Every Scout Deserves Trained Leaders
Every Leader Deserves to be Trained
Updates
Safeguarding Youth Training – One Person’s Impression
Youth Protection Training has been replaced by Safeguarding Youth Training, which is valid for one year. The subsequent annual review will be a 15-20 minute refresher with a review test. Adult scout leaders are encouraged to take the new training soon, although Youth Protection Training is valid until it expires.
Your council training chair recently took the 90-minute Safeguarding Youth Training. The training seemed to be more applied. Various scouters presented a good portion of the information, rather than relying primarily on professional experts. While the training is an improvement, it still seems a bit long. The shorter refresher with a review test will be welcome, even if it is on a yearly basis.
Roundtable
We propose bi-monthly roundtables early in the evening of the 2nd Tuesdays of the month.
Proposed dates for Scouts BSA adult Leaders: Sep 9, Nov 11, Jan 13, Mar 10, May 12, Jul 14 – from 5:30 to 6:10 pm.
Proposed dates for Senior Patrol Leaders and Patrol Leaders: Oct 14, Dec 14, Feb 10, Apr 14, Jun 9, Aug 11 – from 5:30 to 6:10 pm.
Training of the Month
Happy summer vacation!
Council Training Calendar
We propose the following training events in the coming year, subject to change:
Sep 6 – Cub Scout Leader Position-Specific In-Person Training – Saturday 8 am to 12:30 pm, Blue Mountain Council Service Center, 8478 W Gage Blvd, Kennewick WA
Oct 17-18 – Basic Adult Leader Outdoor Orientation (BALOO) – 6 pm Friday to 5 pm Saturday, location TBD
Oct 24-25 – Introduction to Outdoor Leadership Skills (IOLS) – 6 pm Friday to 5 pm Saturday, Sacajawea State Historical Park
Apr 10-11 – Introduction to Outdoor Leadership Skills (IOLS) – 6 pm Friday to 5 pm Saturday, Sacajawea State Historical Park
May 1-2 – Basic Adult Leader Outdoor Orientation (BALOO) – 6 pm Friday to 5 pm Saturday, location TBD
Wood Badge Adult Leadership Training Out-of-Council
Aug 15-17 and Aug 23-24, 2005 at Camp Morrison, McCall, Idaho (about 320 miles away, north of Boise, Idaho. Hosted by the Mountain West Council. $255 – More information is available at: https://www.mountainwestcouncil.org/WoodBadge
August 20-24, 2025 (7 am Wednesday through 5 pm Sunday) at Camp Thunderbird [11740 Summit Lake Rd NW, Olympia WA – about 260 miles away, west of Olympia]. Hosted by the Pacific Harbors Council over five consecutive days. The course director is Chris Panush – cpanush@gmail.com – 360.561.9302. The course fee is $315 if paid in full by July 25th. The theme is “Making Connections, Making a Difference”. Additional information is available at https://scoutingevent.com/612-WoodBadge2025 or at https://www.pacificharbors.org/resources/leader_tools/training/wood-badge
September 26-28 and October 11-12 at Camp Pigott in Monroe, WA (about 240 miles away, north of Seattle, Washington). $300 – More information is available at https://seattlebsa.org/training/wood-badge/
October 3-5 and 11-12, 2025 at Butte Creek Scout Rance in Scotts Mills, Oregon (about 260 miles away, east of Salem, Oregon. $325 – More information is available at https://cpcbsa.org/upcoming-events/wood-badge/
A list of all Wood Band and NYLT courses in our Territory 1 and nearby is available at:
National Youth Leadership Training (NYLT) Out-of-Council
A list of all Wood Band and NYLT courses in our Territory 1 and nearby is available at:
Help Wanted (It’s fun and rewarding to get involved with training!)
New trainers can be trained through the Fundamentals of Training and the Trainer’s EDGE courses.
Lies, Darn Lies, and Statistics (How are we doin’?)
The council report for the Blue Mountain Council shows that 36.9% of the leaders are trained, a slight gain over the 36.4% value from last month. While 100% trained would be the ideal, the near-term goal is 50%. We can achieve that if we work together. Numerous individuals can regain their trained status by taking the 30-minute online Hazardous Weather training.
Youth Protection Training, which is required for all leaders, is at 95.4%, for the council; a slight decrease from the 96.7% value for last month.
Program Livecasts
Links can be found in Facebook (Scouting magazine | Facebook) and on YouTube (Scouting Magazine – YouTube). Recent topics include:
#CubChatLive! – Fridays at noon Pacific Time – Recent topics:
- Jul 25 – “Share your awesome activities, pack meeting and ceremonies with other leaders!”
- Jul 18 – “How selling popcorn can help your Cub Scout pack thrive”
- Jul 11 – “Meet the new Cub Scout Chair!”
- Jun 27 – “Family Adventure Camp”
- Jun 20 – “STEM Series: Technology Elective Adventures Across Ranks”
- Jun 13 – “Learn More about Scouting America’s new Safeguarding Youth training”
- Jun 6 – “Building Relationships with Schools”
- May 30 – “New Online Pack Meeting Resources”
- May 23 – “Let’s take a look at the brand-new Den Meeting Resource Card Deck”
- May 16 – “STEM Series: Engineering Elective Adventures Across Ranks”
- May 9 – “STEM Series: Math Elective Adventures”
- May 2 – “STEM Series: Science Elective Adventures Across Ranks”
#TroopTalkLive – 2nd Wednesdays of the month, noon Pacific Time
- July 23 – “Looking for more High Adventure?”
- July 9 – “Shape the future of Scouts BSA on the National Youth Council”
- Jun 18 – “Here’s what you missed from the National Annual Meeting”
- May 14 – “What’s new with Scoutbook”
- Apr 9 – “Scouting for Clean Waterways”
- Mar 19 – “Scouts BSA clothing guidelines”
- Feb 19 – “The New Scouts BSA Test Lab”
Trek on Tuesday – Tuesdays at noon Pacific Time
- Jul 1 – “Your Scout can help build America’s nuclear-powered submarine fleet”
- Jun 17 – “Live from Philmont: The 2025 season is underway, and here’s how to get a great deal on 2026 treks!”
- Jun 10 – “The 2025 Scout Life Gear Up for Camping Giveaway is here!”
- June 3 – “Live (with s’mores) from the National Annual Meeting Exhibit Hall”
Contact:
Council Training Chair: Brad Ross bluemttrain@gmail.com
Your Feedback:
Please submit your pithy comments to your council training chair (see email address above), either for his eyes only or for the readers of this column to see. If your comments are useful (and entertaining?), you’ll see them in a future Training Trails column. We welcome your ideas to help improve the training in our council. Many thanks!