Issue 629 – February 18, 2020

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Hi Andy,

I saw that stuff last week about that district that was insisting on holding their own boards of review for Star and Life ranks. Boy, they must have a whole lot of volunteers sitting around twiddling their thumbs for them to have enough time for such a non-essential (and completely “illegal”) job! Maybe they can send a few our way—we’ll make sure they have meaningful jobs that are actually BSA-approved!

Seriously though, since no district really has any say in a troop’s board of review, I’m thinking that the troops in that district should just do their own reviews and then just turn in their advancement reports to their council’s service center, regardless of what their district says. After all, the district can’t deny any Scout a rank or even bring it up at a Scout’s Eagle board of review (if they really wanted to be that petty)—all a Scout needs to do is pull out his or her handbook with the signatures for all the boards of review completed! And let’s remember that BSA requirements say nothing—absolutely nothing—about district reviews for ranks like these. The coolest part of this nonsense is that troops don’t even need to involve the district at all! (Joe Sefcik, SM, Connecticut Rivers Council)

Bingo! And thanks for taking the time to write.
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Dear Andy,

Our daughter wants to join a Scouts BSA troop. But her father and I have a question we’re not getting an answer to. Our daughter has significant food allergies, especially to gluten. We’ve asked the troop leaders how they’re going to handle this to keep our daughter safe, but they keep telling us it’s not their responsibility. We feel that if they’re going to take our daughter camping away from medical facilities, they should be sensitive to her dietary restrictions and medical needs. But their resistance to our concerns is getting to be a “deal-breaker” because we don’t want them to endanger our daughter. Is there any authority that will tell them they have to take some responsibility here? Thank you. (Concerned Parents)

I do understand your concerns about what your soon-to-be-Scout daughter is going to be eating while on patrol and troop hikes and campouts. (I remember when one of my own sons was highly allergic to bee stings and how that problem was managed.)

So here’s the thing for you, as her parents, to remember: The adult volunteers for your daughter’s troop are just that—they’re volunteers. They’re not professional dieticians or medical providers. They’re regular folks just like you. Consequently, it’ll be up to you, as her highly knowledgeable parents, to make sure she brings the foods she needs with her on every outing. Yes, she can still share mealtimes with her patrol, as she should; she’ll just be eating foods that will give her no problems. And when it’s her turn to do the cooking for her patrol, she’ll need to be sure not to do any “test-tasting” of what she’s preparing. This is all part of the learning experience of taking care of herself as well as others, and in no way should prevent her from having a wonderful time in Scouting!
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(Note to Readers: I originally received this letter in mid-September)

Hi Andy,

I’m a brand new Cubmaster and I need some guidance. Our new year has started off with unexpected growth. We have three nicely sized dens plus three more dens that, in my opinion, are way too big should each be broken into two dens, for a grand total of nine sanely sized dens instead of what we have right now. It’s still early in the Scouting year, so the Cubs in the dens haven’t had gobs of time to really bond, so there should be some flexibility for changing. But I’m anticipating some blow-back along the lines of Why are you forcing us to split into two? The Den Leader says she can handle all the Cubs so why don’t you just let her do what she wants to do? Why can’t we stay the size we are and just refuse to take any more members? Can we stay this big if we have Den Co-Leaders? And so on…

How do we handle questions like these and the “logistics” that go with them? Which brings up the question of what size a den is supposed to be.

I’m going to be taking training, but that course is weeks away and I need to resolve this now rather than later. Can you help? (Paul, CM)

Yes, I can help, and I believe have the “creds” to give you some serious answers here. I’ve been a pack committee chair, a Cubmaster, a Den Leader, and a Webelos Den Leader, and I’ve also served as commissioner for three highly successful packs.

Let’s get one easy one out of the way: There’s no such thing as a “co-leader” anywhere in Scouting. There’s a Den Leader and an Assistant Den Leader, period. To borrow from aviation, the “copilot” is the ASSISTANT pilot (now called First Officer)—aircraft have only ONE PILOT. Same thing with ships: ONE CAPTAIN. Same thing with Cub Scout packs: ONE CUBMASTER and ONE COMMITTEE CHAIR. And for dens: ONE DEN LEADER.

As for den size, the BSA informs us that dens of eight are the ideal maximum. In my own personal experiences, eight is fine but dens of six are even better! That’s because six allows for some growth, like when a friend or two of the current Cubs want to join up along the way, and you wind up with eight in the den. Six is a near-perfect number for outings (three “buddy-pairs”), and for handling advancement activities in den meetings.

I have to tell you that, unfortunately, I’ve had lots of experience with Den Leaders who get off on having “super-dens” of ten, twelve, and even more—and they all invariably fail. First, when one or two don’t show up the Den Leader is actually thankful, so attendance starts dropping off. Second, a group of a dozen or more boys will automatically divide themselves into at least two smaller groups anyway. What typically happens is that a beginning den of a dozen (or thereabouts) Wolf Cubs dwindles over the next several years (boys can’t get the personal attention they need and any “troubled” or “shy” ones drop out or get lost in the shuffle anyway), and that den is lucky if it graduates the three or four who’ve actually stuck it out to the point of joining a Scout troop.

The key is to “force” no one! Simply ask the Cubs themselves to form groups of between 5 and 7, by age/grade, with no one left out. They can do this pretty much by themselves, with a bit of oversight (mostly to keep parents from getting in the way), and sometimes guiding—but with a feather, not a baseball bat!

As for “closing” dens to new members, that’s just not part of the objectives of Scouting. We’re here to be INclusive, not EXclusive. That’s why a den of six is a very nice number…and even five can work well! At five or six, the “bonding” is a thing of beauty! Double that number and instead of bonding it becomes an exercise in greased pig wrangling.

You, as Cubmaster, and your committee chair, need to be united on this: You’ll need the Buddy System yourselves to deal with the renegades that want to form “mini-packs” inside the pack itself! Support one another, don’t cave in, and never make exceptions! But do this all with smiles—all the time!
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Hi Andy,

Several of us, who are involved in Scoutmaster-specific training, have become aware of some sort of process that a Scoutmaster needs to go through, that involves paperwork to be submitted for a special needs Scout so that the age limit of 18 can be set aside because of a mental or physical challenge. Can you direct me to a website where this is described, showing copies of the paperwork or forms that must be followed? (H.L. Johnson)

An excellent resource on this subject is in Topic 10—”Advancement for Members With Special Needs”—in BSA’s GUIDE TO ADVANCEMENT. Within this, Topic 10.2.2.4—“Approval for Special Needs Eagle Candidates Over Age 18”—is likely exactly what you’re looking for. Also, the Appendix section 11.4.0.0 shows the precise information needed for this, and the complete form is available for downloading at scouting.org/advancement.

Happy Scouting!

Andy

Have a question? Facing a dilemma? Wondering where to find a BSA policy or guideline? Write to askandybsa@yahoo.com. Please include your name and council. (If you’d prefer to be anonymous, if published, let me know and that’s what we’ll do.)

Although these columns are copyrighted, any reader has my permission to quote or reproduce any columns or column parts so long as you attribute authorship: “Ask Andy” by Andy McCommish.

[No. 629 – 2/18/2020 – Copyright © Andy McCommish 2020]