Troop Web Sites

[MisterChris]

Thought I would jump in here and mention that our Troop website now has some music on it - a song I wrote for our old SM (served 50+ years) and another one I wrote for our recently deceased DAC (Dist AdvChair) Ed Cook.

He was a man I greatly admired.

There's also a Song with the Scout Law and one for Cub Day Camp, as well as one we play at Eagle Ceremonies.

http://www.troopole97.com

There's also a song written by a couple of daughters of one of our leaders called 'The Boy Scouts Who Don't Do Anything'. You'll have to dig a little to find that one tho.

[MisterChris]

Oops, this appeared to be a double-post...

[pipestone1991]

http://www.troop-15.org


^^^^There's my troop's site...you can even see me from 4-5 years ago!

[goetzjam]

We have a main site that branches off to the units in our town.

http://scoutsofwynne.info

I am open for suggestions, you can fill out a comment form off of the website!

[Eagle77]

I am the Advancement Committee Chairman for Troop 305 in St. Petersburg, FL. My son is the SPL. Together we built what we consider to be one of the best Troop Websites out there. We serve as Troop Webmasters and are continueing to add new pages as we come up with ideas, or as ideas are presented to us by the Troop.
We, also, never use last names or anything else that could identify the Scouts on our website. Internet safety comes first with us.
Check us out at www.BSATroop305.com and let us know what you think.
Thanks.
Marty Robertson
Eagle Scout 1977
Troop 305 Advancement Committee Chairman

[smtroop168]

You are kidding I hope. You have a policy on whether or not you can attend an out of state Summer Camp!!

[Eagle77]

Unfortunately, yes, we have a policy on who can attend an out of state Summer Camp. We had to institute this at the same time we instituted our Code of Conduct. We went out of state for Summer Camp and had Scouts that had been with the Troop causing trouble and getting into fights (with their parents present). Since puting this into place, we haven't had any more problems. The Scouts that really want to go with us are able to go. The problem Scouts actually transferred to another unit when they saw that their behaviour wasn't going to be tolerated anymore. The 1st Class Rank requirement is on a case by case basis. The Scouts that can conduct themselves as Scouts but have just crossed over, we make exceptions for. Usually, all of our first year Scouts have a parent attend Summer Camp with us. Last year, we took as many adults to Summer Camp as Scouts.
Hope this explains our reasoning. Every Troop has different policies. Usually, they have a very good reason for policies that are different from other Troops.

[smtroop168]

Your policy just seems unnecessary to meet the behavior issues you describe. For the size troop you have (11?) I would think you would all want to go together so the older scouts can help the younger guys.

[Mrw]

I would think too, that making clear that the consequence of misbehaving will be to get sent home early at the parents' expense would ensure appropriate behavior and eliminate the need to split the troop for summer camp.

If the boys know what is acceptable behavior from the start would make for a relatively problem free camp.

[cescout]

This is our troop's website and of course designed and maintained by me!!!


http://www.troop1755.org

[LSR]

This is our troop's website and of course designed and maintained by me!!!


http://www.troop1755.org

May I suggest "Webmaster" instead of your name?

[cescout]

Thanks,
I will fix it when I get home, but what about my e-mail address it is first.last@troop1755.org? Do they have a tiny url for e-mail address or something like that, a redirect perhaps.

[AquilaNegra2]

[sorry, double post]

[AquilaNegra2]

This isn't ours, but I think it's one of the best out there in terms of information -- http://www.troop139.com

[AquilaNegra2]

We have TONS of photos of the boys. I post photos in low-res and sized to 4x6. Anyone with nefarious purposes is going to be looking for much higher quality. I'm frankly not too worried about someone making contact with one of the boys; doubtful that would happen. Using the photos in a less-than-honorable manner is another story...

[MisterChris]

This is our troop's website and of course designed and maintained by me!!!


http://www.troop1755.org

Hey CEscout, Sorry so late commenting on this -
Website looks sweet, very professional. I like the Nav buttons, the color scheme.
Someone wanting to join can email for contact info. That's nice.

However, on your list of eagles you have first and last names and pictures. I have that also for anyone who's over 18, but those under I protect by giving initial and last name (I think). You shouldn't put the first and last at all for a minor, and you might want to consider a 'membership permission form' which includes a block of text about 'allowing my picture to be included in powerpoints, news releases, and website photos.' That way you are covered.

Oh, you also have req for rank published up there, which seem to be up-to-date, but the reqs change fairly often, that's something extra to maintain to prevent misleading.

All in all, nice site though.

[fritz1255]

We have a website which is maintained by our Troop Scribe (we have redefined the position to fit the 21st century). The website is presently on Yahoo Geocities, a free web building tool that is being discontinued by Yahoo later this month. We could switch over to the pay service, but this has the logistical problem of needing a credit card number to pay for it, and we do not have a Troop card. While I suppose one of the parents could use their own card and get reimbursed, that has logstical problems of its own if the parent is no longer associated with the Troop when the bill comes due again a year from now.

Does anyone know of another free web building tool we can use, or better still one that is designed for scouting that we could pay for by check?

[MisterChris]

Two things, Fritz:

1 - Google the terms 'Free non-profit web hosting' and I think you'll find what you want.
This will probably mean that you'll be assigned a 'subdomain' off whoever's main domain (Instead of a website address like www.troop97.com you'll get troop97.grassroots.org
NOTE - that website is probably easier to enter than geocities.com/membername/troop97.html
BUT - you'll want to be sure to examine their terms of service and check out a few of their sites to see if ads will be placed on your troop site, and whether the ads are objectionable or do not reflect scouting values.

I found that it was better (for me) to simply pay the annual fee ($5 for a domain name, $35/6 mo) to have our own site. I don't ask the troop for reimbursement. I've been with the troop 20 years, but if I disconnect, I'll transfer the domain name to another member, or give him access to edit, and have him change accounting info (card billing, etc.) to his own account. I went with 1and1.com, they were an inexpensive option and I've got 5 websites registered with them.

2 - The web editing job seems like it would devolve to an adult, but maintenance of current news, Eagle list, and troop history, could be maintained by a savvy scout. The job seems more in line with Troop Historian, though, than Scribe. Granted, the scribe keeps minutes and records the calendar, keeps roster records. But that's enough of a workload for a boy without adding the website.

[Quailman]

...The web editing job seems like it would devolve to an adult, but maintenance of current news, Eagle list, and troop history, could be maintained by a savvy scout. The job seems more in line with Troop Historian, though, than Scribe. Granted, the scribe keeps minutes and records the calendar, keeps roster records. But that's enough of a workload for a boy without adding the website.

The new PoR, Webmaster, fits this bill without overlapping the Historian or Scribe. I found one troop's position description here: http://www.bsa89.org/T89_PDF/BSA_Troop89_Webmaster.pdf

[MisterChris]

Well, pays to print out a new Eagle Application or pick up the ever-changing requirements book.
Thanks for the info.

So, there's 2 new PoR's, Webmaster and Leave no Trace Trainer, effective Jan 1.