Discipline & Behavior

The Scouting program is not designed to solve youth discipline problems — on the contrary it’s designed to build into youth the necessary character and responsibility to prevent discipline problems. The program needs all of the time available to it to accomplish these aims — thus administering the program to troop’s membership does not provide troop leadership any extra time to waste dealing with discipline problems. We believe it is the parents who should have the direct responsibility to instill and reinforce good manners, socially acceptable behavior, and respect for authority in their child.

The Troop Committee has established the following procedures concerning discipline:

1. Youth members are expected to live and act according to the Scout Oath, Law, Slogan,and Motto.

2. Rule infractions warrant verbal warnings or corrective actions and are administered by the Scoutmaster or Adult Leader supervising the activity. Examples of infractions include: vulgar or profane language, disruptive behavior, cheating, lying, and disrespect for adult and/or youth leadership. Corrective actions the Scoutmaster may take (but is not limited to) are outlined in the official Scoutmaster Manual of the Boy Scouts of America. They include:

  • “Time Out”: A scout who is rowdy during a troop meeting is asked to sit away from the group for 10 to 15 minutes.
  • “Loss of Privilege”: Free time or participation in a monthly scout outing is denied to those scouts who breach the limits of acceptable behavior.  
  • “Meeting Expulsion”: A scout who misbehaves during a troop meeting might be asked to call his parents to take him home and not finish the meeting.

3. Severe or continued rule infractions including theft, vandalism, the use of alcohol or drugs, fighting or any other physical abuse, will not be tolerated. The parents will be called to pick up their scout immediately, whether at a troop meeting or a distant camping trip. The parents are required to counsel the scout about his problematic behavior, and a follow-up call by the parents to the Scoutmaster to discuss the situation is required before the Scout may participate in any further troop meetings and/or activities.

4. The troop will work with the family to help come to an agreeable solution to the youth’s behavior problems, but further severe infractions may lead to expulsion from the troop. In these cases the Troop Committee will meet with the Scoutmaster and Assistant Scoutmasters, and make a decision on the expulsion.

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