CM/SC/CC Positions

[Lynda J]

Am working with a unit currently that is in trouble. THe CM/CC was a husband/wife team. They did a wonderful job but the husband has been transferred out of state. They were the core of the leadership for the unit. I see this a lot of the time. Because many times they are great leaders apart from each other that they just seem to take over running everything.

We are working on getting new adults but it is a problem.

I would suggest that as units that husband/wife teams not hold the two top positions in the unit. As hard as that can be sometimes.
But it is probably the best thing for the unit in the long run.

[Mad Dog]

We currently have an issue in our troop. The wife of the SM is on the scout committee. She has never been active in the troop. But now that people are voting against him at committeee meetings she is there to vote however he tells her too. Also, he makes sure she is on the BOR and makes a point of giving the boys he does not like or parents he has issues with a hard time.

[evmori]

I don't really see a problem with it. I wish my wife would have been my CC when I was a CM.

[vpalango]

I voted "no", but in the specific case of the exclusion of the following three positions being held in comibination by a husband/wife team:

Committee Chair
Advancement Chair
Scoutmaster

I don't think (for instance) it's necessarily a bad thing for the wife/husband of a scoutmaster to hold a position like Treasurer or be a Committee member. The key to me is that there are certain checks/balances built into the three positions above to ensure that the program progesses properly.

Just as a post-note, I was really on the fence about the Treasurer position as well, but I leaned toward making it OK, assuming that the Treasurer does need to present a detailed accounting of troop expenditures to the committee for oversight. (I could be pursuaded to the other side of this fence however).

YIS,

[cballman]

My wife is on the committie as a treasurer and dos a few other things. I am an ASM and will do a few other things also. but for the SM and the CM i voted no because of the conflict of interest that could arise if one of them has trouble with a kid in the troop. the decisions should be made by at least two indifferent parties should a problem arise. My opinion.

[Quailman]

The three posiitions mentioned by Mr. Palango should all be independent of each other. That's why they exist. At the same time, though, I know it can be difficult to fill all the positions.

We are working on getting new adults but it is a problem.

And that's why you end up with husband-wife duos in charge. You can't get anyone else to step up. When I was a Webelos leader I had no assisant den leader. Of the seven boys in my den, one parent was Cubmaster, one was Committee Chair, and one was Advancement Chair. The other three (other than me) were single mothers of multiple children, and not available for meetings. I had to meet in the school gym where a Bear den was meeting at the other end to have multiple leaders present. You do whatever it takes to provide a meaningful program to the boys.

We currently take every opportunity to try to recruit parents. It's a fine line between recognizing the existing adult leaders for the time they put in and telling potential leaders that it's only an hour a week.

Lynda's problem is not that they had a conflict. It's that they both left at once due to his transfer. That's why corporations have limits on how many executives and which ones are allowed to fly on the same commercial aircraft together.

[RMM]

As SM I would find a conflict with my wife being CC. The past leadership had CC and SM from the same house and when we joined it seemed interesting.

However, my wife is Advancement Chair and I find this working well for the Troop and the family. She answers to the CC and has no difficulties speaking her mind at Committee meetings. She became Advancement Chair as no one else would do it and the person in the chair never attended meetings and I had many challenges getting information on the advancement needs of the older boys.

I do hear your concerns. Yet in our Troop, it works well.

[WVBeaver05]

I voted NO and I have been giving this a lot of thought lately (even before the poll was posted) as our Troop is going through significant changes with a "batch" of older Scouts (and consequently parents) leaving as they turn 18.

This has given us challenges in getting enough adults. For example, due to an illness, my wife attended our Winter Camporee. She is willing to serve on the Committee, but I really don't thing it makes sense for her to be Chair.

YiS

[k2gw]

I vote No.

One of the primary duties of the Committee Chair is recruit suitable adult leaders for appointment by the council and the chartered organization. If they are married and the Unit leader quits, often the CC will leave just as their primary duty becomes paramount!

YIS

[scoutaholic]

I'm going to abstain from voting. I can see advantages/disadvantages on both sides.

I've seen cases where the people in the two positions are from the same family. It often means that one person is actually doing both jobs (which is expressly forbidden by BSA chartering rules). It would also cause problems if they both left the unit at the same time, leaving both posts empty and nobody trained or ready to take over.

OTOH, IF both persons carry out their own duties without getting in the way of or doing the duties of the other it could have advantages. Communcations between committee and Cubmaster/Scoutmaster/Coach/Advisor/Skipper would likely be better than in most units. This could facilitate things getting done faster and/or better. Also, if the two persons in question are the best people available for the positions (or the only ones willing), then I would not want to stand in the way of having the best people available in those positions.

[ccjj]

I haven't voted, but I can see where issues may arise.
I am currently the CM of a pack, my husband isn't involved.
He is the CC of the Troop, I am the treasurer/Advancement Chair. We haven't had any issues. I present a detailed financial report at our committee meetings and have it available at any time if someone wishes to see it.
The hardest part of being the Advancememt Chair, has been my own son's trail to Eagle. We had to have someone else in the troop sign his Eagle paperwork.

ccjj

[riverwalk]

Didn't get to vote, but I say no also. I hope both are involved in a position, but not both in top jobs in the same Unit. It's a little like (kinda sorta) why the CC and the Unit leader can't hold other positions in that Unit.

[coneyraven]

I haven't voted yet either, but the answer will be no....Time and time again, I see units where the husband and wife are the top positions, then feel as though can run rough-shot over everyone else.....in fact, in one unit, we have a SM that's held others back from getting Eagle or getting into the OA until his boys get there first...obviously this is wrong, in fact, the other scouts are tempted to transfer to other troops in the area...which should be interesting if this particular troop ends up dissolving before the SM's boys get to Eagle.....the "word on the street" from the parents of this unit is that they WILL let it desolve, then recharter as a new troop with a committee completely spread out amongst the parents....knowing the situation up there, this is not all a bad idea....Our stand on the whole thing from our troop is this, it's really none of our business on the political side of things....JUST KEEP THE GUYS IN SCOUTING!!!!...if that means we become a sort of "foster troop" for them while the parents get their &^%$ together, so be it.....JUST KEEP THE SCOUTS ON THE PATH TO EAGLE!!!! Our council is one of the smallest in the nation and we can't afford to let even one scout fall through the cracks because of the egos of some of the adults......