Boy Scouts of America Leatherstocking Council
Growing Tomorrow's Leaders, Today!
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
According to research conducted by The John Templeton Foundation, and the Institute for Applied Research in Youth Development at Tufts University, as Scouts’ tenure in the program increases, they report higher levels of trustworthiness, intentional self-regulation, hopeful future expectations and better grades. Scouts who regularly attend meetings, report higher outcomes when compared to those with lower attendance. Scouts are more likely to embrace positive social values than non-Scouts. Scouts showed a four-fold increase in obedience and helpfulness when compared to non-Scouts. While Scouts showed a two fold increase in cheerfulness and helpfulness, non-Scouts showed a two-fold decrease in these attributes. Scouts showed a three-fold increase in hopefulness when compared to non-Scouts. When youth are hopeful about the future, it is proven they are more likely to do well in school, have higher career aspirations and make more thoughtful choices.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Cub Scouts
Cub Scout activities are centered around earning badges that are specific to each school grade level. This badge represents a rank. Advancement refers to the progress a Cub Scout makes toward their badge of rank. All of the activities for each rank are in the Cub Scout handbooks. Based on different topics such as hiking, nature, science, citizenship, first aid, sports, and more, adventures are earned as a Cub Scout advances toward their badge of rank. Once an adventure is completed, a Cub Scout receives recognition in the form of an adventure loop or adventure pin.
Camping
Not all Boy Scout camps are created equal. Sure, each offers a terrific program to entertain and challenge Scouts, but every Scout camp has unique program elements that make it special.
Organized camping is a creative, educational experience in cooperative group living in the outdoors. It uses the natural surroundings to contribute significantly to physical, mental, spiritual, and social growth.
◾Camping contributes to good health.
◾Camping helps campers develop self-reliance and resourcefulness.
◾Camping enhances spiritual growth.
◾Camping contributes to social development.
◾Camping is an experience in citizenship training.
Venturing
Venturing is a youth development program for young men and women who are 13 and have completed the eighth grade, or age 14 through 20 years of age. Venturing's purpose is to provide positive experiences to help young people mature and to prepare them to become responsible and caring adults.
Venturing is based on a unique and dynamic relationship between youth, adult leaders, and organizations in their communities. Local community organizations establish a Venturing crew by matching their people and program resources to the interests of young people in the community. The result is a program of exciting and meaningful activities that helps youth pursue their special interests, grow, develop leadership skills, and become good citizens.
Venturing crews can specialize in a variety of avocation or hobby interests.
Goals
Young adults involved in Venturing will:
•Learn to make ethical choices over their lifetimes by instilling the values in the Venturing Oath and Code.
•Experience a program that is fun and full of challenge and adventure.
•Become a skilled training and program resource for Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, and other groups.
•Acquire skills in the areas of high adventure, sports, arts and hobbies, religious life, or Sea Scouting.
•Experience positive leadership from adult and youth leaders and be given opportunities to take on leadership roles.
•Have a chance to learn and grow in a supportive, caring, and fun environment.
Methods
The aims of the Boy Scouts of America are to build character, develop citizenship, and foster personal fitness. The Venturing methods listed below have been carefully designed to achieve the aims of the Boy Scouts of America and meet the needs of young adults.
•Leadership. All Venturers are given opportunities to learn and apply proven leadership skills. A Venturing crew is led by elected crew officers. The Venturing Leadership Skills Course is designed for all Venturers and helps teach them in an active way to lead effectively.
•Group Activities. Venturing activities are interdependent group experiences in which success is dependent on the cooperation of all. Learning by "doing" in a group setting provides opportunities for developing new skills.
•Adult Association. The youth officers lead the crew. The officers and activity chairs work closely with adult Advisors and other adult leaders in a spirit of partnership. The adults serve in a "shadow" leader capacity.
•Recognition. Recognition comes through the Venturing advancement program and through the acknowledgement of a youth's competence and ability by peers and adults.
•The Ideals. Venturers are expected to know and live by the Venturing Oath and Code. They promise to be faithful in religious duties, treasure their American heritage, help others, and seek truth and fairness.
•High Adventure. Venturing's emphasis on high adventure helps provide team-building opportunities, new meaningful experiences, practical leadership application, and lifelong memories to young adults.
•Teaching Others. All of the Venturing awards require Venturers to teach what they have learned to others. When they teach others often, Venturers are better able to retain the skill or knowledge taught, they gain confidence in their ability to speak and relate to others, and they acquire skills that can benefit them for the rest of their lives as a hobby or occupation.
Climbing
Leatherstocking Council currently provides youth with the opportunity and ability to take part in the outdoor program of climbing. The Leatherstocking Council currently owns a portable Climbing Wall and takes youth to natural rock for climbing activities.
Planning is in progress for a climbing tower to be located at Camp Henderson. It will soon be available for Scouts, Ventures and Explorers at Camp Henderson with the approval of the Climbing Committee and necessary staff.
Aquatics
On the shores of Crumhorn Lake, Henderson Scout Reservation offers numerous waterfront activities including swimming, canoeing, rowing, kayaking, sailing, SUPs, and snorkeling. Test your abilities on our iceberg or simply relax and enjoy the waters and spectacular views.
Merit Badge Opportunities
•Canoeing
•Kayaking
•Lifesaving
•Rowing
•Small Boat Sailing
•Swimming
Open Program Opportunities
•Boating (including Stand-Up Paddleboarding)
•Swimming
•Sailing
•Snorkeling
•Water Carnival
Where we work
External reviews
Photos
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of children who have the ability to understand and comprehend communication
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Cub Scouts
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
In order to advance, youth are given the opportunity to lead their peers and learn throughout all of our programs how to communicate, motivate and respond to communication challenges.
Number of children who have an innate motivation to master and control their environment
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Camping
Type of Metric
Context - describing the issue we work on
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
Scouting expands the comfort zones of our youth by presenting them with new challenges. Typically in a camping environment, these exercises may also be presented in pack or troop settings.
Number of children who have the ability to use language for expression and to communicate with others
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Cub Scouts
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
Youth in our program become very good at using language to express themselves and communicate with their packs and troops. Older Scouts have the opportunity to obtain a communications merit badge.
Number of children who have the skills necessary to maintain personal health
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Cub Scouts
Type of Metric
Context - describing the issue we work on
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
Personal health and fitness are critical components of all of our programs. They are so important that the Scout Oath contains the phrase, I will keep myself physically strong.
Number of youth who demonstrate leadership skills (e.g., organizing others, taking initiative, team-building)
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Cub Scouts
Type of Metric
Context - describing the issue we work on
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
For 109 years, BSA has established and maintained its reputation as being the most successful youth serving organization when it comes to the development of leadership skills.
Number of students with good social and leadership skills and self-discipline
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Cub Scouts
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
Scouting provides a safe, positive environment for youth to get outside, work together with their peers and each raises up the other when it comes to upholding the ideals of the Scout Oath and Law.
Number of youth who demonstrate civic participation skills (e.g., compromise, perspective-taking)
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Cub Scouts
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
On the average, each of our Scouts give 150 hours of community service each year!
Number of community initiatives in which the organization participates
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Cub Scouts
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
Just looking at our Eagle Scouts, we have 65+ community service projects initiated each year, plus council-wide initiatives like Scouting For Food that collects 50,000 food items for homeless Veterans
Number of youth-led community service projects
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Cub Scouts
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
While we have 150 troops and packs that conduct community service projects each year, our Eagle Scouts tend to attract the most attention with their community service projects.
Number of youth who volunteer/participate in community service
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Cub Scouts
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
100% of our youth participate in one or more community service projects each year. All of our youth are encouraged to take on a leadership role in choosing what project they complete.
Estimated dollar value of food donations distributed to community feedings programs
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Cub Scouts
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
Each year, our 3,000 members collect 50,000 nonperishable food items for homeless veterans and local food banks valued at over $250,000.
Number of youth who consider the implications of their actions on others, their community, and the environment
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Cub Scouts
Type of Metric
Context - describing the issue we work on
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
In all of our programs and our camping activities, our Scouts are taught to always be considerate of their actions and the impact they have on others, their community and the environment.
Number of youth who demonstrate that they avoid bullying behaviors
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Cub Scouts
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
Our youth members, adult leaders and staff are all required to take annual training in youth safety, which includes how to identify and prevent bullying behaviors. We have a zero tolerance policy.
Number of students who receive scholarship funds and/or tuition assistance
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Camping
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
In 2018, 159 Scouts received $25,815 worth of camperships (based on financial need). Another four Eagle Scouts each received $2,000 scholarships for college and/or trade school.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
BSA Leatherstocking Council serves approximately 4,400 youth in Delaware, Herkimer, Madison, Oneida, Otsego and Schoharie counties. That is approximately 6% of the total available youth in our market. Within the next five years, we seek to grow our membership to 10% to 15% of the total available youth in our market.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Recruiting new Scouts comes down to a noticeable presence in the community. Identifying motivated volunteers to work with staff to create new Cub Scout Packs, Boy Scout Troops, Venture Crews and Explorer posts. We train youth leaders as well to help recruit members through peer to peer solicitation, while the adult volunteers and staff focus on building and leveraging relationships with community groups. New Scouts are attracted to the same things that retain existing Scouts: fun and educational programs, exciting camping opportunities, clean and safe camps and fun opportunities for rank advancement.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Last year, we were the only one of nine councils in the Northeast Area to achieve growth in traditional membership. We did this by adding local district executives, so we are now fully staffed with one full-time recruiter per district (the Leatherstocking Council is divided up into four districts). Our limited staff compliments a roster of hundreds of capable and experienced adult leaders. We have a 400-acre Cub Scout Camp near Rome, NY and a 600-acre Boy Scout Camp near Cooperstown, NY.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Two years ago, we were the only one of nine councils in the Northeast to achieve growth in traditional membership. While only 2% of Scouting membership achieves the highest rank of Eagle Scout, for the last few years between 6% and 7% of our members have become Eagle Scouts. We celebrate these outstanding citizens each October and January. Over the past year, public events have raised our awareness. We have also doubled our Facebook followers and obtained a $5,000 grant for marketing along with $10,000 worth of Gift-in-kind television commercials. As our image is perceived in the community, so goes membership. Most recently, Mitt Romney's managing director of Bain Capital in Boston, MA, Mr. Steve Barnes, has pledged to donate $100,000 in memory of his father Robert Barnes, Sr., a longtime volunteer at Camp Kingsley, if we can raise $200,000 by July 4, 2020 for capital improvements. Given two-thirds of our membership are Cub Scouts, having this opportunity to improve the camping experience for our Cub Scouts will have a positive impact on retention and recruitment.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Boy Scouts of America Leatherstocking Council
Board of directorsas of 12/18/2019
Matt Dziedzic
Ross Berntson
Indium Corporation
Gus DeTraglia
DeTraglia Law
Dale Downin
Delaware County
Frank Dubeck
MD
Matt Dziedzic
Allstate Insurance
Kirk Evans
Favicon Consulting
Sean Fadale
Community Memorial Hospital
Ken Hawks
Retired
Peter Hedglon
Attorney
Matt Jacobs
Alion Science and Technology
Bill Kline
Adirondack Financial President
John Lauchert
Horizon CFO, LLC
Dave Leidy
U Source
Marybeth McCall
MD
Jared Miller
Prolifiq Sign Studio
Thomas Mills
Delaware Cnty Sheriff Dept.
Hank Nicols
Buffalo State College
Paul Obernesser
Retired Engineer
Mike O'Brein
NBT Bank Financial Services
Zachary Oren
City of Utica Attorney
Gary Scalzo
Scalzo, Zogby & Wittig
Joe Sellers
Dir. Of Eastern Operations, Bassett Healthcare
Kathleen Sellers
SUNY IT
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 12/18/2019GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We measure and then disaggregate job satisfaction and retention data by race, function, level, and/or team.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.