The BSA and the Marine Corps League (MCL) Strengthen Relationship to Support America’s Youth
Article submitted by Wendy Kurten, Northeast Region & Western Region Team Lead / National Alliances Director /Law Enforcement Exploring Staff Advisor
The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) and the Marine Corps League (MCL) have agreed to initiate a plan of mutual support to foster the ideals of Americanism and patriotic volunteerism among America’s youth. We encourage Councils to expand their involvement of support for causes specific to the Marine Corps League and our nation’s veterans at large. The Marine Corps League will encourage and expand their involvement of Detachments in support of BSA programs toward our mutual goals for a better and more patriotic America.
The Marine Corps League believes strongly that our youth are our future and that it is our responsibility to prepare them for that future. The Scout Oath and Law that the BSA instills in youth is a strong foundation for future success. The Boy Scouts of America and Marine Corps League are excited about formalizing and strengthening our relationship and the future opportunities for us to work together to support America’s youth!
The Memorandum of Mutual Support and the Marine Corps League Community Award can be found in the Marketing & Membership Hub. Find out more about your local Marine Corps League visit: www.mclnational.org.
Scouting Wire would like to thank Wendy for submitting this article.
Revving Up Your Community Campaigns
Article submitted by Brooke Parker, Development Director at the Pathway to Adventure Council
Article submitted by Brooke Parker, Development Director at the Pathway to Adventure Council
Fundraising can be challenging but also enjoyable. With fundraising goals set high for many charities, the task can seem overwhelming. In Scouting, we have amazing volunteers who range from stay-at-home parents to presidents of the PTA/PTO and those who are lawyers, doctors, judges, farmers, company owners, CEOs and the list goes on. Through Scouting and watching their child, niece, nephew or sibling go through the program, they are the key to sharing the Scouting benefits.
The community campaign in Scouting is a unique concept that we can leverage in a positive way to raise money. Yes, it is important to leverage people outside of Scouting! Also, we can utilize our many Scouting related individuals who are connected with the BSA in some way. Why do it by yourself? There are thousands of parents and volunteers in our units who can help connect us to the right people in the community.
Here are 5 areas below to rev up your community campaign.
- Cultivating relationships is a huge factor with the community campaign. It starts with getting to know your affluent units and areas that have the capacity to donate above the average Friends of Scouting gift. Once relationships are formed with the quality volunteers, there needs to be clear guidelines of what the goal is and the steps to achieve that goal.
- Identifying your chair! We as professionals know we can’t do it alone. Working with the nominating committee is one area to look in finding your chair for the campaign. The vetting process has started with the nominating committee and once identified and acceptance of the position you can begin the planning process on how you will accomplish the goal along with the agreed upon tasks. Also, your council board could provide some recommendations!
- Building your committee. Since you have your chair, next is looking for individuals who worked on the committee in prior years. They may have enjoyed working on the committee or might have contacts to add to the prospect list. Additionally, they could help with adding new individuals on the committee. Some people are not comfortable asking others for money. However, they may be willing to open up their rolodex and help make introductions.
- Increasing a FOS gift. If we do a great job in our prospecting and evaluating of our prospects we will build on the plan. Analyzing a prospect’s financial ability to give, sets the bases of what we can ask for. We need to stop, listen and understand the individual’s comfort level with the cultivation and solicitation process. Then we have to ask!
- Mission accomplished! Characteristics of a success campaign are campaign kickoff, meeting updates and celebration. Behind the scenes efforts are the staff advisor and chair following up on the progress. Once you work the plan, create a positive enjoyable campaign and recognize the volunteers, then you all can be proud of the mission to bring more young people in scouting and impacting lives for a lifetime.
Scouting Wire would like to thank Brooke for submitting this article.
Council Market Analysis Is Now Available for You
Councils can now access the latest Council Market Analysis (2020). The analysis is based off your 2019 year-end membership with LDS units removed.
This tool will help you:
- Identify areas you are underserving in your district/council
- Target your areas of growth opportunity
- Understand the population that you are targeting – what are their demographic characteristics, how you can best reach them
There are three components to Council Market Analysis:
- A PDF document with a demographic breakdown (income, ethnicity, Mosaics, etc.) on the youth enrolled in your program and the youth population in the council (TAY). This document also contains a list of opportunity zip codes for growth planning.
- An excel file including the membership and TAY for each zip code in the council.
- An excel file with the top Mosaics in each zip code in the council.
To access Council Market Analysis on MyBSA:
- Login to MyBSA.
- Go to the Resources page.
- In the BSA Resources box, select “Council Market Analysis Reports.”
- Councils are categorized by region, area, and headquarters city.
To access Council Market Analysis from SharePoint:
- Go to: https://boyscouts.sharepoint.com/sites/000MembershipInsightsandPlanning/Shared%20Documents/
- Login to the Memberships and Insight SharePoint Site.
- Go to your council folder. The associated Council Market Analysis will be found in a folder labeled “Council Market Analysis.”
There is also training available on how to use the Council Market Analysis.
Employees can access this course by logging onto MyBSA:
- Go to resources.
- Find the “Scouting University-Employee Learn Center” link in the BSA Resources box.
- Scroll down the Home page and, on the bottom, you will see a link called “Learning Library.” Click on this link.
- Click on the Learning Library heading which will appear in the box on the next screen.
- Select “Council Market Analysis v2.”
Volunteers can access this course by logging onto My.Scouting
- Go to the Member Learn Center.
- Click on “Course Catalog” at the top of the Home page.
- Scroll down the page to Council Market Analysis and click on it. You will find it under “Expanded Learning.”
- Click “Add Plan” once the Council Market Analysis Learning Plan is displayed.
- Open the Learning Plan.
- Select the “Launch Course” button for Council Market Analysis v2
If you have any questions about Council Market Analysis, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Allen Endicott Selected as Scout Executive of Crossroads of the West Council
Congratulations to Allen Endicott, who will serve as Scout executive of the newly established Crossroads of the West Council in Salt Lake City, Utah, effective April 1, 2020. The Crossroads of the West Council was created when the Trapper Trails Council, the Great Salt Lake Council, and the Utah National Parks Council consolidated to enable the Scouting community in Utah to meet the ongoing mission of providing the area’s foremost youth program of character development and values-based leadership to youth across the state.
Allen began his Scouting career as a district executive at the Trapper Trails Council in Ogden, Utah, where he later became the program director. In 2005, he was selected to serve as Scout executive of the Annawon Council in Norton, Massachusetts, then moved on to become Scout executive of the Puerto Rico Council in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico. In 2013, Allen returned to the Trapper Trails Council to serve as Scout executive.
Allen is an Eagle Scout who enjoys camping, visiting national parks and historic sites, and playing the piano.
Allen and his wife, Beckki, have three children and one grandchild.
Please help us congratulate Allen in the comments below as he joins in partnership with the volunteers and staff of the Crossroads of the West Council to deliver quality Scouting experiences to the young people of the communities they serve.
Todd Walter Selected as Scout Executive of Las Vegas Area Council
Please join us in congratulating Todd Walter as Scout executive of the Las Vegas Area Council in Las Vegas, Nevada, effective April 1, 2020.
Todd began his Scouting career as a district executive at the Baltimore Area Council in Baltimore, Maryland. He moved on to become the field director and later finance director at the North Florida Council in Jacksonville, Florida. Todd continued his career as director of field service of the Dan Beard Council in Cincinnati, Ohio, and then was selected to serve as Scout executive of the Central North Carolina Council in Albemarle, North Carolina. He most recently served as the area director of Area 4 in the Central Region.
Todd is an avid outdoorsman who enjoys traveling with his family, boating, fishing and pheasant hunting.
Todd and his wife, Lisa, have two adult children.
In the comments below, please help us welcome Todd to his new role in the BSA as he joins in partnership with the volunteers and staff of the Las Vegas Area Council to deliver quality Scouting experiences to the young people of the communities they serve.
Four Tips to Help You Find What You Need in the BSA Brand Center
The BSA Brand Center is full of resources to help you promote Scouting in your community.
Much like a library, it offers a curated collection of assets, including photos, videos, fliers, templates, and much more. Of course, digging through everything in the Brand Center to find what you need could be a time-consuming process, but there are search tools available to help you. It’s important to know that, as you use those tools, there are some search tactics particular to the Brand Center that might be a little different from the search tools you may be used to using elsewhere.
Here are a few tips to help make it easier for you to find what you need:
1. When you use the search box on the Brand Center, remember these two rules: All verbs end in “ing” and all nouns are plural. For example, you’ll find more items if you search “swimming” instead of “swim” and “kayaks” rather than “kayak.”
2. You can skip the search box altogether and browse through a list of keywords. On the left-hand side is a filter rail, scroll down to “Keywords” and click “more.”
Scroll through the list and select keywords relevant to your search. Much like walking though your favorite store with a plan to get “just one thing,” you could find other items you didn’t know you were looking for!
3. Another somewhat new addition to the Brand Center are transparent .png files for most logos and insignia. Simply log in to access them.
4. And, finally, for those who are BSA professional staff, you can go straight to BSA Digital Assets by clicking on the profile icon at the top right-hand corner of the Brand Center screen and selecting “BSA Digital Assets” from the dropdown menu.
In BSA Digital Assets, you can find thousands of stock images taken by BSA photographers at a variety of Scouting events and many more logo and insignia files (merit badges, council logos, etc.) to use freely for your recruitment and retention projects. Volunteers should work directly with their council professionals if access to specific imagery from BSA Digital Assets is needed.
Have more questions about the Brand Center? Ideas about how to improve it or helpful resources we could add? Let us know by filling out this survey. We’re always looking for ways to improve.
Mark Francis Selected as Scout Executive of Far East Council
Congratulations to Mark Francis, who will serve as Scout executive of the Far East Council in Okinawa, Japan, effective April 1, 2020.
Mark began his Scouting career as a district executive at the Utah National Parks Council in Orem, Utah. He moved on to become a senior district executive, Scoutreach director, and later field director at the Las Vegas Area Council in Las Vegas, Nevada. In 2008, he was selected to serve as Scout executive of the Greater Wyoming Council in Casper, Wyoming. In 2012, he was promoted to director of the LDS-BSA Relationships Office in Salt Lake City, Utah, and in 2018, he took on the additional role of membership growth coach in the Western Region.
Mark is an Eagle Scout, NESA Outstanding Eagle Scout, and Vigil Honor member of the Order of the Arrow. He enjoys running, gardening, model trains, Japanese origami, and spending time with his family.
Mark and his wife, Nettie, have ten children. All of their children are involved in Scouting, and their two oldest sons are Eagle Scouts.
Please help us congratulate Mark in the comments below as he joins in partnership with the volunteers and staff of the Far East Council to deliver quality Scouting experiences to the young people of the communities they serve.
Charles Flowers Selected as Scout Executive of Occoneechee Council
Please join us in congratulating Charles Flowers, who will serve as Scout executive of the Occoneechee Council in Raleigh, North Carolina, effective March 1, 2020.
Charles began his Scouting career as a district executive at the Robert E. Lee Council in Richmond, Virginia. He later became a senior district executive at the council before moving on to serve as a district director at the Heart of America Council in Kansas City, Missouri, and then as a development director at the Simon Kenton Council in Columbus, Ohio. In 2006, he was promoted to the National Council and served on the faculty of the Center for Professional Development (CPD), and in 2008, became the director of field service of the Laurel Highlands Council in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Since 2013, Charles has served as the Scout executive of the Connecticut Yankee Council in Milford, Connecticut.
Charles is an Eagle Scout and Vigil Honor member of the Order of the Arrow who enjoys reading, playing and watching basketball and spending time with family.
Charles and his wife, Carla, have two adult children.
In the comments below, please help us send Charles our well wishes as he joins in partnership with the volunteers and staff of the Occoneechee Council to deliver quality Scouting experiences to the young people of the communities they serve.
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Rick Chapman Selected as Scout Executive of Alabama-Florida Council
Congratulations to Rick Chapman, who will serve as Scout executive of the Alabama-Florida Council in Dothan, Alabama, effective March 1, 2020.
Rick began his Scouting career as a district executive at the Gulf Coast Council in Pensacola, Florida. While there, he moved up the ranks serving as a senior district executive, district director, field director, and assistant Scout executive. He was selected to serve as Scout executive of the Yocona Area Council in Tupelo, Mississippi, in 2010.
Rick enjoys shooting sports, fishing, and grilling. He has two grown children.
In the comments below, please help us send Rick our well wishes as he joins in partnership with the volunteers and staff of the Alabama-Florida Council to deliver quality Scouting experiences to the young people of the communities they serve.
Internet Advancement Access Available for Councils
Unit Serving Executives can now review rosters and advancement information for any unit in your council.
The new Internet Advancement web platform is specially designed for both council employees and unit leaders to track and record unit advancements. The platform was built to optimize unit management and includes features that enable council employees or leaders to record the same advancement for many youth at once.
You don’t have to wait to try out this new tool because Internet Advancement is now field ready and optimized so you can use your mobile device or desktop to review the progress of your council’s units.
How to Access Internet Advancement
- Visit & Bookmark: http://scoutbook.scouting.org
- Log in with your my.scouting account tied to your council role
View more instructions and how-to tips here, including how to record advancements and how to set up access for council professionals.
Nearly 200 Unit Serving Executives Attend the Leadership60 – 2020 Growth Conference
Article submitted by Wendy Shaw, National Director of Membership Growth.
The 2020 Growth Conference was held February 6 & 7th at the Great Wolf Lodge in Grapevine, TX. This year’s attendees all had achieved year-end membership growth by November 30, 2019. Speaker for the opening dinner was Assistant Chief Scout Executive, Patrick Sterrett, and in attendance were the Regional Directors and Membership Growth Team Leads.
Rolled out during the conference was the new Unit-Serving Executive Group on Workplace. With over 200 members, this group is a great way to connect with fellow Unit Serving Executives throughout the movement. Unit Serving Executives of the Boy Scouts of America are encouraged to click here to access this Workplace group.
Conference attendees also heard the latest news and what’s in the pipeline from the National Director of Cub Scouts, Anthony Berger, the National Director of Scouts BSA, Garfield Murden, National Director of Exploring, Tim Anderson, National Director of Research and Strategy and the National Director of Marketing, Communications and Brand Management, Michael Ramsey.
Scouting Wire would like to thank Wendy for submitting this story.
What Successful People Have in Common
Article submitted by Nelson Lin Carter, retired Scout Executive of the Chicago Area Council and condensed from: “The Great American Success Story” George Gallup, Jr., Alec M. Gallup, William Proctor
When it comes to having successes in recruiting more families into Scouting programs or even in any of the other functions of Scouting (finance or commissioner service), the blend of self-esteem and your self-efficacy drives you to achieving extraordinary aspirations. As unit serving executives, you should have the confidence to do the job and know you have been trained to do the job right! Listed below are some identifiable traits that showcase the winning combination of accomplishing that goal.
Research pinpoints a number of traits that recur regularly among top achievers. Five of the most important include:
- COMMON SENSE – The quality possessed in abundance by achievers. It means being able to make sound, practical judgements about events that happen every day. It’s the ability to prioritize details in decision making and focus on the information that matters most. A person can develop common sense by watching how others use it and learning from mistakes. For example, when you are working with the activities committees and the focus should be on dealing with how many of the troops will be participating and what the program should be, instead of spending the majority of the time at the meeting on what the patch will look like.
- KNOWING ONE’S FIELD – Having a specialized knowledge in one’s field, a practical understanding of the crafts of the business. Doing homework reduces risks and acts as insurance for personal ability. “To achieve success, you have to want it, and then you must work to keep it.” Remember, you are the professional Scouter, and you know the Scouting program. Guiding volunteers through the nuances of setting up an effective Fall Recruitment Roundup is key.
- SELF-RELIANCE – Top achievers rely primarily on their own resources and abilities. They have an ability to take definitive action to get things moving in their lives through willpower and an ability to set goals. Successful people have clear goals, are self-starters and persevere after a project has begun. They have the guts and stamina to work the hours required to accomplish objectives. The Mission, The Program, The Youth – is what drives us as professional Scouters. The Scout Executive Code has set the direction for us to develop and grow – independently as we become a better professional.
- GENERAL INTELLIGENCE – Natural ability to comprehend difficult concepts quickly and to analyze them clearly and incisively. In addition to I.Q., general intelligence includes extensive vocabulary, excellent reading and writing skills and an inquiring mind with broad ranging interests. How we articulate the data to our volunteers and get on the same page to accomplish the goal is essential. The need to fill the district committee, adding to the depleted commissioners’ staff and identifying more people to the membership committee are all related to the bottom line of recruiting more youth in the program.
- ABILITY TO GET THINGS DONE – Organizational ability, good work habits and diligence are essential in accomplishing critical tasks. Our staff leaders are training and directing us to what must be done. Juggling many balls is a normal day in a district executive daily task. Following the work behaviors that will build on future successes is key. Prospecting, cold calling, monthly planning schedule, etc.
Additionally, other factors include leadership, creativity, relationships with others and luck. But, common sense, knowing one’s field, self-reliance, intelligence and the ability to get things done stand out in “success personalities.” If these traits are cultivated, chances are that success will be achieved!
Scouting Wire would like to thank Lin for submitting this story.
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