has become significantly tighter, i.e. only 21 year olds count towards YPT, parents are not allowed to camp, etc) you were fine.