Alumni Award - Alumni Connection Card

[BartHumphries]

The major part of the Alumni Award is not the, "Make contact with at least five adult alumni not currently registered with the BSA..." part. Look down below, the second part where each subsection of the "Alumni Engagement" involves two people and "The same alumni may not be used to complete more than one requirement in this section."

 

You have to contact 8 people and get:

2 unregistered people to attend a Scout activity

2 unregistered people who register

2 unregistered people that you solicit and obtain Friends of Scouting donations

2 unregistered people who volunteer at a Scout activity

 

It seems like that would sort of be a "path" that you'd take 8 people through -- attending an activity, then registering, then making a financial contribution and a contribution of their time.

[BadenP]

SP

 

Sorry to disagree with you but this whole scheme is much ado about nothing, except lining the coffers of National, and I think you would be hard pressed to prove otherwise.

[SeattlePioneer]

Well BadenP,

 

 

Your comments illustrate that people can be cynical about anything.

 

As noted in the material:

 

 

 

 

So it's a national program aimed at supporting councils most directly. Getting more adults involved would no doubt help national, councils, districts and units. It might help everyone in Scouting.

 

 

But you are certainly entitled to your skepticism if that appeals to you.

 

 

As I noted earlier, the only reason I got involved in Scouting thirty years ago is that I was encouraged to participate by a friend of mine, not much different than the way this program suggests in a more direct fashion.

 

 

[Adam S]

I have to agree with Baden P, I am not being pessimistic, I am being realistic.

 

College's have Alumni associaitions specifically for economic development... Both for the college and for Alumni to help each other. The recent survey many of us got was centered around an Alumni association and how open we were to solicitations and of what fashion... So, clearly they have if not a plan, an inclination to go in this direction.

 

Because otherwise you would be a registered Scouter active with a unit. right?

 

 

I would like to see them develop the brotherhood side of it first/more but I realistically understand the time and effort needs to pay for itself...

[SeattlePioneer]

>

 

 

So as a Cubmaster when I recruit new families who attend Scout events that would qualify? When I register new adult leaders as Pack leaders, that qualifies?

 

When I do a FOS presentation and people donate --- that qualifies?

 

 

In short, is there any bar to unit leaders and volunteers meeting these requirements in ther ordinary course of their volunteers activities?

[BadenP]

SP

 

The goal of this program is to bring former boy scouts back into scouting as alumni and solicit an FOS donation from them, so I doubt you can count an FOS pack presentation, or parents coming to a pack event as meeting those two requirements nor should you be able to count signing up a den leader for example who was not a former boy scout as meeting that requirement. That's the way I read it on the BSA alumni site.

[desertrat77]

I agree with Adam S's position.

 

Rekindling the scouting spirit in alumni should be the primary aim.

 

I think BadenP's assessment is spot on.

[BartHumphries]

"So as a Cubmaster when I recruit new families who attend Scout events that would qualify? When I register new adult leaders as Pack leaders, that qualifies? ... In short, is there any bar to unit leaders and volunteers meeting these requirements in ther ordinary course of their volunteers activities?"

 

At the top of the official requirements, there's a note that you cannot begin working on any requirements without the permission of your Council. I would likely only say no if you were working on the Cubmaster Award or the Unit Leader Award of Merit -- if you'd already earned those then I'd be likely to say yes. My reasoning is that I think it's great to have rewards that promote what you "should" be doing, because we want to promote those good activities, but earning three knots all for doing the same things is sort of a little too much in my humble opinion. I am not anyone official though, and everyone has their own opinion, so you'd have to contact your Council and ask them that same question since you'd need their permission before you could start working on the requirements.

[Woapalanne]

"So as a Cubmaster when I recruit new families who attend Scout events that would qualify? When I register new adult leaders as Pack leaders, that qualifies?"

 

Only if they are former Scouts or Scouters.

 

"When I do a FOS presentation and people donate --- that qualifies?"

 

Only if they are former Scouts or Scouters.

 

 

"In short, is there any bar to unit leaders and volunteers meeting these requirements in ther ordinary course of their volunteers activities?"

 

Just with the stipulations above. This is an Alumni award, not a recruiting or fund-raising award (although there is nothing wrong with either of those).

 

[joeleaux]

THANKS for solving the "Alumni Connection Card" mystery. Leave it to the BSA to be nebulous in their descriptions.