Psssssst… Have you heard? The Journey to Excellence program that has been used by Scouting America to understand the health of its units for more than 30 years has been sunsetted. 2024 was its last year. So, how are we tracking unit health now? Unit Connections with Unit Metrics. But, what is that?
A “Unit Connection” is about a conversation between unit leaders and their single best resource, their unit commissioner. Just as other conversions are a sharing of thoughts, concerns, questions, ideas, and feelings between two or more people, so are Unit Connections. The unit commissioner records these conversations in my.scouting.org where they are visible to all concerned parties… unit, district, etc. Sometimes action items or goals come out of a converstion and these goals may be recorded along with the connection and future connections will include discussions about progress on these goals.
Unit Metrics is a collection of 5 objective key indicators: outdoor program, leader training, youth advancement, unit size, and unit growth. Each metric has a target threshold dependent on the Scouting America program. Reaching these thresholds is fully in the cointrol of the unit. Statistics show that the more of these metrics a unit meets, the more likely they are to renew their charter and renewing their charter means that the unit has a sufficiently engaging program to attract and retain enough Scouts and adult volunteers to form a viable unit.
Example Unit Connection
Pack 00 held their annual Pinewood Derby and, WOW! It was amazing. Nearly every Scout attended with their families. Family members also built and raced cars. They had an activity for the Scouts when they weren’t racing to learn the STEM behind the cars and the race. Well organized. Healthy snacks were available. Awards were ready within minutes of completing the final heats. All of this on the showroom floor of a local dealership. I repeat, WOW!
Example Goal
Pack 00 will prepare and present a how-to guide for an awesome Pinewood Derby at the district Roundtable in the fall of 2025.
Before Unit Metrics, commissioners would score their units from 1 to 5 based on their observations, discussions, and understanding of the units health, using their best judgement… subjective score. Now, with Unit Metrics, the unit dashboard in my.scouting.org shows how many of the 5 metrics the unit is meeting… objective indicator.
If you have any question about Unit Connections, Unit Metrics, or Unit Commissioners, please reach out to me at commissioner@northshoredistrict.org and I will be happy to have a more detailed discussion.
