Troop Committee Chair

[donert]

What is the term of office of the Troop Committee Chair and how do you get a bad one removed from the position?

[Beavah]

Yah, hi there donert!

 

I suppose it would probably help if yeh told us a bit more about what's goin' on, eh? How to proceed depends a lot on things like what you mean by "bad" .

 

The book answer to your question is that the CC serves at the pleasure of the Chartered Organization (the church/school/community group that sponsors the troop). So the head of the CO or the CO's Representative (COR) can simply approve a CC application from someone else and make the change.

 

The real answer, though, depends a lot on what's goin' on, and who the people are who are "players" in your current drama, and how your unit has typically done things in the past. Mostly, kindness and courtesy demand that we be understanding and gentle with each other. I'd suggest thinkin' on things like:

 

* Is there a chance the person is right, and yeh really should consider his/her point of view a bit more? Committees should challenge unit scouters sometimes. Feedback is a gift.

 

* Would an outside voice or committee training help the person develop a new perspective?

 

* If a change needs to be made, try doin' it at the end of a fixed term. If yeh don't have fixed terms, then consider annual recharter the fixed term.

 

* Have a nice informal chat with the gent, a UC, another parent. Consider whether the person can be talked into a new role that's a better fit. Have a friendly person lined up to be CC who is "wants to give it a go for a while". In short, make it more like a friendly reshuffle of responsibilities, not like a firing.

 

* Whether you and the rest of the committee can just work around the person for a bit without really bein' rancorous. That can be an OK way for someone to get a hint.

 

* Even if the person is wrong on somethin', is it worth the effort? Adult fightin' in a unit does a lot of damage. Hurts feelings. Makes people leave and pull their kids out. Just because you're "right" about something doesn't mean that pushin' the matter isn't wrong. Make sure what you mean by "bad" is a really big deal that seriously affects the program. Because adults fightin' and removin' a CC will seriously affect a program.

 

[Fuzzy Bear]

The term limit on any position is one year and should be carefully observed. All offices are to be reviewed and decided on before the Recharter process is completed.

 

If the CO/COR is active, then it their decision.

 

If the CO/COR is not active, then it falls back on the Committee to decide on the offices/directions and then the CO/COR blindly accepts their decisions.

 

A CC could conceivably stay in their position and remain difficult to work with for several years if that is their direction/decision.

 

But,

 

When the SM does not have a vote on the Committee proceedings and works with the CC to determine the Agenda of the Committee proceedings, a new dynamic is created. This allows the SM to represent the Scouts and their directions and it allows the TC the opportunity to support Scout's program.

 

Let's use the example of a CC not supporting the Scout's program by not allowing the SM access to the TC agenda. If the TC is doing their job then the TC proceedings are made known to the Scouts and the parents by public notice of the TC notes. This openness makes peoples positions known and that is not what a CC or anyone would want. This openness allows people to decide that he/she should move into another position at the end of their term/year when they cannot fairly represent the program or allow the S to represent the Scouts program. If the non-support continues, so will the backlash from Scouts and parents.

 

Keeping proceedings open, keeping term limits in place and sharing leadership helps to distribute the weight a program and helps to maintain program longevity. If you are in a closed system with power centered on a few, the weight is kept there as well and most probably the program will be kept small or fold when one individual moves on.

fb

 

[Ekmiranda]

Before any solid advise could really be given questions need to be answered.

1) What do you mean by bad

2) Is this affecting the Pack or Troop

3) To What degree is it affecting Pack or Troop

4) Is it just personalities clashing

5) Is the CH just not active

 

I had a CC that was not the greatest. He was for the boys in a sence but at ever chance he made sure that everyone in the pack knew that what was done was done by him and that everyone needed him and thank him for the wonderful job that he was doing. He had every leader under his thumb and they were afraid to step out of the box and make a suggestion.

The unit was a cookie cut unit to the point that people were coming up to me to let me know that their sons were thinking on leaveing because of boredum.

I was a new addition to the pack and quickly realizied that this was not the right way things should be run. I as the new ACM started to ask questions directed to the CM and was told thats how it is done. Not likeing those answers went directly to the CC and asked the same thing and was told to shut up and do what I was told. Haveing a very strong personality and not being the type of person to put my tail between my legs and run I started to buck the system that was in place in the pack.I kind of started a mutiney.

Some of the leaders started to side with me and wanted change. Two months later the CM droped out and I was voted in by Committee Members as the new CM. At which point I just started to go around the CC and made the COR my best friend. The COR told me that un less the pack was hurting the CC could not be removed with out hard core proof that he was the cause. And besides that he said that I was doing a good job and the pack was starting to turn around so there was no need to try and have the CC removed.

I latter found that the CC was a very powerful man in the community and it would be an imbirisment to him and his family if he was voted out. Six months later he contracted a rare cancer and left this earth within six months. My wife is now the new CC and 4 years later the Pack is so strong and a we have the most dynamic leaders that I have ever seen.

My reason in telling you this is that there may be under lying reasons for your situation and you need to investagate. In my situation I would never have been able to have him removed. All that I would have been able to have done was go around him and let him stay in that position. He was very highly connected.

 

[epalmer84]

This issue has been extensively dealt with over at Ask Andy:

http://www.netcommish.com/askandy.asp

 

There are several columns that deal with issues like this.

 

Ed