Parent as counselor for certain merit badges

[syck03]

wagionvigil, You are 100% correct.

[BM_Crawford]

You need to email me or something I'm not going to jepardise the sanity of this board whith this ruckus.

[wagionvigil]

Everyone take a chill pill.

[cballman]

Wagion I under stand that BSA rules overwrite any and all troop rules which that is the way we should run our troops. BUT that is why that we have a troop rule that says a parent cannot sign off on any req.up to first class. which makes our troop run very smoothly and no parent has challenged that rule. our only rule which is going to be challenegd iswhere that if a scout is not first class or above they do not want the scout to work on ANY merit badge except at summer camp or as a troop one like canoeing. we have tried to help a scout make the first class first year thing a good deal because the summer camp we go to has set minimim age and rank req. it was a funny thing when the patrol i am helping with had questions ofwhy they couldnt take certain merit badges and I had to ask what rank are you. that is why we try to help each scout to reach first class ASAP if the scout wants to. the sad part is that if a scout does not want to acheive anything then I cant help him at all. but some scouts want to do and will. so as you said in your last post lets not get personal and keep it friendly PLEASE.

[wagionvigil]

I was only refering to Merit Badges Not the beginning ranks. Most requirements are set up for the Troop to sign off on. In 15 years as a scoutmaster I have never had a parent ask to sign off on a requirement.

[BM_Crawford]

Yea thats how it works in my troop too. Parents can sign off merit badges but not the begining ranks. Thats where we had problems with a parent passing their kid through first class without doing anything

[wagionvigil]

Part of this problem is going from Cub Scouts where the parents signs off to boy scouts where they do not.OK here is what I do. When I have a crossing I always show up with a knife and as each scout crosses the bridge I cut the "Apron Strings" and hand the parents an adult application. I explain that it is time to cut the apron strings and let their son become a scout. Most never turn in the adult application and stay away except to drop off and pick up. This is a hard thing for some parents to do and it is more the parent than the kid. I had a couple parents this summer that when they came to camp parents night the scout said and I quote' WHat are you doing here? And don't stay long." The parents went home with their tails between their legs and when the boy went home on Saturday he went home a Scout. Tired,Smelly with three merit badges and a new rank.

[BM_Crawford]

hehe, wow that sounds like a scout who just joined our troop. His dad died recently died right before he joined and we were afraid when he went to camp he would be home sick. It was the oposite he was absolutely fine and it was the mother who was worried and had him call her everyday at camp without the leaders knowing. We found out but it was too late since one of the three leaders supported the calls. Luckily the kid didnt get home sick

[syck03]

In my troop now we dont have any parents that come. The leaders have there son in the troop. If one of the boy's parents stop by (one of the meetings) they ask them to leave. We have no parents that want to go on camp out . They are happy to have a break from there son's for a few days.

[syck03]

BM_Crawford No one is going to jepardise the sanity of this board. Just dont let the post get to you. Everone is not going to agree on everything, thats life You dont have to answer any post if they make you angry. Like I have posted in a lot of my post this is my $.02 worth. If it offends you or is a hot subject to you sorry you will get over it. This message board is for everyone to discuss the subject of parents signing off on merit badges. That is what everone has been doing. Then you get mad becouse you dont like or agree with what someone writes. Dont let it get to you. Just have fun on this message board.

[BM_Crawford]

Please dont put words in my mouth, if you have something you'd like to say specifically to me say it via email thanks.

[syck03]

BM_Crawford Check your e-mail

[Rick Tyler]

(...) I have seen alot in scouting I have seen a lot of scouts held back becouse of rules that troops have made. I dont challenge the rules that BSA have. I just follow the rules. I dont make up my own rules. (...)

Scouting is "a game with a purpose." We like to say that the boys think it's just a camping club, be we (the adult leaders) get to worry about things like character development and citizenship. The things I remember about my own time as a Scout have nothing to do with improving my character... but I can tell you about the time we watched a mountain lion climb a ridge.

When applied appropriately, local rules fill in the unspecified corners of the scout "game" in ways that meet the needs of the charter organization or the particular character of the troop. One example is that when our troop had 35 boys who were mostly 12 and younger, we had adults do lots of skills training and advancement sign-offs. Now that we have 85 scouts of all ages, we tell adult leaders to never teach a skill that a boy can teach. It's a local rule that helps develop the skills of our more experienced scouts.

The "rule" about not counseling MBs for your own boy makes sense, as long as there are plenty of counselor choices. If I was teaching Citizenship in the World to a small group of scouts, I would not exclude my own son. I would want to make sure that he earned most of his MBs from other counselors, though, both to give him the opportunity to learn from other adults, and to avoid the appearance of unfairness on my part.

[syck03]

Yor are right. In large troops there are enough leaders to sign off on stuff. In my troop there are about 10 active scouts and 4 adult leaders only 2 of the adult leaders teach merit badges. also 3 of the 4 have their sons in the troop and if they dont allow there son to take a merit badge just becouse they are teaching it. That is not fair. We dont just allow any parent to sign off on stuff Their parents have to be a leader in the troop. I would give anything to have enough leaders and boys to have a lorge troop. So their parents dont have to sign. But where I am that will never happen. And as Advancement chairman I sign all advancements and as a Asst scoutmaster I sign most of the cards becouse me and the Scoutmaster take turn to sign all the cards and stuff. When I get back to the states in one year I hapo I can find a large troop to help out with and put my son it. Where I am from in the states most of the troops are very small.

[ICanCanoeCanU]

Ok, I'm not getting the hang of this quote part, (I can't get it to work) so here it goes on my own -

In my troop now we dont have any parents that come. The leaders have there son in the troop. If one of the boy's parents stop by (one of the meetings) they ask them to leave. We have no parents that want to go on camp out.

This is confusing to me? What do you mean by the leaders have there sons in the troop? Aren't these parents? Why would a parent be asked to leave a meeting? What if a parent wanted to be an adult volunteer and wanted to see how a meeting runs to see what they might be getting into?

Edit by optimist: Formatted the quote.

[BM_Crawford]

Perhaps they were oposing the Boy Run program...or maybe they wanted to do everything to help their kids like in cub scouts.

[optimist]

ICanCanoeCanU, I think what syck03 is referring to is the type parents that can't seem to let go. No parent is ever denied access to meetings but I personally would not want a parent around if their presence was interfering with their son's enjoyment of Scouting. If that Scout doesn't want his parent there and he's willing to tell them so, I would support that.

[ICanCanoeCanU]

Thanks for the help with the edit Optimist!

Yes, I agree about those kinds of parents, guess I didn't pick up that Syck meant it that way. This idea by some parents drives me nuts too. At the current time I'm dealing with new adults crossed in from Webelos trying to run a glorified pack and I'm losing the battle cause so many parents read the paperwork from BSA but don't truely understand the concept of the program.

[optimist]

Hike them to death!

[syck03]

ICanCanoeCanU Let me re word that We have some scouts in out troop that does not like their parents to come to the meetings. The Scout will tell them that they dont like them to be there. For me I want the parents to come so I can get them to be leaders and stuff. But some boys say that the meetings and camp out are a time for them to get away from their parents. Other than the leaders who sons are in the troop. None of the other parents want or can go on camp-outs and stuff becouse most of the dad's are deployed to Operation Iraqi Freedom II and the mom's have younger kids at home.