Choosing the Perfect Scouts BSA Troop

Your Cub will soon cross over from the Cub Scout program to Scouts BSA, and if you're a little lost about what comes next—we got you covered! To help you and your Scout through this crucial transition, we've put together a few questions to help you decide which troop fits your family's style the best, along with some tips and tidbits to make the transition smooth.

First on the to-do list: find and visit as many Scouts BSA troops as possible! If you need help finding your local council, find it here.

More than likely, your den already has a visit set up with a local troop, and maybe even more than one. If so, that's awesome! It's great to take advantage of those visits and make sure to visit any other troops in the area to gauge how each one is run and how each is different.

From hiking and rock climbing to camping, fire building, and cooking, your Scout will learn many valuable skills throughout their journey in Scouts BSA. They will gain self-confidence and leadership skills that help them excel later in life, making friendships that last a lifetime. Here are some essential questions you can ask during your next visit to a troop in your area:

• What are food safety measures to ensure kids aren't consuming raw or undercooked food?
• How do you break kids up into the patrols?
• Do you allow volunteers to go to summer camp and help out if they aren't leaders?
• Do you go to high adventure bases? If so, when?
• What months do you go camping? When the weather is not great, what are alternative plans (if any)?
• What kind of communication do you have for the parents? Email? Social Media? Website?
• How often does the troop go to merit badge clinics/have merit badge days?
• Does the troop provide tents for campouts? What camping equipment do Scouts need for the troop campouts? 
• Do kids wear Class A's for troop meetings? When do they wear Class B's troop shirts (are these jeans and a Scout shirt or uniform pants and a Scout shirt)? How soon do you expect the patches to be updated on Class A's?
• How does your troop handle advancement?
• How many registered Scouts are in the troop, and how many are active? Smaller troops can allow quicker leadership opportunities! Larger is not necessarily better – the right fit means for each individual!
• What service projects does the troop do?
• What does the troop do for fundraising?
• What participation or training is expected of parents?

Pro tip: Ask about the age distribution of the troop – a good mix of ages signals involvement at all levels of Scouting!

For the Crossover ceremony, remember that you may be involved in the ceremony, or at the very least, probably have pictures taken – be sure to wear something nice!

Read our blog here if you have more questions regarding the Bridging ceremony.

When it comes to deciding which troop is suitable for your Scout and your family, some of the best advice that we have heard is to allow your Scout to choose based on where they are comfortable and where they will want to go and participate, whether their Cub Scout friends are there or not! This is a great conversation to have with your Scout. Their friends might not be there the whole way through.

If you are a leader reading this, one of the best things you can do for new parents and Scouts looking for their troop is to have a complete information packet with FAQs, required materials for troop meetings, equipment needed for campouts, and troop statistics! And if you haven't done so already, checkout Scoutbook— your go-to tool for tracking advancement, milestone achievements, and all the Scouting fun when you're off the grid.