Why isn't your boy in Scouts?

[Scout Enthusiast]

If you are the parent of a Scout-age boy that is not a Scout, please share with us the reason he dropped out or never joined.

[pal56]

My 9 year old son is not a scout. i live in Westchester County, NY near New York City. In our town there is greater emphasis on sports activites beginning with soccer and swimming at age 5 and baseball, hockey and basketball soon thereafter, than on scouting. He often is busy 3 or 4 days a week with games and practices, which leaves less time for scouts.

[melvillard]

My son was active in Scouts through elementary school, but his dad was a little intimidated with the increasing commitment in the next level of Scouting. None of my son's friends stayed with Scouts either, which had a big influence on him. Competing priorities (sports, for example) was a major factor, and the Scouts didn't recruit or market my son or us like his lacrosse and basketball teams did. Right now, you can't drive down the main roads in our area without seeing banners and signs for the upcoming sports registrations.

[Will's_mom]

I took my 6 year-old son to a Boy Scouting Sign-Up meeting at his school in the fall, with all intentions of signing him up. I have always thought that Boy Scouting would be good for my son. Unfortunately, the leaders that sold the scouts to the group were so boring and dull, that I couldn't see how my son would be able to stay awake in the meetings. They were not energetic, not personable, and just plain not cool. It was like they were still stuck in the 70s. Needless to say, we did not join, nor do we have any intention of joining in the future.

[eaglescoutmccarthy]

Parents need to do some homework when getting there son involved with a troop or pack. Just like joining sports not every team is winner and coaches lead their teams in different ways. Visit a number of troops or packs, meet the leaders, who is their charter organization, who long have they been a troop or pack. How long have the leaders been leading. What is their advancement program like and what's the turnover of boys in the program.
If your plans are to become an Eagle scout or just to have fun; one group may fit you personality and another may not. This is a group of men and boys you are going to be with and influenced by for the next 3-5 years...take your time and choose wisely. Like a good shoe make sure it fits you; that it is comfortable and can give you good wear and tear!
Will these boys become your good freinds in time!

[Scout Enthusiast]

Parents need to do some homework when getting there son involved with a troop or pack.

Do parents know this? Do they know that they can shop troops and packs? Is this advice included in BSA material targeted at Scout prospects and their parents? Should it be?

[foolash4BSA]

I don't think the organization of BSA is as obvious to outsiders as those of us "inside" BSA assume. After several years as Cubmaster, one of my "veteran" Cub parents admitted she just realized I was not a paid BSA employee! And the idea of "shopping" for a troop or pack is sort of a secret, I think, even to Webelos parents who have a book telling them to do this as part of the Arrow of Light.

[Mungo from the Shire]

All Webelos should (imho) visit as many different Troops as possible. Every kid is different. My son visited a lot of different Troops and finally settled on one with a lot of fellow Star Wars buffs in it. He was, and still is very happy with his decision. He went his seperate ways from most of his Webelos buddies, but made new friends instantly.

[Clifford]

When going from Cub Scouts to Boy Scouts, Arrow of Light candidates (Cub Scouts) are encouraged to visit several troops. I'm not sure how BSA encourages boys have not been previously Cub Scouts to be Boy Scouts.

However, the National organization does everything it can to give the appearance that all Cub Scouts packs are equal. The recruiting drives are set up such that a Cub Scout pack cannot advertise to the community at large their vision of what a program can be because they are not allowed to actively recruit outside of their sponsoring organization. When parents find out what we have to offer, the whole family energetically comes on board. Unfortuately, we can't effectively or efficiently advertise what we do because it violates BSA policies. As a result, we're facing shutting down our pack because the BSA politicians have decided the only way for us to recruit is by inviting friends and family--very difficult to do. If we could advertise in our local newspaper in August, I would never have a problem having passionate, excited Cub Scouts who will become the future leaders of this country!

[Scout Enthusiast]

Is there anything keeping a pack or troop from posting yard signs that advertise recruiting meetings, much the same as community soccer leagues do?

[Nuts4Scouts]

The recruiting drives are set up such that a Cub Scout pack cannot advertise to the community at large their vision of what a program can be because they are not allowed to actively recruit outside of their sponsoring organization. .... Unfortuately, we can't effectively or efficiently advertise what we do because it violates BSA policies. .... If we could advertise in our local newspaper in August, I would never have a problem having passionate, excited Cub Scouts who will become the future leaders of this country!


YUH :confused: Please quote the National BSA source where this "policy" is written. You might find, if you do a little research, that there is no such National policy. It might be something from your local council, but even so, I really do not see how they can enforce it.

We have invited local politicians & papers to Pack events. We have been written up in our local paper numerous times. Once we even had a picture of our Mayor running a car in our PWD!

[scoutdad]

I am not aware of any policy prohibiting such advertising. The only restrictions I am aware of are branding restrictions with other corporate logos.
Clifford, YOU CAN advertise in your local newspaper in august. BSA has a ton of marketing materials to help you.
Try this link on for size:
http://www.marketing.scouting.org/

[cmhay]

I don't think the organization of BSA is as obvious to outsiders as those of us "inside" BSA assume. After several years as Cubmaster, one of my "veteran" Cub parents admitted she just realized I was not a paid BSA employee! And the idea of "shopping" for a troop or pack is sort of a secret, I think, even to Webelos parents who have a book telling them to do this as part of the Arrow of Light.

I never had a clue that you could choose a pack or troop!! And my oldest has been in Scouts for 6 years (and my younger one for4)! Around here, we're given the impression that you sign up for Cub Scouts and are assigned to the pack based on which elementary school you attend (unless you choose the Jewish one that meets at the local Jewish Center), and then you progress up to the Boy Scout Troop that is associated with that pack. It never occurred to me that it could be any different. Of course, hubby went to sign the boys up, so maybe there was something there that I'd missed, but I'd just gone on assuming......

[CubmasterJohn]

I liked the way our District (Flint River Council) did the fall roundup this year. They set up two signup locations over a three day period. The week prior, all schools were given flyers listing the schools suggesting that if their school fell under the East side then they should go to the "A" signup location, and West side goes to "B". And at each location all the Packs within their designated sides had recruitment tables set up showing their program and achievements, schedules, etc. Parents and prospective scouts come in, checks everyone out, and decides which Pack most met their needs. Most of course chose the school or church they were in because of home location and friends but they definetely had their choice.

[Nuts4Scouts]

My Council does not do district wide recruiting. We have tried with Tigers & we never really got much in the way of a turnout. The units do their own recruiting with their own round-ups. Council provides lots of materials & will do boy talks in the local schools.

We do not advertise the other Packs at our recruiting. We assume that if they are coming to our round-up they are interested in our Pack. If, in the course of our conversation, it appears that they might have some issues, I will let them know to call Council to get the contact info for the other Packs in our area.

We just did our round-up last night. I signed up 7 Tigers and 1 Bear. I was a little disappointed about no Wolf boys, but it is still the first week of classes & a holiday weekend to boot. We will be doing other things later in the month.

I am VERY excited about my Tigers though :D ! With the 7 from last night, 2 who signed in June, 2 sibs of Pack members who have not signed up yet, and another 2 who called our CM, but did not come last night, we have 9 registered Tigers with a possible 13!! That is a GREAT deal better than last year's 4 (why I was disappointed by the Wolf turnout last night).

[bsaWalter]

Unfortuately, we can't effectively or efficiently advertise what we do because it violates BSA policies.

Really?

Are you sure is national BSA policy and not just local Council policy?

I ask that because we don't seem to have that restriction here.

Walter

[Scouting Mom]

I never had a clue that you could choose a pack or troop!! And my oldest has been in Scouts for 6 years (and my younger one for4)! Around here, we're given the impression that you sign up for Cub Scouts and are assigned to the pack based on which elementary school you attend (unless you choose the Jewish one that meets at the local Jewish Center), and then you progress up to the Boy Scout Troop that is associated with that pack. It never occurred to me that it could be any different. Of course, hubby went to sign the boys up, so maybe there was something there that I'd missed, but I'd just gone on assuming......I also had that impression in the begining, that it was based on what school the kids were in, but discovered soon after my son joined that that wasn't the case. Our district assigned different packs to cover different schools, so that 1. all the schools were covered and 2. there wasn't competitive recruiting going on. I acually found the pack by contacting the council and asking for one and the DE told me which pack was closest and gave me a contact name. All of that lead to the idea that this was the only pack available, but I soon found out that some families had moved into a different school district and stayed with the pack. I also discovered that a few years ago, the leadership of our pack had a falling out and some families left as a result. Some of them went to other packs, including the older brother of a boy in my son's class. The younger brother join that other pack too. It only makes sense that if a pack were inconvienant for some reason, say which day of the week they meet, or maybe seperated parents living in two different places, the parents can choose what is better for them and their child, why not choose based on personalities too?

As far as advertising goes... Our pack has signs up in the schools our district assigned us, plus the public library near us and I think at the Post Office. But, this past May, the district also held recuiting events (mostly geared toward incoming Tigers) in a couple of locations for all the packs to participate in. Parents were mostly pointed to the pack closest to them, but then that's where they will look first anyway. We also set up a table outside the school during daytime open houses held before school starts.

If we were limited to recruiting from our CO, we'd be in sad shape since the organization consists mostly of single men, most of whom don't even realize that the CO sponsors a pack.

[Wee Dai]

No nothing at all, in fact your DE should have some signs that you can put out, rather like election signs, to alert local parents and boys to your unit.

Wee Dai

[Scoutmaster79]

Many parents are under the misguided assumption that if their child is involved in Sports they do not have time for Scouts. Nothing is further from the truth. I am Scoutmaster of a Troop of 40+ Boys, over 75% of which also participate in athletic programs. Many of my Older Scouts are Varsity Footbal and Lacrosse Players for some pretty prestigious High School Programs. For many, the leadership they have learned in Scouting has translated to them being leaders in their athletic programs as well as their schools. It needs to be pointed out that Scouting provides something sports does not - leadership, citizenship and moral character. Sports are great for a youth, as a youth I was in Scouting, Lettered in two Sports in High School, and did a variety of other extra curricular activities. What some of these parents miss is by allowing thier sons to participate only in sports, sometimes two and three different ones at once, they are making their children very one-dimensional. Allowing is also a key phrase here, as parents we need to be the ones who set our childrens priorities when they are young, not them. In addition to being an Eagle, a Scoutmaster, and a father of five (all of whom are either in, or were in both Boy and Girl Scouts) I also coached Little League Baseball, and currently Coach one of my sons USA Competitive Swimming Team. The key to any good program, sports or scouting is parental involvement - If the parents who found that Pack boring had taken the initative to join as adult leaders and make it more exciting, both their son and numerous other boys would have reaped the benefits. While Scouting Professionals handle the administrative duties at a Council level, it is the VOLUNTEER adult leaders who run the program at the unit level. If you want your son to have a great scouting experience, then pitch in and help make it one. The memories and shared experiences you will have with your son will be something that they will remember for the rest of their life, the times I went camping or boating, or hiked the Applelacian Trail, or went to the National Jamboree, visited the Gettysburg Battlefield with my Dad or Mom - long after hitting a home run as a 10 year old in a Little league game has completely faded away. Here are some interesting Boy Scout Facts
Boy Scout Alumni are:

•71% of football captains
•65% of basketball captains
•85% of student council presidents
•88% of school newspaper editors
•77% of editors of school annuals
•75% of business managers of school publications
•80% of junior class presidents
•89% of senior class presidents
•65% of college graduates
•72% of Rhodes Scholars
•75% of Military Academy graduates
•65% of the Members of the U.S. Congress
•85% of airline pilots
•85% of FBI agents
•26 of the first 29 astronauts were Boy Scouts
•11 of the 12 astronauts who walked on the moon were Boy Scouts
•Over half of the 108 Scout astronauts attained Star, Life, or Eagle ranks

For every 100 young men who join the Boy Scouts:

•12 will have their first contact with a church
•5 will earn their religious emblem
•2 will enter the clergy
•1 will use Scout skills to save a life
•1 will use Scout skills to save his own life
•2 will become Eagle Scouts
•18 will enter professions first learned through the Merit Badge system
•17 will become Scouting volunteers and pass their skills, inspiration, and leadership along to countless youths
•28 will develop hobbies started in Scouting that will give them lifelong interests
•And . . . Only rarely will one appear in a criminal or juvenile court!
•And yet, amazingly Scouting reaches only 25 percent of the youth in the country!

Boy Scouts is an outdoor program designed to develop character, citizenship, and fitness for boys ages 11 through 17. Through the advancement program and peer group leadership, Scouting helps a boy develop into a well-rounded young man. The Eagle Scout Award, the highest rank in Scouting, is recognized around the world as a mark of excellence.

- some interesting statistics to note - especially note the first two bullets under Scout Alumni are for thse parents who say their sons are only interested in sports.

[Scoutmaster79]

Really?

Are you sure is national BSA policy and not just local Council policy?

I ask that because we don't seem to have that restriction here.

Walter

Walter

Well said. Seems like a lot of excuses from Parents who just don't want to get involved - what they are missing is the experiences that they will share with their sons that will last a lifetime.

YIS

Keith:)

A Fellow Buffalo NEII-118
Staffer NEII-158
WWW Munsi 444 and now Nacha Nimat 86
Scoutmaster Troop 79
Committee Chair Pack 79
Rockland District Boy Scout Activities Chair
Eagle Scout 1980

[ScoutmasterJerry]

Where are you that Cub Packs/Scout Troops can not advertise.
Schools.. supermakets.. Pizza places... Word of Mouth... Church Bulletins...
and the list goes on and on..
I think that lazy leaders hurt the Scouting program.
Scouting materials are meant to be generic so the individual units can use them to meet their recruiting needs.
But ads.. you need to get creative and think outside the box.
I have read these threads.. and it saddens me to see that people are turned away from Scouting by dull leaders and made to feel like an outsider.
This is a unit leaders problem and not the BSA's.
When my oldest son earned his Arrow of light, we looked at 3 or 5 Troops. We could not find one that we really loved. Narrowed it down to 1 Troop, and then decided to start our own Troop... it was a great way to get what we wanted out of a Traditional Scouting program.

Just a couple thoughts.

[hatboro89]

My 12 yr old was a cub scout and earned his AOL. When we went to join a troop we looked into two different troops but because neither one of them was a good fit for him and he has Aspergers Syndrome we are currently not involved. He has expressed interest in getting back into it but we are not sure how to do that since he does not want to join a troop. Do we start our own special needs troop or register him as a lone scouter??

hatboro

[scoutdad]

I am sorry to hear that. I would encourage to talk to your Council HQ and see if there is a special needs troop. If not, starting one will not only help your son, but other families as well. If that is still not an option, a Lone Scout, will at least give you and your son hours of Scouting Fun! Please keep us all informed!

[ScoutmasterJerry]

My 12 yr old was a cub scout and earned his AOL. When we went to join a troop we looked into two different troops but because neither one of them was a good fit for him and he has Aspergers Syndrome we are currently not involved.
hatboro

I have two Scouts in my troop with Autism, one hase Aspergers... they do extremely well in the Troop, especially once they get in with their Patrols and start having fun. We treat them like any other Scout... make no special adjustments other than their parents monitor the activites (from a distants).

I have watched them grow and develop and they do fine.

I would get your son involved.. he has so much to gain..and nothing to loose...And neither do you.

On another note: When we went looking for a Troop for my oldest son, we could not find any that we liked. So 4 other parents and I got together and started our own Troop. It can be done, you just have to want it, and want what is best for your Son (s)..
We started the Troop with 5 boys 4 years ago, we now have 27 and we are extremely strong and Very active.

Explore all your options before you leave the program.

Jerry
Scoutmaster
Troop 664

[CommissionerTim]

Troop 33 in the Columbia-Montour Council Pennsylvania just a couple years ago gave the Eagle Rank to a young man who has autism... his parents are also very envolved in the troop.

The council's website is www.columbiamontourbsa.org (http://www.columbiamontourbsa.org) you can contact them to get in touch with this family.

I was also a leader of this troop before my brother-in-law and I started our own troop at our church.

Call them!!!

[Westergaard]

There is nothing that keeps a unit from posting yard signs to advertise the recruiting of new scouts and scouters for the program except the units' willingness or unwillingness to do so.
Recruiting of new members should be 365 day event rather than a once a year event.
The only issue is that the yard signs should look like professionally printed signs as opposed to a typical "garage sale sign".
One of the best ways to promote recruiting is to review how leadership talks about the next level of scouting. Don't use the phase "if you go into ..." but use, "When you go into..." can and will make all the difference.
Getting the existing scouts to stay excited by the program is another way for them to promote Scouting with their peers. If they talk about the things that they're excited about, then their friends might get excited about joining in such activities.
Leadership needs to also recognize that there are other things for boys and girls to do besides scouting and they need to promote that they can do both scouting and sports, or any other activity.
Scouting isn't an all or nothing principle but it is for life and experiencing life.