What is a Scoutmaster?

(adapted from AAC Commisioner Jack Langford's Commissioner's Corner, September, 2000)

A Scoutmaster is the chief administrator, chief public relations person, chief spokesman, chief contact, and chief fundraiser for the troop. He must guide the setting of policies, resolution of disputes, determination of issues and priorities, and allocation of resources - financial, human, and material. He must have political skills while remaining apolitical. He must be able to walk comfortably with business and community leaders, and be just as comfortable with elementary age children, teachers, and parents from all walks of life. He must genuinely care about people as individuals and the human race in general. He must have a sense of history and from where we have come, and also a vision and a concern of what the future will need. He must have a passion for patriotism, even in time of peace. He must have a realistic sense of environmentalism, nature, the outdoors, and the earth. He must have the zeal of a missionary and the credibility of a grandmother. He must be a good judge of people and must deal with people respectfully and with dignity. He must accept criticism and disagreement with grace. He must be flexible to meet the variations in every day. He must meet each day and situation with enthusiasm and courage, and those two don't always mix easily. He must help the troop leaders, both youth and adult, deliver a worthwhile product and service. And above all, he must live the Scout Oath and Scout Law. His actions must speak louder than his words. He must be someone we can admire and be proud to recognize as the chief of our troop. Above all, the Scoutmaster must be the person that we all want our children to be.