{"id":2642,"date":"2020-07-01T14:00:42","date_gmt":"2020-07-01T18:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/?p=2642"},"modified":"2020-07-01T14:00:44","modified_gmt":"2020-07-01T18:00:44","slug":"issue-646-june-30-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/2020\/07\/issue-646-june-30-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"Issue 646 \u2013 June 30, 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"

________________________________________
\nDear Andy,<\/strong><\/p>\n

Unlike other Scouts in his troop, my son (let\u2019s call him \u201cDavid\u201d) decided to complete his Eagle Service Project before taking care of other requirements like merit badges, tenure-in-position, and so forth. His project was a success and his merit badges came along just fine, but tenure-in-position has become a problem and we don\u2019t know where to turn.<\/strong><\/p>\n

David really wanted to complete his tenure-in-position as Senior Patrol Leader and was willing to wait till the next semi-annual election came around, this past January. He was chosen by his fellow Scouts to be their next SPL and his term started on February 1st. Okay so far, but when he spoke with his Scoutmaster the other day (they did their conference on “Zoom”), David was told that, because of the coronavirus shut-down on March 11th, he really hasn\u2019t performed any of his responsibilities as Senior Patrol Leader since then. Effectively, his Scoutmaster told him, David has been credited with only a little more than a month of service as SPL; David will need almost five months more and who knows when that will start, so, for him, Eagle is on hold. What I\u2019m worried about is that, if this \u201chold\u201d continues in place for significant time, David\u2019s Eagle will have flown out the window when he hits his 18th birthday.<\/strong><\/p>\n

To me\u2014I\u2019m an Eagle Scout and was both a Patrol Leader and Senior Patrol Leader\u2014this isn\u2019t right. I remember that my own troop went \u201cdark\u201d over the summer months, except for a week at camp, but all Scouts who held or were elected to positions prior to that got \u201ccredit\u201d for July and August, just like they would for any lengthy holiday or school break. I\u2019ve already had a quiet conversation with David\u2019s Scoutmaster, but the gentleman is intransigent on this subject. And we\u2019re not just talking about my own son! To be \u201cfair to all,\u201d every other Scout in the troop who holds a position of responsibility\u2014Quartermaster, Patrol Leaders, Troop Guides, even the Bugler\u2014has had their \u201ctenure in position\u201d put on hold, effective March 11th till the troop becomes \u201cactive\u201d in-person again. This approach to boys\u2019 ambitions in circumstances completely beyond their control is, to me, untenable. Is there anything I can do to set this right for every Scout in the troop? I assure you, Scouting taught me to stand straight when I know a wrong must be righted. (Scout Father [with a spine])<\/strong><\/p>\n

Thanks for writing, and for providing details I can work with. Yes, you\u2019re right. Yes, there\u2019s something worth doing that shouldn\u2019t lead to floundering in a quagmire of conflicting opinions and viewpoints. Here\u2019s what to do\u2026<\/p>\n

Go online and grab onto the BSA\u2019s GUIDE TO ADVANCEMENT-2019. There are two URLs you can use: https:\/\/www.scouting.org\/resources\/guide-to-advancement\/ or https:\/\/filestore.scouting.org\/filestore\/pdf\/33088.pdf. Once there, go to page 23. There\u2019s a bordered \u201ccopy block\u201d on the top-left. Here\u2019s the key part of the statement there: \u201c\u2026if a unit takes time off it must count that time toward the Scout\u2019s active participation requirement. The Scout must not be penalized because the unit has chosen not to meet or conduct other activities for a period of time.\u201d<\/p>\n

This language exists mostly because many troops go \u201cdark\u201d for the summer months, usually with the exception of summer camp. The BSA absolutely doesn\u2019t want our adult volunteers creating their own \u201crules\u201d that will do nothing but screw up the Scouts they\u2019re supposed to be serving and supporting. This is one of those times, and this statement is the one that\u2019s needed so that this Scoutmaster doesn\u2019t ruin things for the Scouts in this troop.<\/p>\n

Print out that page, use a neon marker to highlight the statements I quoted, and sit down with this guy over a cup of coffee. Show it to him, tell him what David told you he said, and ask him if he\u2019s ever seen this. When he says no, ask him how he\u2019s going to let the Scouts know that all of their positions will be counted, and\u2014here\u2019s the kicker\u2014how you can help him set this straight.<\/p>\n

If you don\u2019t get an immediate, positive response, plan to make your next stop the troop\u2019s Committee Chair (yes, the Scoutmaster reports to the CC), and repeat the conversation and your offer, with a mention that the Scoutmaster will have to be told he\u2019s got it wrong.<\/p>\n

If you don\u2019t get action, you have two options. They are\u2026<\/p>\n

Take this directly to the Chair of your council\u2019s Advancement Committee, describe what you\u2019ve told me, and tell him or her that this need a fix\u2014council-wide.<\/p>\n

If this still doesn\u2019t work, you and David need to find a new troop. Let me know, and we\u2019ll work out how best to do that. Go for it, Brother Eagle!
\n==========
\nHi Andy,<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cNo troop meeting tonight\u201d was the message a Scoutmaster friend of mine just sent out (it\u2019s about 4 o\u2019clock on a Thursday afternoon). He followed his headline with his reason for this abrupt notice: He has a late-afternoon business meeting today that will run into dinner and beyond, so he doesn\u2019t have time to set up the”Zoom” meeting or be there for it.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Although we\u2019re both Scouters, I called him more as a neighbor and friend, to find out a little more.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yes, the troop has a Webmaster; in fact, it\u2019s this Scout who showed my friend how to set up and run Zoom meetings. The troop also has a pretty sharp 16-year-old Senior Patrol Leader and a 17-year-old Junior Assistant Scoutmaster, both of whom know how to run troop meetings (the JASM was SPL before the current Scout). I know all three of these Scouts through our church, the troop\u2019s sponsor, and they\u2019re all intelligent, responsible, and quick-thinking young men, so I was shocked when my friend told me he called off the meeting because\u2014yup, he actually said this\u2014he doesn\u2019t trust the Scouts to run a decent meeting. \u201cBesides,\u201d he told me, \u201cI\u2019m the only one who has the agenda, and I don\u2019t have time to go over it with any of the other troop leaders\u201d (by \u201ctroop leaders,\u201d he meant adults; not Scouts).<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019m aghast. But I\u2019m not their Unit Commissioner and I\u2019m not on the District Training Team. I really have no authority to set my friend straight and tell him flat-out that he\u2019s got to start delegating.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019m not sure where to turn, and the clock\u2019s ticking\u2026 What, if anything, can I do? (Crusty Old Scouter Who Still Remembers the Basics, Mountain Aire Council, MT)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Well, COSWSRtB, today you can\u2019t do anything. This misguided Scoutmaster has mucked things up enough for today.<\/p>\n

Tomorrow or so, sit down over a cup of coffee (with facemasks, of course) and have a chat with your friend (out of uniform\u2014you don\u2019t need \u201cauthority\u201d to help a friend and besides, Scouting isn\u2019t about authority anyway!). If he\u2019s new in the Scoutmaster slot\u2014which I\u2019m betting\u2014it\u2019s pretty likely he hasn\u2019t been trained for the job. If the troop has a decent Unit Commissioner, that\u2019s probably the best person to get on-the-job training from, so see if your friend knows about the UC function in a district and then help connect these two. If not the UC, there\u2019s probably someone on the district training team just itching to help someone get their training! Find this person and help your friend make that connection. Or, of course, you could probably do part of this yourself, if you wanted to.<\/p>\n

He also needs to get himself the three-volume set of TROOP LEADER GUIDEs. You, using your set (you have one, right?) can focus on specifically selected sections of the TLG to “coach” your friend to success!<\/p>\n

The key thing he’s way off on is that he doesn\u2019t yet get it that THE SCOUTS ALWAYS COME FIRST. Scouts should ALWAYS be running their own troop meetings and patrol meetings\u2014how else do they put what their Scoutmaster teaches them to good use, for goodness sakes! So if he can\u2019t be there, no big deal! Just get another adult volunteer (an ASM is, of course, the perfect candidate for this!) to deliver the \u201cScoutmaster\u2019s Minute\u201d at the end of the meeting and he\u2019s all set!<\/p>\n

Which leads to this next point: Does he know that, as Scoutmaster, his one and only speaking moment in the entire meeting is the Scoutmaster\u2019s Minute? (And it better last 60 seconds!)<\/p>\n

That\u2019s right\u2014He needs to get it firmly in his head and heart that the leader of all troop meetings is the highest-ranking youth leader in the troop: The SENIOR PATROL LEADER. (In other words, if he took on the Scoutmaster\u2019s role with the vision that he\u2019ll be in charge and \u201cmaster\u201d of a bunch o\u2019 kids in tan shirts, he\u2019s got it all wrong and he\u2019ll have a miserable experience\u2014to say nothing of the Scouts!)<\/p>\n

Some aids and think-pieces that may help you coach him include the Troop Meeting Plan (an online search will take you to it), the BSA TROOP LEADER GUIDEs I recommended, and several of my prior columns, starting here: Why Young Americans Need Scouting @ http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/2016\/02\/issue-475-february-23-2016\/<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Troops ultimately die when<\/span> the adult volunteers put their own convenience before the Scouts. But the Scoutmaster is key \u2013 When he or she gets it right, everything works for the Scouts, and that\u2019s the way it\u2019s supposed to work!<\/p>\n

Stay safe, stay healthy, and stay positive!<\/strong><\/em><\/span>
\nHappy Scouting!<\/strong><\/em><\/span>
\nAndy<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

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\u2019d prefer to be anonymous, if published, let me know and that\u2019s what we\u2019ll do.)<\/strong><\/p>\n

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: \u201cAsk Andy\u201d by Andy McCommish.<\/strong><\/p>\n

[No. 646 \u2013 6\/30\/2020 \u2013 Copyright \u00a9 Andy McCommish 2020]<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

________________________________________ Dear Andy, Unlike other Scouts in his troop, my son (let\u2019s call him \u201cDavid\u201d) decided to complete his Eagle Service Project before taking care of other requirements like merit badges, tenure-in-position, and so forth. His project was a success and his merit badges came along just fine, but tenure-in-position has become a problem and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2642","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2642","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2642"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2642\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2645,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2642\/revisions\/2645"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2642"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2642"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2642"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}