On behalf of the commissioner, staff, and the council leadership team, thank you so much for bringing Scouting to life in the Greater New York Councils through your volunteer service! We know the past two years have been tough for Scouting in New York City. Throughout these difficult times, your passion and dedication have continued to foster the spirit of Scouting, providing a program that our young members desperately need.
The rechartering season is now upon us, and this letter will serve as a guide as you register youth members and leaders for 2022. This year brings a new platform for rechartering. Your recharter can be completed on Scoutbook or My.scouting by your unit’s key 3. To learn more about the new platform please review this PowerPoint https://www.scouting.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Internet-Rechartering-2.0-User-Guide-Michaela-Monson.pdf
Safety is the top priority of the Scouting program. To ensure only the highest level of Scouting volunteers, all adult members of the program must have a criminal background check on file. As you work on the recharter and you notice a Scouter whose Additional-Disclosures-And-Background-Check-Authorization needs to be uploaded, please upload the signed disclosure form via the hyperlink. If a leader’s disclosure form is not on file it will be indicated next to the leader’s name as you work on the recharter. In addition, since our units recharter in the first quarter of each calendar year, all leaders listed on unit charters are highly recommended to have taken youth protection training in January 2021 or later. You can check your personal status anytime at my.Scouting.org. If a leader’s youth protection training is not current it will be indicated next to the leader’s name as you work on the recharter.
Helpful Links
- Annual Charter Agreement – www.scouting.org/filestore/membership/pdf/524-182_web.pdf The Charter agreement needs to be completed with the unit charter.
- Insurance Policy – www.scouting.org/health-and-safety/alerts/insurance
Also, please download My.Scouting and Scoutbook.
Greater New York Councils Updates
- Email Contact – sign up to receive email updates and the council enewsletter www.nycscouting.org/emailalerts
- GNYC Help Desk – The GNYC volunteer support desk and knowledge base are tools to help provide quick assistance and resolution to questions you may have regarding policies, programs, and procedures related to GNYC Scouting. You can access the knowledge base here https://support.nycscouting.org/support/home and submit a request for assistance.
- Becoming a “Trained Leader” – Leader-specific training (den leader, cubmaster, scoutmaster, crew advisor, committee member, or chartered organization representative) plus YPT earns you the distinction of being a “Trained Leader”. We encourage all direct contact leaders (den leader, cubmaster, scoutmaster, crew advisor) to become “Trained Leaders” by taking the appropriate training course(s).
- Form Hub – Ever wanted a one-stop-shop for all your Scouting form needs? The National Office has developed www.scouting.org/forms to help you find all the Scouting forms you could ever need!
- Council Calendar Available 24/7 – The council and eight districts have developed incredible activities for our Scouts and training opportunities for adults taking place throughout the year. Visit us any time to learn more at https://nycscouting.org/calendar
- Merit Badge Counselors – if a Scouter in your unit should be listed as a Merit Badge Counselor but the correct information does not appear on their my.scouting profile please send a completed merit badge counselor application to Marcelle.Grant@scouting.org so we can update your profile.
Yours in Scouting,
James Delorey
Council Commissioner
Greater New York Councils, BSA