Can't get adults to volunteer? Increase the fees by 117%!

[Armymutt]

Just got a letter from our SE.  The Executive board has decided to raise the youth fee from $66 to $80 and the adult fee from $12 to $26.  The email goes on to say that it's $165 per Scout - $85 national and $80 council.  Isn't there an extra $12 for insurance on there, or is that a council thing?  Scout Life is $15 for now.  Time to up those popcorn sales.

[InquisitiveScouter]

SIgn me up!

[mrjohns2]

It sucks. I don’t mind, but I have a job where these fees aren’t hard for me to pay AND I already buy into the program. The hard part is when someone is new, when a person can’t really afford the fees, or when a unit doesn’t have the funds to pay for the adults. So, this really hinders growth since the growth comes at the margins, not from existing members. The $25 fee that is now gone, was a good example. “Let’s make it more expensive for new people, that will be a great way to get new people to sign up.” Sure. Great plan. 

[swilliams]

Combined with the requirement now that all adults who attend scout events have to be registered... yeah that's great!!  Our Troop wants and needs parents to be involved but can't afford it, and if you ask for them to volunteer then turn around and tell them they have to pay for it, that's not going to go over well.  At all.

We're in a position with the Crew already where only ONE of the five consistently involved adults has a kid in the program, and that kid graduates this year.  I suspect the decision will be made to fold the crew.

[BetterWithCheddar]

My favorite events are ones where I can just show up with my son and be a dad. I would gladly pay more in fees if it resulted in better, more frequent program opportunities at the council and district levels (unclear if that's the case). I'm a pretty frugal guy with a regular job and $165 doesn't seem that ridiculous by today's standards. Anyone else ashamed to admit what they spend on youth sports or their pets? 🙂

[qwazse]

@BetterWithCheddar when my sons were cubs, I only paid for the youth and didn’t need to register to overnight with them. BSA does risk pricing itself out of hey market. It’s not that they compete with sports, but they and sports share a pie with many things that parents want their kids to have.

[BetterWithCheddar]

@qwazse, I see where you're coming from. I've only returned to Scouting as a parent for the past 2 years. Everything is expensive today except Little Caesar's.

[mrjohns2]

9 hours ago, BetterWithCheddar said:

I'm a pretty frugal guy with a regular job and $165 doesn't seem that ridiculous by today's standards.

I think the issue is that you already see the full value. For the Lion/Tiger/Wolf parent that we want to be a Den Leader, their buy in level is less. 

[qwazse]

On 4/7/2024 at 5:48 PM, BetterWithCheddar said:

@qwazse, I see where you're coming from. I've only returned to Scouting as a parent for the past 2 years. Everything is expensive today except Little Caesar's.

That’s a whole other metric. Registration fees have exceeded the cost of pizza. For older youth, many of whom pay their own fees, the pie that BSA is sharing is literally that.

[curious_scouter]

On 4/7/2024 at 5:08 PM, qwazse said:

@BetterWithCheddar when my sons were cubs, I only paid for the youth and didn’t need to register to overnight with them. BSA does risk pricing itself out of hey market. It’s not that they compete with sports, but they and sports share a pie with many things that parents want their kids to have.

not to mention the registration fee is just the tip of a very large expense iceberg in scouting.  Fundraising can help, but it's still very expensive to scout.  Uniform is easily $100+, book $25, unit dues $100-150, campouts @$20 ea is $200+ a year, summer camp is $350+ a lot of places.  And that's before any other clothes or gear they need.

So like $700-1000 in ongoing annual fees easily.  A Scouting career can cost a family as much as a year of in state college tuition.  It's a big choice, but I also think it has major benefits to the youth that justify the expense.  There truly is no better place in the world for a young person to learn leadership, gain and learn to manage independence, learn to interact with people different from them (background, ethnicity, even age/generational spans), learn problem solving skills, etc.  Scouting exposes youth to a diversity of experience no other program can and it can lead youth to lifelong healthy habits, help them find their passions for hobbies and professions and a lot more.

It is worth it, but I worry it is progressively becoming a 'country club' activity and that youth who might benefit the most are losing access to it over the increased costs, the heavy parental involvement it is starting to demand, etc. 

[OaklandAndy]

1 hour ago, curious_scouter said:

I worry it is progressively becoming a 'country club' activity and that youth who might benefit the most are losing access to it over the increased costs,

I feel this so much where I'm at. This statement right here is 100% true. As a pack, we have done all we can do make the program as "free" as possible. This includes offering sponsorships for families with multiple youth and just can't afford it, paying for all the program fees, reducing the "requirement" for a complete uniform, and doing away with annual unit dues. 

Luckily, we have lots of participation with fundraisers and this is the only way we can keep the program affordable in our rural town. Sometimes, I feel like we are doing what the council should be doing. 

Right now, we're looking into getting a pack neckerchief so they don't have to buy a new one every year. But that'll come down to a pack vote. 

Edited April 11 by OaklandAndy

[rallybug]

Costs beyond uniform purchasing cost are very council- and unit-dependent. Crossroads of the West fees for adult leaders starting May 1st 2024 will be $71 ($65 + $6 for council - the Pack and Troop that I am involved in pay those fees for adults) and $91 for youth (Explorers will be $56). Neither the Pack or Troop charge unit dues - Pack and Troop both provide an activity shirt, Troop provides the unit number patch at crossover or registration, $15 for a Troop necker.

Summer camp for our Troop will be $100 per Scout - the rest of the cost is covered by the Troop.

Pack is covering day camps for both non-Webelos and Webelos, Spring Camporee is $7 or $11 depending on age, Family Camp in August is normally free (if I remember correctly), the last couple of years the Webelos overnight camp has also been covered by the pack for food (the place they've gone offers the site for free as along as the Scouts do a trash pickup service project).

[DannyG]

On 4/11/2024 at 11:01 AM, OaklandAndy said:

I feel this so much where I'm at. This statement right here is 100% true. As a pack, we have done all we can do make the program as "free" as possible. This includes offering sponsorships for families with multiple youth and just can't afford it, paying for all the program fees, reducing the "requirement" for a complete uniform, and doing away with annual unit dues. 

Luckily, we have lots of participation with fundraisers and this is the only way we can keep the program affordable in our rural town. Sometimes, I feel like we are doing what the council should be doing. 

Right now, we're looking into getting a pack neckerchief so they don't have to buy a new one every year. But that'll come down to a pack vote. 

Our Pack took a similar approach. We are not "free": unit dues pays for awards and things. But we go as lean as possible.

The Pack purchased neckerchiefs of each rank - So when AOLs bridge out, their neckerchiefs are reused to the Bears den bridging up. The Bears neckerchiefs go the Wolves den, Wolves to Tigers, all the way down.  The only required uniform left to purchase is the shirt and belt.  Everything else is optional. (Tie neckerchief in a knot so you don't need a slide. Or make one at a den meeting.) Books are not even required anymore. The Pack buys one for the den leader. Everyone else is optional. The Pack pays registration for leaders through unit dues: for Key 3 + den leaders; so we aren't discouraging volunteers from signing up. "You mean I have to pay all these ridiculous fees for my scout, plus more money to volunteer? Nevermind."

Families are squeezed, having to make a hard decision to choose scouting vs. other activities. We have used fundraising to defray costs. But when families stop participating in unit fundraising, then what?

Edited April 17 by DannyG