Troop Policy Manuals

Early on in my tenure as a Scoutmaster I wrote a Troop Policy Manual.

Truth be told I wrote it out of frustration with some perennial discipline, attendance and logistical problems. As it turns out establishing written policies did not solve any of these ‘problems’.

Ultimately I realized that the problems I was trying to solve were actually the price of doing business as a Scoutmaster; as soon as a hard and fast set of rules was written there were many compelling reasons to modify or ignore them. A brief review of about twenty different Troop Policy Manuals or similar documents reveals that my fellow Scouters are wrestling with the same issues, and occasionally trying to reinvent Scouting. Some manuals were mercifully brief, others were 20 plus pages of boilerplate (the winner was 70-some pages long!). The three most prevalent and often the most lengthy sections of these manuals deal with youth leadership, attendance and discipline. YOUTH LEADERSHIP Many troops have instituted a contract or similar document to be signed by the youth leader accepting a position of leadership.

I did the same thing, but soon discovered that such measures were powerless, ill-advised and silly. If a Scout lacks the internal integrity or maturity to fulfill the requirements of his position of leadership he will not be swayed by signing a commitment or contract. What purpose will a contract serve other than brow beating the Scout who signed it? If we must use such measures to compel our Scouts to service we have sadly missed the boat.

I have tried brow beating, shaming and pressuring and compelling Scouts to preform and regretted every word. A much better measure is a Scoutmaster that deals with inevitable missed steps from his youth leaders with an inspirational and encouraging attitude. ATTENDANCE Many of the manuals I read set specific attendance percentages of meetings and outings for a Scout to be considered ‘active’. Some even instituted a mathematical system that established a membership status, periodic notices and a system of classification that ultimately led to a non attending Scout being removed from the Troop’s roster. The time required to maintain the bookwork for such a system makes my head spin.

Scouts may have many reasons for missing meetings and outings that can’t be written into any policy – for Pete’s sake, they are in the throes of adolescence. That there are no established national standards for attendance or scout spirit indicates that this is a judgment call on the part of a Scoutmaster approving these requirements.

Setting up some numerical standard for attendance is contrary to the spirit of Scouting. DISCIPLINE Almost every manual I reviewed had a discipline policy of some sort. Many troops have adopted a set of steps that prescribe notices, demerits, conferences and procedures for expulsion.

These policies will not eliminate discipline problems; boys that need disciplinary action will not modify their behavior because there is a draconian set of disciplinary measures.

Disciplinary problems are as individual as the Scouts that create them. It follows that they must each be approached individually. If the Scoutmaster’s hands are tied by a written policy her ability to work with her Scouts is severely limited.

There were also some attempts to alter Scouting in some curious and often harmful ways: This one is pure invention. What ends it is meant to serve?

Requirements for Tenderfoot through First Class must be signed off in the scout’s handbook within 30 days of completing the requirement. Here a Troop has established some new youth leadership positions, I wonder where they get their insignia?

Conduct of Troop Meetings and outings (including campouts) are the responsibility of the boy leadership of the Troop including the Senior Patrol Leader (SPL), Senior Assistant Senior Patrol leader (SASPL), Junior Assistant Senior Patrol Leader (JASPL) The same troop also added a step to the advancement process; Scout Skills Assessment Reviews are required for the ranks of Tenderfoot through First Class. How sad that this Troop has potentially limited the number of boys who will be admitted to membership. Any boy who wants to be a Scout should be welcomed, not excluded: The Scoutmaster and troop committee may limit the number of new Scouts admitted each year to maintain overall troop size at a level that allows for a quality program, based on current membership, the number and quality of adult leaders, and anticipated membership losses. Some rules were puzzlingly humorous; If an adult wears a “Indiana Jones” styled hat, it must have the Boy Scout medallion on the front. Some rules were boldfaced contravention of national policy: Per vote of the troop committee, parents of scouts may not pass off their son on a merit badge for which there exists other counselors.

Troop committees simply may not vote to overturn national policies! One Troop had a refreshingly short statement that deals with every possible situation; The troop presently has no formal policy or contract, as some troops do.

However, all scouts are expected to respect the the Scout Oath and the Scout Law. We still have a document called our “Troop Family Guide”. It is much shorter than it used to be. We don’t have a discipline policy (other than one similar to the one above). We don’t have an attendance policy. Our family guide is intended to answer logistical or specific operational questions that cannot easily be found in the Scout handbook. If your Troop maintains a policy manual, bylaws or other such document it should be reviewed for conformity to national policy, simplicity, clarity and should be free of practices that undermine the spirit of Scouting.