Our troop is to big - How to split it ?

[Scouting_Dad]

Hi all,
We have a very large troop with over 70 Scouts!
Our troop meeting attendance varies but usually we have more than half of them attending each weekly meeting.
Space is limited so needless to say the troop meetings are total chaos.
Many of the older scouts simply no longer wish to attend the troop meetings anymore and only show up for achievement sign offs ; when an interesting outing that they wish to attend is being planned ; or when they are coerced to attend from their parents ect. and many have simply left the program as well.
Our council has long suggested that we split the troop into 2 or more units but these recommendations have never been implemented and have been opposed to by a majority of the leaders. I think the majority view does not want to deal with the splitting up of all the troop assets.
Overall the Scouting program in our community is a good one with allot of parental support. However, I can see the frustration in the eyes of the scouts as well as the parents at the troop meetings and Couple that with vandalism and abuse of our sponsor’s facilities leads me to believe that this is all bubbling up to a very ugly head!
Has anyone been involved in a successful Split of a large troop into 2 or smaller ones? How is the split of the troop resources handled? Is there anyone from council who can help spearhead this initiative?
Thank you for your response.

[1st Mate]

Congratulations on having a program that attracts and retains such a large number of scouts. I deally, says the BSa, the best size for a troop is between 35 and 60. You are seeing one of the problems of being at the upper end of the scale.

I can suggest two management changes for you to consider that would help.

One is to begin controling your unit size by balancing the new members you accept to the numbers that age out or quit, so that you can maintain a number suitable for the space and resources you have for the unit.

Secondly I would look at following the recommended patrol structure of having Scouts under First Class in New Scout Patrols, Then scouts First Class to 14 in Regular Patrols, Then 14 to 18 in Venture Patrols. Then you can have the groups meet on different nights to lesson the stress on the meetihng place.

By having three distinct programs you can better serve the changing skills and social needs of the various groups at various stage of development. You could have the Assistant Scoutmasters for NSP and Venturing present for the respective NSP and the Venture Patrols troop meetings, and the Scoutmaster be on hand for the Regular Patrols troop meetings.

The SPL and ASPLs may want need to be at both the Venturing and the Regular troop patrol troop meetings to lead them, And the Troop guides would need to be at both the NSP and the Venture Patrol meetings.

All the patrols would keep in contact through the monthly PLC meetings.

This could be temporay until you manage the troop down to a size that can allow every one to share a meeting night, or you might decide to keep it longer if it woks out for you.

Since the programs for New Scout Patrol and for the Venture Patrol should be considerably different from each other, and from the program of the Regular patrols, this process should actually work very well for you.

(i know that there are professional scouters who read this and may not like what i am going to say, so I am whisping this....it is not the job of the local professional staff to decide how large units should become or to divide units. your unit belongs to your charter organization and they can develop as many scouting programs and grow them as big as they want them to be.

if the local professional wants another unit they should follow the proper steps. find a charter organization, find a NEW youth base looking for scouting and then help the new charter organization to recruit the youth and select leaders.

they would never say "hmm the Presbyterian church doesn't have a choir and the Catholic church just down the street has a huge one, lets get half the choir to go to another church".

that is the same thing as splitting units and giving the youth and adults of one CO to another. it may make the professional's life easier by quickly adding another unit to the tally, but that is not the structure of the program or the charter organizations obligation to break THEIR scouting program.

[cubbobwhite]

If your older boys are not showing up much they are probably needing more of a challenge and don't like just being the youth leadership for the younger scouts.

Has any thought been given to creating a Venturing Crew?

[WB Bear]

If your Troop so large, you must be doing something right. We have several Troops in our Council from 75 to about 150 boys. The largest one with about 150 registered only has about 100 at each meeting. I have visited their meetings and was pleasantly surprised how effectively they were run.

What is a must to make that happen is following BSA’s structure of leadership, from the APL to the SP, Troop Guides and also the other Troop leadership positions. It also calls for active ASM’s. There are also many adults on the Committee. The Troop also uses the new scout patrols and also a Venturing Crew. Their Venturing Crew is a high adventure Crew and is active.

I guess what I am trying to say is that the program will work no matter what the size is. As far as the chaotic meetings, the biggest reason I have seen, whether in a large or small unit, is the lack of a plan for the meeting.

The size of your meeting place in another issue. The large Troop we have here meets at a church where they are able to break out during the meeting to other rooms after the opening and Troop business takes place and return for the closing and SM minute. I don’t know if that would be available at your meeting place.

I am not in favor of splitting units, I just don’t believe that is the answer. I believe making the system work, which it does, in the way to go. But if you must, it becomes difficult to decide which boys to move. What about the equipment? That belongs to the CO of the other Troop so you will have to purchase all new equipment. As 1st Mate stated it is not the professionals place to split a unit. The do need to form new units each year but that isn’t they way it should be done.

[1st Mate]

Just for clarification, Troops do not use Venturing Crews, they use Venture Patrols.

Venturing Crews are independently chartered units separate from Troops.

[cubbobwhite]

A Venturing Crew is what I meant. The Troop's Charter Partner could also charter a Crew.

[Apache Bob]

Scouting Dad - has anything happen with your Troop?
Did you split? Are you together and have worked some of the problems out?