Which patches shouldn’t be traded?

15 November 2012

Your 10-piece jamboree set for my Eagle patch? Sorry, no way.

Council shoulder strips, district camporee patches, and pins from your hometown are perfect trinkets to trade at national Scout jamborees or other major Scouting events.

But some patches and Scouting memorabilia should stay home.

No matter what the event, including the 2013 National Scout Jamboree next summer, the BSA has rules restricting patch trading.

Here’s the excerpt from Page 9 of the 2012 edition of the Guide to Awards and Insignia: Continue reading »

Why do we love Scouting? Let us count the ways …

12 November 2012

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Young or old, single mom or new dad, Scouting has millions of fans across the country.

I know why I love the Boy Scouts of America—it was my gateway to this awesome job, for one—but I wanted to hear others’ stories. So I pinged our friends on Facebook with this simple question: Why do you love the Boy Scouts of America?

You really should take a moment to read all of the answers at this link. It’s enough to remind us why we do what we do for this organization.

But if you’re short on time, I’ve culled my 15 favorite responses below. Continue reading »

Your life just got easier, thanks to these new online unit and district tools

9 November 2012

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Updating your personal info in the BSA’s database shouldn’t take an act of congress.

Fortunately, a just-launched suite of unit and district tools has the power to change your address, phone number, e-mail, or more—with just a click.

In the past, Scouters or parents who needed to make changes had to call their council. Now they can do all of it through the Unit and District Tools page on MyScouting (changes to your name and date of birth still go through your council, for Youth Protection reasons).

I suggest you log in soon and make sure the BSA has your most up-to-date contact info. Does someone in your unit lack reliable computer access? Have them call one of their unit’s Key 3 (unit leader, the chartered organization representative, or the unit committee chairman) to change it for them.

And simplified contact info is just the beginning. Phase 1 also offers an announcements page, a calendar, and a roster manager. You can learn about all the new tools and how to use them in the tutorial below. Or just log in and explore. I found it very intuitive.

I also want to draw your attention to the design of the new Unit and District Tools site. It’s clean and simple, with large icons and no frills. That’s a conscious, forward-thinking move by Debra Kendrew, Brianne Dondlinger, and other members of the project team.

“It’s designed simply for a reason,” Debra says. “It’s optimized for use on all mobile devices.”

Future phases will only make these tools better. Debra and Brianne gave me a sneak peek of these changes coming soon: Continue reading »

New recruiting materials will help you catch a Tiger (or Cub Scout or Boy Scout or Venturer)

5 November 2012

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Materials are also available en Español.

The first step’s always the hardest.

And when it comes to recruiting future Scouts, that first step is simple awareness. If a boy (or Venturing-age girl) in your area doesn’t know about your Scout unit, how can you recruit him or her?

Thankfully, you don’t have to do all the work yourself. The BSA’s marketing team has your back with a treasure trove of fliers, billboards, posters, yard signs, door hangers, bookmarks, postcards, Web banners, PSAs, and e-blasts. And it’s all available in three flavors: English, Spanish, and bilingual.

New this month are Tiger Cub recruiting materials, which join the high-quality Cub Scout, Boy Scout, and Venturing materials already available.

Simply download the PDFs, add info about your unit’s meeting location, Web site, and contact info, and then print/post/publish wherever boys and girls are found. I’m thinking schools, youth sports facilities, places of worship, supermarkets, community centers, etc.

Find all the National Recruitment Campaign materials at the BSA’s marketing site.

Your uniform questions, all sewn up

2 November 2012

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White boxes show you where the patch belongs. Drag it there, and it gets magically “sewn” onto the uniform.

Finally, an easy way to answer the question, “What do I wear?”

A new, easy-to-use uniform Web site targeted at new Scout families just debuted, courtesy of the folks in Program Impact and the Supply Group.

Click on the appropriate Scouting program — Cub Scouts, Webelos, Boy Scouts, Venturers, Leaders, and Dress Uniforms (professionals). From there, you’re presented with a list of required and awarded patches that you can drag and drop to where they belong on the uniform. It’s simple and fun.

Give it a try, and be sure to bookmark bsauniforms.org to send to the new parents in your pack, troop, team, or crew. And to buy actual uniform components, they’ll want to visit ScoutStuff.org or their local Scout Shop.

What you’re seeing now is Phase 1, which gives you an idea of what’s possible with this useful tool. The next step is to include everything found in the Guide to Awards and Insignia. It’s a working project that will get better over time.

Now if only they can find a way to sew the patches on for you, as well!

Is an older Scout who wears his uniform in public committing ‘social suicide?’ Weigh in on one Scoutmaster’s policy

Open for debate: What’s your Scout unit’s uniform policy?

Is it ever time to say, ‘Sorry, our troop’s full’?

1 November 2012

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Quality trumps quantity when it comes to Scouting. A well-run unit of 15 to 20 boys or girls beats a dysfunctional unit of 80 to 100 Scouts every time. (Many larger troops thrive, but only through careful planning and strong leadership.)

What happens when your unit reaches that magic number where adding any more Scouts means a drop in program quality — overcrowded meeting space, leaders stretchen too thin, or other growing pains?

Do you turn Scouts away, sending them to another nearby unit? Or do you squeeze them in?

That question was posted to a Scout message board earlier this week: Continue reading »

There are no dull merit badges, only dull instructors

29 October 2012

6 Comments

Scouts aren’t exactly stumbling over themselves to take Personal Management, Emergency Preparedness, or Citizenship in the Community/Nation/World.

But with a little advance planning and creativity, you can bring seemingly dull merit badges to life.

Start by studying every requirement for ways to turn lectures or pen-and-paper exercises into something hands-on.

Then consider these tips from our friends on Facebook and Twitter: Continue reading »

Judgment call: Who should get access to your unit contact list?

22 October 2012

22 Comments

In your unit, is a Scout’s contact info freely available or guarded like nuclear launch codes?

Two forces are competing here: Effective, efficient communication between families — and privacy. How do you straddle the thin line dividing the two?

That’s what assistant Scoutmaster Leon wondered in an e-mail to me last week. Take a look at his note, and then weigh in below: Continue reading »

Cooking, Sustainability merit badges to become Eagle-required

17 October 2012

225 Comments

UPDATE (11/1): Answers to some Frequently Asked Questions about these changes.

Beginning Jan. 1, 2014, this badge will get a silver border.

Moms and dads, prepare the needle and thread!

Sustainability and Cooking merit badges will join the list of Eagle-required merit badges over the next 14 months, the Boy Scouts of America’s National Executive Board announced today.

Sustainability, a new merit badge, will join Environmental Science as an Eagle Scout option after its debut at the 2013 jamboree.

Cooking, meanwhile, will become Eagle-required as of Jan. 1, 2014.

The total number of merit badges required for the Eagle Scout Award will remain at 21. In other words, instead of 12 Eagle-required badges and 9 elective badges, a Scout must earn 13 Eagle-required and 8 elective badges.

Why the change? The goal is to “reflect a better balance of the needs of youth and our nation today and in the future,” according to the BSA’s resolution. Personally, I like it. Keeping up with the ever-changing world means questioning the way things have always been done.

Sustainability becomes more important as our population increases while resources decrease. And a boy who reaches Eagle without skills in cooking and healthy eating habits hasn’t become fully “Prepared. For Life.” in my opinion. I think the BSA’s board got it right on here.

What do you think?

For the list of Eagle-required merit badges as it looks now — and as it will look in 2014 — follow the jump. Continue reading »

BSA to use Scout Oath and Scout Law for all programs

17 October 2012

320 Comments

It’s official: The resolution to move to one Oath and Law for Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, Varsity, Sea Scouts, and Venturing was approved this morning by the Boy Scouts of America’s executive board.

I first told you about the volunteer-led proposal in a blog post in August.

Essentially, this means every Scout of any age will use the Scout Oath and Law instead of reciting separate, program-specific sayings. Cub Scouts will recite the Scout Oath and Law instead of the Cub Scout Promise and Law of the Pack. Similarly, Venturers will no longer use the Venturing Oath and Venturing Code.

Because it will take time to transition into this new approach, the changes are not immediate.

The Venturing change will not happen until late 2013 or early 2014; the Cub Scout change will take effect in mid-2015. Stay tuned to my blog for exact dates as I get them.

Additionally, the newly adopted resolution replaces the full-hand Venturing sign and salute with the three-finger Boy Scout sign and salute.

UPDATE (10/18/12): I confirmed the above sentence today. Venturing will begin to use the Scout sign and Scout salute. This wasn’t mentioned in the resolution because the sign and salute are not specified in the rules and regulations.

For the full resolution and answers to some frequently asked questions, follow the jump: Continue reading »

Bryan on Scouting

The official blog of Scouting magazine, a publication of the Boy Scouts of America.

Category Archives: Boy Scouting