Can a scout have an email address officially?

[Exibar]

I was told tonight that scouts aren't allowed to have email addresses and that everything MUST go through their parents' email.

 

Is there any truth to this? I was told this was a national rule, I haven't heard of such a thing, and couldn't find anything in a search of this forum.

 

thanks all!

Mike B

[NE-IV-88-Beaver]

Ask whoever told you that to please show it to you from an official source in writing!(This message has been edited by NE-IV-88-Beaver)

[Basementdweller]

I don't know of a national policy stating that it is a rule, Maybe a troop, district or council thing.

 

I assume you are a scout.

 

Scouting is having a bit of a time adapting to the new ways people communicate. Texting, emailing, tweeting, facebook, my space.

 

Here is my take on the email. If the Troop communicates through a parents email account then the likely hood of problems drops. I do not request to be a friend of a scout on my space, nor to I accept the request. It is nothing personal, just keeping the needed distance a Leader needs.

 

I had pondered the possibility of creating a Scoutmaster Bob my space identity for connecting with the scouts and scouters in the Troop, Pack and Area. I am just not sure about it. I just don't want any problems.

[Exibar]

I'm actually a scoutmaster and my CC is the one that told me that he was told that scouts cannot have email addresses. I told him I've heard of no such thing and he kinda walked away.

 

I'm glad I'm right, at least by the sound of it so far :-)

 

thanks!

Mike B

[BrentAllen]

Several of our Scouts have their own email addresses. They also have Facebook pages, and several have invited me to join them, and I have. I don't request any of our Scouts to be friends on FB, but if they request, I will join. Our current SPL has set up a Troop FB page, as well (members only).

 

I'm not sure I understand the worrying about email accounts. It's not like a person can erase an email they have sent to someone. Chat rooms are much more of a concern, since those conversations are harder to track.

[evmori]

Anyone can have an e-mail address. I'd bet this is that stretch of the G2SS reg about no one-on-one contact.

[Crew21_Adv]

Exibar (Mike B),

 

 

I think your CC is overstating some Scouting Urban Legends.

 

As a Crew Advisor, I do not email a youth directly (Venturing Activity Chair or Crew Officer), w/o emailing their parent or another adult in the CC: line.

 

I have also called Venturing family home phones, intending to talk to the parent and had a Venturer answer, I immediately state "Tell your parents you are on the phone with the Advisor right now, and we are talking about ____ event. Tell them now, I'll wait."

 

The adult Scouters within a unit should be aware of YP, and find ways to avoid a direct 1:1 adult to youth emails (personal contact).

 

As it is, many Scouts already have emails and cellphones. It is more about the method and conduit that the adult leadership communicates with them.

 

Mike B asked, Is there any truth to this? I have never seen any; and would like to know if absolute BSA guidance ever is announced.

 

Good Luck!

 

Scouting Forever and Venture On!

Crew21 Adv

[rdclements]

All of the Venturers that I serve have cell phones, email, and facebook. Most of their communication with each other is not in person. They have a FB group for the crew, and that's their most common mechanism for announcements and coordination. I use FB to keep up with them as well.

 

Every couple of weeks, I get a call from a crew officer, usually to inform me of something that they are planning. I prefer to work with them face-to-face, but sometimes phone and email are more practical. Our charter org policies are a bit more restrictive than BSA YP; nothing is specified about email or phone conversations.

 

I usually cc parents or another involved adult on emails and keep a phone log of who I spoke with and topics. I have an email archive (folders) and call info is on the cell bill detail sheet.

 

-R

[sbemis1]

Well if scouts aren't allowed to have an email address, then BSA needs to take that block off the scout application where it asks for the scouts email address.

[artjrk]

I have smae policy as Brent, I accept FB friend requests but do not solicit them. I realize some parents may not be comfortable with it. I have found FB to be the quickest way to reach my SPL. Having multiuser messages also is quite useful to discuss issues. I set up a troop FB page to establish a virtual campfire with current members, past members and friends of the ttroop. Our Troop website allows Scouts to either register on their own or thru their parents email. It set up though that parents receive a copy of all messages sent to the scout. Advantage here is that two people hear the message and not one relying on the other to pass it on.

 

I don't think the "no 1-on-1 contact" pertains to email and phone calls. I haven't seen any literature stating such. YPT prevents an adult from being physically alone with a youth.

[Oak Tree]

Our troop has a vast interconnected web of facebook friends. Adults and Scouts alike.

 

You may, for various reasons, want to normally copy an adult on an email, but there is no rule about it. You can talk to a youth on the phone without their parent listening in, too. It's not always easy to copy a parent on every phone call, text, instant message, facebook message, or other electronic communication. We don't always have parents listening in when we talk to a youth in person, either.

 

Exibar - There is no such rule, but NE-IV-88-Beaver has the best advice - ask your CC to show you the policy.

[Stosh]

I'm thinking that the 1 on 1 issue in YP that is of concern to everyone might be taking it too far. Obviously there are many times when I'm 20'-25' away from everyone talking to an individual scout that no one is privy to what I'm saying to him. Is this an issue with YP? Generally not. If I am concerned about the conversation I have someone with me especially if it's an issue that I need protection from any accusation that might arise from the youth I deal with it at a later time.

 

Whenever I call a scout at home, I introduce myself before I ask to speak to the youth. That way the parent knows I will be talking to him. If the scout answers the phone I only speak to the issue for which I called. I don't do any "How's it going", kind of personal conversation. That way if the parent has any concern, s/he can address it. "Mr. B called to notify me of the camporee." Any other discussion the boy will not have to discuss with his parent because it doesn't exist. If for example there is tension between the scout and myself, I address it only to the parent and invite them to speak on the issue when the they and the boy can be physically present at the same time. I will not call the scout to set that time up, it will be with the parents.

 

If the parent does not have an email address to cc: to, I cc: the CC instead or an ASM who is familiar with the situation if ever I have a need to contact a boy through email. General messages to all boys are on a distribution list so they all get the same message and I save sent messages for any future considerations.

 

When in doubt, get a witness, but I'm not going to worry about a 1 on 1 conversation I have with a scout about cooking supper at a campout if no one else is in the kitchen area of camp.

 

If I put a boy in an awkward situation, it not only endangers him, but me as well. If it seems awkward, get others in on the conversation. If the conversation starts out okay and then gets awkward, I cut it off and say we will continue it when your parents can be present.

 

If I can't define what that line in the sand is, I shouldn't be a SM. No amount of training will cover up stupidity on my part.

 

Stosh

[Exibar]

thank you for all the great feedback! You guys are awesome, I hope that I can start repaying by answering some questions shortly too :-)

 

I really wanted to get all the boys their own email addresses as part of our whole "web initiative" for further enhancing communication within our troop. I'm an IT Security Engineer by day so I can put the parent's mind at ease a bit for the security of their son's email accounts and the web site.

 

Here's what I'm planning on:

 

1) ask the parents permission for their son to have a troop email address.

2) CC the parents on ALL communication with their sons

3) request that they check their email at least once every 48 hours (once a day would be ideal).

 

I've taken over as Scoutmaster and one of the issues in the past was communications. With the boys being *very* internet savvy these days the website and email is the main mode of regular communications.

When my CC mentioned that scouts couldn't have email addresses, that really threw me for a loop as I never heard of such a thing.

 

thanks!

Mike B

 

[Beavah]

Yah, folks are funny, eh?

 

I wonder if scouts are allowed to receive snail mail at home. Yeh never know, that predator coach might be sending him somethin'.

 

No rule at all about scout emails beyond whatever the family rule is, Exibar. You'll find a small fraction of families have been made a bit paranoid about email and such, but most who have any personal or professional experience with it have no problem. I know a lot of Troops and Crews that expect or even require the lads and young ladies to have their own email for communication. Part of teachin' them how to be young adults in da modern world. Email is the modern version of the telephone.

 

Each unit leader can also decide how paranoid he/she wants to be, but I reckon most have no problem calling kids directly on the phone. These days most teenagers don't use or expect calls on their family's house phone - even if their family still has a house phone! I know more than a few families who no longer have a land line and just use individual cell phones. If yeh call the parent's number your likely to get dad when he's away at a conference out of state, wonderin' why your so dense that yeh can't remember his son's number .

 

Only issue I've ever seen with Facebook and such is young 18-20 year old ASMs, eh? When they have both scout and college-aged "friends", da scouts are sometimes exposed to da raucous nature of college life a wee bit early. That's a good conversation to have with your young ASMs. Otherwise, it just ain't an issue. Electronic communication leaves quite a documentation trail, so cc'ing folks really adds nothing to your or the kid's protection.

 

Beavah

 

 

[sherminator505]

I am not aware of any rule that states that a Scout cannot have an e-mail address, nor am I aware of any mechanism that could prevent a Scout from obtaining one. Now maybe your unit's policy is to route e-mail communications through the parents to keep them in the loop, but that is an entirely different question.