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.