RECRUITING, RETENTION AND ADVANCEMENT TOOLS
A new set of troop membership and retention tools on DVD was mailed from the National Boy Scout Division to all Scoutmasters.
The package includes videos that show:

• How to conduct successful recruitment meetings.
• How to maximize Webelos to Scout transitions.
• How to train boys to recruit their friends (there is a sample Recruiter patch with the materials).
• What Scout parents are saying about successful BSA programs.
• How to successfully complete requirements for Tenderfoot, Second Class and First Class.

Use these valuable resources to plan recruitment activities for your troop!
Now is the time to start planning for a great School Night campaign. We are working to recruit 400 new Scouts in the program for the district.

To have a successful recruitment campaign:

• Complete the building permit to have access to your recruitment location.
• Recruit a school night coordinator for your unit.
• Plan and execute an exciting School Night program that shows the sizzle of your program and exciting things done last year. Contact your unit commissioner if you need help.
• Develop a program calendar for the year to give to new and prospective parents. An organized program is the best recruitment tool to bring in new parents and Scouts.
• Set a recruitment goal to exceed the number of youth and parents you recruited last year.
• Follow up to make sure that any Scouts and parents who expressed an interest during School Night sign up and join the program
• Attend August Roundtable (Aug. 3, 7 p.m., at Immanuel Lutheran School) where we will kick off our SNJS campaign and talk about what resources are available for you to share Cub Scouting with all the boys in your community.
• Visit the council's SNJS page for more information.

Have you ever heard of "best practices"?  One benefit of being 100 years old is that the Boy Scouts of America knows what works and what doesn't.  The following detailed SNJS plan is one of those best practices and is used by units across the country.

1. Marketing experts tell us a person needs to be exposed to something seven times for best results.  We need parents and boys to hear about Scouting seven times!  This includes school flyers (two sets), posters at schools and on community billboards, yard signs, telephone calls, school and PTO/PTA newsletters, newspapers, television and radio announcements, stickers, tables at open houses, automated e-mail and phone blasts, classroom talks, boys wearing their uniforms to school that day and more!
2. Parents attend events when held at their children's school more often than when they are at a park, church, etc.  This is why most SNJS events are held at schools.  [Also see point 7 below.]
3. The SNJS event must be FUN!  It has to be more than a table with papers on it.  Set up a mock campsite, have some rope games, show pictures from campouts, have small giveaways, etc.  This is a night to sign up for Scouts and Scouts only.  It should be in addition to anything you do at a school open house or similar function.
4. Plan EARLY!  Parents want to see the pack's 2009-10 program calendar that night.  Make it full of fun outings.  Part of this also means setting your SNJS date early.  The council print shop needs at least two weeks' notice to print flyers (free to you) and district executives  needs even more advance time to arrange classroom talks with principals.  Set your SNJS date as soon as possible and notify the office of the details when you do.
5. "Be Prepared" -- Parents and boys should sign up THAT NIGHT.  This is not a night to learn about Scouts, take home a flyer and come back in the future if they want to join (although some can).  Have applications, spare change, your 2009-10 calendar, parent guides (available from the council), additional costs (den dues, uniforms, etc.), flyers showing where materials can be purchased and what they need, exact details about when and where the first meeting will be, position descriptions for recruiting new leaders, new den leader kits (available from the council), free T-shirts for the boys (if available at that time from the council), "Taste of Scouting" (Oct. 3 at Beaumont Scout Reservation) registration forms, posters and yard signs, displays showing the fun things your pack does, plenty of pens, someone to emcee the night, helpers to entertain the kids and someone to collect money and applications.  All unit leaders should be there.  Your commissioner staff will help too.  Other district personnel may be available to help.  Let us know if you need assistance.
6. Have a back-up plan!  If it rains on your outdoor event, do parents know where to go?  If you are locked out of the school when you arrive, do you know who to contact?  Can you set up in the parking lot if you have to?  It has happened before.  Be prepared.
7. If your program has been successful in the past, don't change it!  The points listed are the "best practices" of the SNJS plan.  However, you know your community best.  If the your area  knows Scouts recruit at a big park event every fall, then that's what they expect.  The district committee, commissioner staff and professional staff want to help you make it successful!
8. Immediately following the event, report the total number of new youth and adult applications received to the Headquarters

Although the SNJS plan focuses primarily on Cub Scouts because it is their first exposure to Scouting, every troop and crew can adopt similar plans for their fall recruitment events

UNIT RECRUITMENT LEADERS
Please turn in the name of the person in your Scout troop who is responsible for recruitment at Roundtable tonight!  Each Scoutmaster was mailed a letter requesting this information and an additional form is in each unit's materials for February's Roundtable.

NEW UNITS
Scouting is available to boys in first grade through age 20 and boys and girls ages 14-20. In addition, opportunities exist for churches, schools and community organizations to sponsor a new pack, troop or Venture crew.

W.D. BOYCE AWARDS*
Congratulations to the following W.D. Boyce Award winners.  These Scouters helped organize new units in the district and qualified for this award.

• Frank Grounds - Pack 7016 at Family Life Center in Herrin
• Jim Mitchell - Post 7090 at the Johnston City Fire Department

The William D. Boyce New Unit Organizer award is presented to recognize volunteers who organize one or more traditional scouting units ( pack, troop, Varsity team or Venture crew )  The award itself is a square knot against a background of gold, green and red, the three colors representing the three traditional programs of the BSA.

* To learn more about the W. D. Boyce Award, please contact Paula Fulkerson at 618-926-1270 or fulkerson3@hotmail.com.