Dec 1, 2011
Greetings,
As the Advancement Chairman for the Great Alaska Council, I’d just like to say as we end the 2011 year things are going well, we are getting boys interested in Scouting and keeping them, and more are reaching Eagle. We have been through a lot of changes, with more to come, but the troops, packs, and crews are doing well and the kids are doing things that are exciting and holding their interest. Our council and its troops were featured in Boys’ Life Magazine twice in the past year, and in spite of a difficult economic period we are keeping this program running and there is a new drive to make our program second to none. As we look ahead I’m excited for even better things for the future.
There are a few things of significance I’d like everyone to be aware of as they pertain to advancement. First, there is a brand new BSA Guide to Advancement 2011 that outlines changes that are significant and in some cases far reaching. Every single scout leader should download this document and read how BSA wants us to conduct advancement within our units, districts, and council. It is our intention to follow this guidebook, so please become familiar with it. For all scouts who start their Eagle projects after January 1, 2012, the Eagle Project procedures within the new Guide to Advancement will be required. The changes are too significant to outline in this letter, but after you have read them, if you have questions, contact your district Advancement Chairman, or myself. Let’s all get on the same page, and make sure we are doing the program right!
The Merit Badge Counselor list is up to date, and has been published quarterly. It is still my goal to get it on the council website as soon as possible. BSA has specific requirements in order for it to be put on the web, and our website is being updated to accommodate those. Remember, the merit badge system is designed so that the scoutmaster approves a boy to begin working on a particular badge, and also chooses the counselor he wants the boy to see. Boys (or parents) do not select merit badge counselors. That is a scoutmaster responsibility. The merit badge counselor list is designed to provide the unit leaders with enough information to make these selections. As we end the year we need to figure out who plans to stay on the list, and who no longer wants to be a MB counselor. For MB counselors who recharter with a unit they will be automatically retained. For those who do not, we need to know what you want.
BSA has put in place new requirements and qualifications for certain MB counselors, as outlined in the Guide to Advancement 2011 as well as the Guide to Safe Scouting. If you are a counselor for one of these badges, we will need a copy of your qualifications in order to retain you in 2012. BSA is mandating a new emphasis on counselors being “qualified” to teach the badges they counsel, so please update what you have listed and try and be as specific as you can. Qualifications can be hobby related, a high interest item, or related to your profession or prior education. Counselors who do not list a specific qualification for merit badges will be removed from the list in 2012. We will send out letters as necessary to those individuals who do not let us know your intentions before the end of the year. To update the badges and qualifications, just download the latest MB Counselor sheet from the COUNCIL website, and use the council form. It provides all of the information we have to have in order to keep you listed.
I’ll end this note with a reminder that we are in full swing now making award nominations. There are awards for Cubmaster of the Year, Scoutmaster of the Year, and Silver Beaver and North Star awards being turned in now. Each district will also be nominating one Eagle candidate for the Glenn A & Melinda W Adams National Eagle Scout of the Year Award. Remember the Council’s upcoming Awards Banquet on 4 Feb, and please make your reservations early.
With your help, there is nothing we cannot accomplish.
Keep the Oath…
=S=
John C. Dieffenderfer
Advancement Chairman, Great Alaska Council
[Click for member's page]
- link for the new Advancement Guide 2011: /eu.aspx?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.scouting.org%2ffilestore%2fpdf%2f33088.pdf
- link for the Guide to Safe Scouting: /eu.aspx?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.scouting.org%2ffilestore%2fpdf%2f34416.pdf
- link for the Council MB counselor form: http://www.scoutingalaska.org/files/d/usr/4/GAC%20FORM%20revf.pdf