BSA's Image Problem

Boy Scouts of America - Transition to New Generation

Image Problem: 1. Having a negative view by the general public. 2. People or organizations that are seen as having an unfavorable opinion. 

Hear me out. I know this does not look good to start, but I am going somewhere. 

I have recently been in a few discussions that lead me to this article. I want to look at historical trends, and how do we as an organization get the program back on a growing path. I understand that some of what we are talking about is generational.  The largest generation of children, and family size is behind us. The baby boomers are now looking at retirement. However, participation in Scouts BSA is declining, albeit slowly. I think that some of the changes that have been implemented will help right this path, but I am going to start with an unpopular opinion. Scouts BSA has an image problem.  

I know this will be an unpopular opinion, and I am sure that some of you reading this will desire to argue with me until red-faced. Hear me out. I love Scouting. I see the value that it has. I want Scouting to succeed. I think it serves a great purpose for our children. I can hear it now, "If they have an image problem, why are you here?".  Remember this when you read my writings. I was never a Scout as a child. I had three daughters, and never gave Scouts a thought until my 4th-grade daughter came home with a flyer excited to join. At that point in time, she was excited, I was not. 

As I said, hear me out. I am here to promote Scouting and hopefully improve our image. Scouting much like politicians, are often liked locally, but on the overall organization, people do not hold it in the high opinion. Much like, I do not like politicians, and there should be term limits, but when asked about their local representatives, keep voting the same person in, because they are good people. Let me walk you through the points. The image problem is from a societal shift. I am not saying that traditions are necessarily a bad thing, but without looking at what we can do to improve and encourage membership the program will continue to contract. There are a lot of activities that our children can get involved in. Scouts is just one of them. Overall it has been pretty affordable in my opinion considering the registration is for 365 days, not just one season. However, getting new parents in the door can be a challenge. 

Baby boomer Scouting Numbers

From 1945to 1965 the baby boom swelled the ranks of young men and boys into Scouts BSA. These were children of those that survived World War II. Patriotism was at an all-time high. The children of veterans were a perfect recruiting ground, to get kids into an organization that promotes duty, God, and Country. The numbers in BSA swelled to nearly 5 million Scouts. It reached its peak in 1971.  Even with the Vietnam War raging, and cultural revolutions occurring, Scouts was as popular with families as it ever was going to be. Even with all going on in the world, these baby boomers were raised by the greatest generation. They were sent to Packs and Troops, and they found value in this programming. 

Now starting in 1965-1980, we have Generation X).  Children that were born to counter-culture parents. The parents of this generation were alive for the civil rights movement, Vietnam, Nixon, Watergate, JFK, and the moon landing. They grew their hair and protested the war. They were part of the Rights Movements:  Civil, Gay, Women's Rights.  They were more inspired by cultural leaders like Martin Luther King Jr, than Dwight D. Eisenhower. They saw the corruption of Nixon and pushed for cultural change. This was one of the first blows to scouting, as Scouts are the establishment. I am not saying they were unpatriotic, in fact, some of the most ardent patriots I know are baby boomers and Gen Xers.  What I am saying is that the children of baby boomers were taught to have a bit of a critical eye when deciding on trust. In the 1970's Scouting dropped 35%.  The straight-laced image of scouting was not as appealing to the parents. 

Millenial Scout Participation

Millenials - 1980-2000 - There is a bit of a subset here from 1979-1983 This includes me - They are a mix of both Gen X and Millenial (just as analog as digital). These are the children of Generation X. As I stated in the previous paragraph. Scouting dropped 35% with Generation X. So the nostalgia also dropped 35%. Think about when kids are selecting their activities. Fathers are ready to relive some of their youth when they get their son to play baseball, or daughters join softball. For an additional 35% of Americans, they had no memory of their time Scouting. We were a generation post-civil rights.  We were a generation born during the green movement. We grew up in a digital world. We know how to use books, but we can easily research our views on our own. We became adults during the rise of social media, and we had more information at our fingertips than any previous generation. We did not have to rely on a filter, edited content. 

Now to get back to my point. Image problem. Millennials are not a fan of exclusive clubs. We often get made fun of for our participation trophies, and high expectations for minimal work. I get it. There are some of us that statement holds true for. Going back to my first point. Scouting, and the conservative nature that it has, caused a little dissonance among Millenial parents. This same attitude has affected many organizations. Organizations that exclude membership on the basis of sex, race, or sexual orientation have all seen declines. That is not necessarily a bad thing. It caused many organizations to look at their practices, and realize that they needed to make a change. Many social organizations for men, added women's components. Many organizations that denied race, ceased to exist, (Scouts has been integrated for some time, I am speaking in general for all organizations). 

The Scouts had some bad press. BSA v Dale started this trend. Following their victory in court, the organization got a brand as anti-gay. This lasted for 15 years until they reversed their official position in 2015 to allow gay membership. However, 72% of their charter organizations were still given the right to discriminate. The 15 years of continued bad press again lead to a drop in the numbers. From 2000to 2015 BSA lost about 25% of its membership numbers. The total decline from the 1971 peak was 53%. They need to change course. Michael  Surbaugh saw the writing on the wall. He made a decision in 2017 to attempt to change some perceptions. He stood with a transgender child to allow them to scout. It was a surprise decision that no one saw coming. Then he shocked us again. 2019 - 

“I could not be more excited for what this means for the next generation of leaders in our nation,” “Through Scouts BSA, more young people than ever before – young women and men – will get to experience the benefits of camaraderie, confidence, resilience, trustworthiness, courage and kindness through a time-tested program that has been proven to build character and leadership.”

Now we are here. We are an inclusive organization, and we need to focus on this. As we emerge from a few decades of decline, partially due to frankly practices of gender exclusivity, and an abuse settlement, we have a chance to spread our message to the next generation of kids from 5to 18. Come back. This honestly isn't the BSA of the past. While we will share our Scout Oath and Law, and we will pass the skills of leadership, comradery, and fun, we will deliver these opportunities to your children in a much more modern way. Send us your sons and daughters knowing that the leadership will be inclusive of your beliefs, and respectful of your child's. We are a redefined, safer environment to get skills that the school system is poorly equipped to teach. We will foster your child's passions and interests, and through our methods, we will develop critical thinking, and leadership skills like no other program. 

We will teach your children how in this new world we live to work with a diverse group of others to accomplish goals, complete tasks, and lead each other through it. They will come out the other side better people ready to work and lead in a much more diverse community. They will understand how to navigate the sometimes complicated structures that working with people very different from them can bring. We will do it in the safest manner possible, with our methods, our values, and our traditions. Your kids will have opportunities to experience things like no other organization offers. We will teach them to work towards goals, help with expenses, and understand the value of teamwork, and commitment. 

Since I have become active on social media about Scouting, I guess because according to Facebook, I am a male, who once liked a sporting goods store, I get advertisements for Trail Life. It only took me about 1 minute of reading the comments sections from their membership to realize just how far Scouting has come in changing its image. I see the closeminded, sexist, homophobic comments, and I am so proud of how far Scouts BSA has come. I also thought to myself at first, this group is competing for our members.  Then I realized, good riddance. They are the voices, and opinions of the past. They are the same thoughts that drove membership at BSA down and made BSA a slowly dying organization because it was not in a position to entice the parents of the current generation to put their trust in the program. Now is the time for action. 

How do we get our message across to attract Gen Z children? Scouts BSA has not been positioned for a better image than before. Scouts BSA is emerging from a sexual abuse lawsuit.  They are inclusive, and they are teaching teamwork and leadership. These are all things that today's parents are looking for. We are both not your same old scouts, and we are the same old scouts, we just have more pink and rainbow tents. I am proud to be part of this change. I am glad to be here. I love the time that Scouts has afforded me with my child, that would have been missed. This is the message we need to spread. We need to be active in our communities. We need to be talking to our friends and neighbors. We need to show the new face of Scouts. We need to tell our stories. We need our kids to tell their stories. Nothing brings in new kids than seeing a group of kids loving what they are doing. Sign up to work booths at community day. March in the 4th of July parade. Take them to talk with their representative. Go forth into the community and do good things. volunteer at other organizations to help run events.  

Toos Day - Women in Scouting

National Women's Day

Today, March 8, 2022 is International Women's Day. I have thought about this for a few days before getting it all together. I know that I have focused on Girl Troops in BSA, but I started thinking about the world of Scouting. Women have played a vital role in Scouting long before they were allowed to join Scouting.

Without women being actively involved as den mothers, scoutmasters, assistant scoutmasters, committee volunteers, the program would not be where it is today. The fact that it took until 2019 when international scouting has included girls for decades sometimes baffles me. Scouting Wire attempted to highlight the accomplishments of five women. They saved 5 for the scout moms.  I looked at the other 4 and I thought to myself, they struggled to look back and honor women in scouting. The organization was exclusively for boys until 2019. Yes, I know that Ships, and Crews allowed co-ed children 14+ for a long time, but as we all know recruiting kids at 14 is not an easy task. It was a difficult task as there are no high-profile individuals to really highlight. I am hoping in 20-25 years an article like this will have a much different appearance. I was glad that this article did mention the unsung heroes, the scout moms. 

I recently completed Woodbadge N6-544-21, and what I found is that the leadership of Scouts is comprised of a large percentage of women. Without these dedicated women, Scouts would not exist. They were the former Den Mothers, and help build Troops by keeping activities fun, and Cubs involved. They gave their time so their sons could reap the benefits, all the while knowing that their daughters were not able to officially join. They brought their other children often girls with them, and they joined the activities, planting the seeds of change over a generation. These countless women laid the groundwork for family scouting. They are the real agents of change. While we look at the decisions of the National BSA, Local Councils, Dens, and Troops making changes, these Den Leaders as we call them now have had an impact well beyond most of their years of service. They went on the campouts, they taught the skills, and they planned the activities that allowed Cub to cross over to Scouts. They are an example that in certain realms, man or woman, isn't an important factor. They are the true unsung heroes of the Girls in Scouting movements. 

I was told that Den Mothers used to wear the pale yellow shirt and had a separate patch to enumerate their involvement. I have met a few female Scouters that still adorn the pale yellow shirt, and they have enjoyed explaining when they got involved. These women who wear the pale yellow still for the most part are the reason that our girls are involved today. I like to think of this uniform as the "throwback" uniform. 

I hope that as we move forward we can look at some of the ways that policies make access to scouting more difficult. We need to look at a world in which two female leaders can take a group of boys on an outing, but a group of two male leaders needs a female leader or parent to include a girl. This extra burden can ultimately impact access and recruitment. A single parent with multiple children might not have the ability my family did when dad just volunteered. It is a double standard, and it does have impacts. 

Today is National Women's Day, while I believe advocacy of equality can be part of it, I do not want to end with that. I would like to recognize all of the amazing women that I have come to know through my time in Scouting. The selfless, giving, and amazing spirit they bring to our organization. To the leaders, committee members, and women who support our organization, there is no recognition big enough to give you. To the young women blazing the path for those to come behind you, thank you for taking a brave and bold step to starting something that you will only watch grow and expand. 

-Adam

Thank you to the ladies that made this picture possible - A Scoutmaster is Sleepy.

Again thank you for taking the time to read and hopefully enjoy this post. If you would like more of these, click the follow button on the blog. Again, I am amazed how many eyes are set upon this every week.  I know professionals would see this as a small number, but to me 1000 views is amazing. Also, I am from New Birth of Freedom, Troop 1019, Linglestown. We love to leave Council and try new experiences. If you ever in the area, or would like to try to meet up as a Troop, feel free to reach out. Expanding the world is part of our goals, and without dedicated Scouters, like yourselves, it wouldn't be possible. Thank you again! 

A Special Group of Girls, and Leaders

 

The 2019 opening of Girls in BSA created a special group of girls. I have thought about this many times. These ladies are doing something amazing, with every merit badge, every rank advancement, and every adventure they take. Sometimes the road is fun and easy.  Sometimes the is met with external challenges. The same is true for leaders. There is oftentimes that when you are doing something, you are the first in your area, state, or country. That is pretty amazing. Getting your messaging, and what you are doing out to your area is important. My daughter at 9 years old taught me that. 

I came across the above picture, my wife made it after my daughter's first Scout camping trip. The New Birth of Freedom's bi-annual council event Wizzard Safari. During this event, the VIPs and staff were given poker chips with Baden Powel's picture on it. They had value in their color with black being the rarest and saved for only a select few. Scott Perry - 10th Congressional District, Pennsylvania, was one of those individuals. Abby had spent a day going to over 20 stations and doing all kinds of fun things. I was with her due to the requirements, I was beaten down and exhausted from our day. However, not wanting to ruin Abby getting her prize for getting over 20 stations, I hung in, long after the rest of the troop went back to camp. We were just awarded our non-weight bearing carabiners. The camp was on top of the hill, I was dreading the last climb of the day when I spotted the Congressmen.  I pointed it out in passing, but my kid wanted to meet him. I walked over and introduced myself, and my child. While introducing herself, my kid, even at 9 years old was aware that she was doing something new and was excited, to tell this person, who seemed important. 

Honestly, I was not sure how he would react. Scott Perry is a former Lt. Colonel and seems as conservative as you can get. Yes, I made assumptions. I assumed that he would answer like a politician. With a smile, and handshake. This turned out completely different than expected. As my daughter told her story about being the first girl from our small town, and how important this event was. She was the first girl from Pack 233 to ever attend. She was proud of herself. She shared her whole story, from the confusion and bit of struggle getting her den on board. To the fact she was pushed down on the playground the day before her first meeting and told: "Scouts are for boys" (That attitude took a 180-degree change over the 2 years she was with her boys, they were quite sad to learn she would have to leave them). She told her whole story.  Not once did he attempt to stop her, not once did he try to get away. Even as the line to meet him grew. He listened to her, with this attention that you could feel. 

When she was done talking to him, he asked her if she would like a picture to remember this. My phone was dead, as happens almost every campout. His assistant took pictures with his phone. Asked me for my phone number, and texted them to me to make sure I did not miss this moment. I thought that was a moment. However, it got even better. 

He looked at my daughter and said, "I was given a chip that I was to award when I saw something special, and I think what you are doing is beyond special". He reached in his pocket and presented my 9-year-old with a black poker chip. She still has it. She understood the moment even at that young age and saw her chance to share her Scouting story. 

I share this story because getting our Scout's message out is important. Many do not understand what girls are looking for, or doing, or the impact their participation will have. What sharing their Scouting story with others does, is validates feelings. Many of those that have a scouting background will acknowledge, and appreciate the hunger and desire to be the best person they can be. They will remember the excitement as a young person doing these activities.  They will be less closed off to the idea of any child due to gender being denied the opportunities that Scouts provide. Many have realized that Scouts is not being destroyed by all of these changes, but is enhanced that other children get these experiences regardless of gender. My daughter does not have a 2019 founders patch from her troop. She was not officially a member at charter. She was a Webelo 1 in a pack with a long history. A pack that existed when her dad was a kid (I did not Scout as a child). Countless Halloween parades, Pinewood Derbys, Blue and Gold Banquets, and Crossing Over ceremonies. However, she knows that she was the first girl from town to get her AOL award. She has her arrow and her shadowbox. Those experiences will be hers forever. She is still close with the group of boys from her old den. 

As she progresses, she is now an unofficial founder for her Troop, excited to be a Den Chief so she can show other girls what they can do. Growing, learning, and most of all enjoying the process. We are blessed to have a great Scoutmaster that loves these girls like their own. We are lucky to have Troop 10's boys and Scoutmasters that love sharing their love of Scouting with them. I can only hope that through sharing their Scouting stories with others, some of the misinformation can be dismissed, and some of the apprehension from some can be eliminated. I look forward to a day that Girls being in Scouts is not new. When scout sign-ups occur it is just as normal for a girl to be there with her wide-eyed excitement about one day carrying her pocket knife, as the 3rd-grade boy. For this to happen, this special group of girls need to Scout on, continue to be amazing, and blaze the path. 

Thank you for reading.  If you are enjoying the readings, please feel free to share a link https://bit.ly/BSAGirlsToo , and please like and subscribe. 

Toos Day - A Scout is Helpful - A Message from Ukraine

I am sure that you all know, but on February 24, 2022, Russia began a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. I know that there is an active Scouting movement in Ukraine. I reached out to their organization to find out what we as Scouts could do, and what they wanted us as part of the Movement to know. It took a few days, but I got the following response.

Courtesy https://liveuamap.com/

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Scouting in the United States, greetings from the National Organizations of Scouts of Ukraine. We wish to thank Scouts of the USA for their support. We see the public meetings of thousand of people you take part in, we see your attempts to reach out to your government, politicians, all your connections in power in your country. 

This gives us hope and encouragement. Your messages and actions help us to keep people’s spirits high and hold on for a little longer. Scouts of NOSU carry out various important actions to support the citizens of Ukraine, both the civilian population and the territorial defense, also Armed forces of Ukraine, the Red Cross. Our members provide people in shelters with food, clothing, means of heating and support services. 

We do our best to save people’s lives and stop the war. We believe that together we can make a difference! NOSU asks you to raise awareness of our situation and impact those who do not want to end the war. 

There are many National Scout organizations from the whole of Europe and world, who have been supporting us since the first day of a full-scale war, and we are extremely grateful to all of you. Your support and concern means a lot! Every Ukrainian Scout feels now more than ever that they are part of a big world Scout family!“

Thank you, Adam.

Best regards, 

Olha.

Olha Dybkaliuk 

International Commissioner
National Organization of Scouts of Ukraine

Olha also asked me to share the following from the National Organization of Scouting Ukraine. 

Dear friends in Scouting and Guiding,

We at the National Organization of Scouts of Ukraine (NOSU) prepared this document to reply to so many messages of support that all of us receive literally every second. It is unfortunately not possible to reply to all of you with our own words, as the situation is unstable, we often are asked to move to shelters where there is no internet, some of us stay in shelters all the time.

First of all, we all are sincerely grateful for your concern. The support of the international community is crucial for the security of our people at this time. Thank you for your kind words and all the help you are willing to provide!

The National Board of NOSU is in touch to the best extent possible with all our Scout groups, our leaders, and young people. We are facilitating communication with neighboring countries Scouts, who are helping those Ukrainian Scout families, who decided to move abroad. 

Here is what you and your NSO can do to help us in this difficult situation:

1. With the help of WOSM, we launched a Scout Donation Platform campaign to raise funds for humanitarian help which will be needed as soon as the situation calms down. 

Here is the link to donate if you feel like it: https://bit.ly/scoutsukraine

Official WOSM communication can be found here: 

https://www.facebook.com/WOSM.OMMS/photos/a.10150253538916914/10158660391706914

2. Another option to send help directly to Ukraine is to donate to the Ukrainian Red Cross. Here is the official page for donations: 

https://donate.redcrossredcrescent.org/ua/donate/~my-donation?_cv=1&ns_ira_cr_arg=IyMjIyMjIyMjIyMjIyMjIyMjIyMjIyMjIyMjIyMjIyMz1M9LG%2FD%2F3HOPsyNe7G4hi7MNiOcJZVcQbKQH4abHlwIfprXbhWe4hNVAr9YwTD7Y7djc7%2BaNom9Weak4QzSBlI2zC%2Bd0%2FZzrMQ0GyxuqCctMN3%2BlIj4Giciwt0Pv2X0%3D

You can also donate directly at their website using the button "Donate": https://redcross.org.ua/donate/?fbclid=IwAR0SDpzXLIy8jJ3l3jisdP8mJYz4LSeRucKGEddLvhUslrGFKvCQ4H59zTU

3. [NEW]  Kyiv School of Economics charity foundation started fundraising campaign for humanitarian aid and other needs of Territorial Defense Units of different Ukrainian cities, their goal is to raise 2.5 million USD. You can help at this link:  https://kse.ua/donation/   You can learn more here: https://kse.ua/

4. A non-financial thing you can do is to reach out to your government, politicians, all your connections in power in your country in any way possible to raise awareness of our situation and ask for stronger measures to be taken. We think that more sanctions need to be imposed by them to support Ukraine. 

5. We are in close contact with the NSO leadership in Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania and they all are very helpful in terms of welcoming our Scouts in their countries. If you have any other suggestions of help and support, please feel free to send any useful information to NOSU's official email address: international@ukrscout.org

Finally, we might not be very quick in replying, but please be sure that every message and every email is read. We will come back to everyone in due course, we just prioritize answering strategic messages over answering messages with words of support. But all of them are equally important to us.

NOSU National Board is following the latest developments and stays alert for all our members. We stay strong and pray for the best. Please join us in our prayers too.

Thank you very much again! Your support and concern mean a lot! Every Ukrainian Scout feels now more than ever that they are part of a big world Scout family!

NOSU National Board

Today for Toos Day, I ask you to share these messages, and please keep these brothers and sisters in your thoughts and prayers. These young men and women did not ask for any of this. They did nothing to bring upon this suffering. If you can help with materials, or monetary help, do so, but a Scout is Helpful - and #4 is something that we can encourage our scouts to do.

May our fellow Scouts find peace soon, and only know peace moving forward.

YIS,

Adam