{"id":2738,"date":"2021-03-23T14:56:36","date_gmt":"2021-03-23T18:56:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/?p=2738"},"modified":"2021-03-23T14:56:38","modified_gmt":"2021-03-23T18:56:38","slug":"march-23-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/2021\/03\/march-23-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"MARCH 23, 2021"},"content":{"rendered":"

[NO. 671 \u2013 20TH YEAR OF HELPING SCOUTS, SCOUTERS, & PARENTS]<\/span><\/p>\n

Hi Andy,<\/strong><\/p>\n

A local troop has invited me\u2014their Unit Commissioner\u2014to sit on a board of review for a young man destined to be their newest Eagle Scout. Is there any protocol issue with someone in my position (i.e., UC) to do this? I figure I meet the “fog a mirror” criterion, but is there something else that would prevent me from doing this that I don\u2019t know about. By the way, yes, I\u2019m an Eagle Scout myself (if that makes a difference). (Will Mitchell, Milwaukee Area Council, WI)<\/strong><\/p>\n

I get the humor, but please take the time to 86 that “fog a mirror” reference\u2014it takes a lot more than that to sit on a board of review for Eagle rank. Those who invite you must be assured\u2014whether you’re registered with the BSA or not, or an Eagle Scout or not\u2014that you (1) are age 21 or older (of course you are, or you wouldn\u2019t be a commissioner), (2) understand the significance of the Eagle Scout rank (yes, you are likely to meet this criterion), and (3) understand the purpose and importance of the review (do you?). All of this is quite a bit beyond the “mirror” reference (thank goodness!).<\/p>\n

So yes, definitely do this if you meet all criteria\u2014and I\u2019ll bet you do! But be aware that this may or may not be true of all reviewers, so do you best to make sure this review is for the benefit of this Scout and not for the benefit of any reviewer\u2019s ego. And enjoy it\u2014this is the proverbial \u201ctop of the mountain\u201d!
\n==========
\nHi Andy,<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019m really confused by a new apparent \u201crequirement\u201d (although it says it\u2019s not!) for carrying out service projects of any sort, by any Scout and BSA unit, up to and including the service project requirement for the Eagle Scout rank.<\/strong><\/p>\n

A recent \u201cScouting Wire\u201d broadcast email blast from the national office states: \u201cPrior to any service projects, use the SAFE Service Project Planning Checklist (680-027 2021 Revision) and simplified SAFE Project Tool Use Guidelines.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

The \u201cTool Use Guidelines\u201d text and chart are essentially the same as what you\u2019ll find in the BSA\u2019s GUIDE TO SAFE SCOUTING.<\/strong><\/p>\n

But the \u201cProject Planning Checklist\u201d looks to be brand-new, and it\u2019s weird. It states that it \u201ccan\u201d be used, and the BSA defines the term \u201ccan\u201d as meaning \u201coptional.\u201d It also states that this checklist \u201c\u2026is not an added requirement for an Eagle Scout service project.\u201d Okay so far. But then the form calls the checklist \u201cprotocols,\u201d and this has a very different connotation from \u201coptional.\u201d In fact, the form states: \u201cIf it is not practical to meet these protocols, do not conduct the activity or service project.\u201d That seems like pretty strong language for something that\u2019s \u201coptional.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Further reading doesn\u2019t clear anything up, because there seems to be stuff missing. There\u2019s no place to enter the number or type of unit, or any of the unit leaders, or the planned date(s). More, there\u2019s no indication that this checklist is supposed to be sent to anyone or signed off by anyone.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Also, the document has a check-box for \u201cSupervision\u201d that states: \u201cYouth are supervised by quality and trustworthy adults who set the example for safety.\u201d What? What happened to \u201cTwo-Deep Leadership\u201d and the incumbent qualifications for this?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Unless you can help me by telling me different, I have to assume that\u2014once again\u2014the BSA\u2019s left-hands have no idea what the right-hands have already done. Which, to me, makes this form total baloney\u2014just another piece of meaningless paper that we volunteers are supposed to diddle with, to no real purpose. Please straighten me out and tell me I\u2019m wrong. (Chap Ellhille, SM, Winston-Salem Area Council, NC)<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve found and read both documents, with particular attention to the checklist. In reviewing your observation relative to that form, I can\u2019t find anything you\u2019ve said that\u2019s based on missing or misinterpreting what that form says (and doesn\u2019t say). This means I have no reason to alter anything you\u2019ve pointed out. Yes, it\u2019s indeed a weird form, and it does contain strange instructions and omissions. Not having a direct resource in Irving, Texas, I can\u2019t offer you a path to pursue this further. I think where I net out is that it\u2019s indeed an optional form that you may find useful, but beyond that, I don\u2019t see any sort of \u201cpath\u201d for it to travel except to your troop\u2019s file, perhaps for future reference.<\/p>\n

Stay safe, stay healthy, and stay positive!<\/em><\/strong><\/span>
\nHappy Scouting!<\/em><\/strong><\/span>
\nAndy<\/em><\/strong><\/span>
\nI personally answer every message I receive. There\u2019s no \u201cwriting staff\u201d\u2014just me. When writing, please include your name & council. If you\u2019d rather be anonymous\u2014if published\u2014just tell me and I\u2019ll honor that. Although these columns are copyrighted, you have my okay to quote or reproduce any column or part, so long as it\u2019s attributed: \u201cAsk Andy\u201d by Andy McCommish.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

[No. 670\u2013 3\/16\/2021 \u2013 Copyright \u00a9 2021 Andy McCommish]<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[NO. 671 \u2013 20TH YEAR OF HELPING SCOUTS, SCOUTERS, & PARENTS] Hi Andy, A local troop has invited me\u2014their Unit Commissioner\u2014to sit on a board of review for a young man destined to be their newest Eagle Scout. Is there any protocol issue with someone in my position (i.e., UC) to do this? I figure […]<\/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-2738","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2738","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=2738"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2738\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2742,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2738\/revisions\/2742"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2738"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2738"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/netcommissioner.com\/askandy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2738"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}