SCOUT eh!
Encyclopedia
SCOUT eh! is an organization
of "registered Scouts Canada
members dedicated to transforming Scouts Canada into a democratic association". The name is an acronym for "Scouts Canada Ordinary-member Unity Taskforce Association".
SCOUT eh! was founded in August, 2004 by Scouter Mike Reid of Montreal
, Quebec
. As of September, 2006 it had over 700 members from every Scouts Canada council and Canadian province.
In 2000, Scouts Canada replaced its General By-Law with By-Law No. 1. The amendments replaced the 52-member National Council with a 23-member Board of Governors and divided the membership into Ordinary Members, who have no voting rights; and Voting Members, a group of 100 or fewer people who elect the Board and vote on matters presented to the national Annual General Meeting.
2002 saw the implementation of restructuring. Scouts Canada passed By-Law No. 2 which replaced the Provincial, Regional, and District Councils with 20 new councils, comprising an entire province or a large part of a province. Councils are led by a Council Commissioner, appointed by Scouts Canada's CEO, the top staff member. The Districts were transformed into Areas overseen by an Area Commissioner
appointed by and accountable to the Council Commissioner. Scouts Canada's Ontario Incorporated Body, which is the trustee
for most of the Scout camps in Ontario, quietly started a property review process.
By 2004, dissatisfaction was growing among some of Scouts Canada's membership. While some of the national leadership and staff considered the restructuring to be a success, some others at the local level objected to the changes and found the new system to be ineffective at helping Scouters deliver the program. The property review had also become public knowledge and Scouters were worried about losing local camps. An information session at an April, 2004 Scouts Canada conference near Toronto
did not reassure all the membership. In the middle of that summer, Scouts Canada produced a list of Scout camps they wanted to close.
During this time some volunteers, inspired by the leadership of Mike Reid, spearheaded the creation of a committee aimed at giving the disenfranchised membership direct management of the management and direction of Scouts Canada.
stations across Canada. In early September, he was interviewed on the Rafe Mair Show on the Vancouver
radio station 600am. Scouts Canada' Chief Commissioner, Mike Scott was interviewed following Reid and, while acknowledging that SCOUT eh! members were dedicated to Scouting, he rejected democracy and the possibility of a dialogue with SCOUT eh! members. This media publicity combined with word-of-mouth contributed to SCOUT eh!'s early rapid growth.
The first SCOUT eh! gathering, referred to as CAMP eh! was held September 24–26, 2004 at Camp Timken near Iona
in Ontario. Two-dozen Scouters including Scouters from Ontario
, Quebec
, and Newfoundland
gathered to learn about the issues, discuss strategy, and draft a constitution for the association.
Following CAMP eh!, SCOUT eh! published a series of backgrounders and short videos on its web site. Members continued to spread the word with fellow Scouters. Some newspaper stories spread word further. They also held a ratification vote on their constitution and, following its ratification, elections for leadership positions. This constituted the first democratic governance for a national association of Scouting members in Canada. The first National Officers were Mike Reid as Chair, Ted Claxton as Treasurer
, and Liam Morland as Secretary
.
. SCOUT eh! organized its first eh!GM (AGM) at Durham College
that weekend. Fifty SCOUT eh! members attended including Scouters from British Columbia
, Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia
, and Newfoundland. Following their meeting, SCOUT eh! members paraded to Camp Samac for the Scouts Canada AGM.
Ted Claxton addressed the meeting. Following his address, Mike Scott invited SCOUT eh! to submit a proposal to the Board of Governors regarding governance. The meeting had a friendly and conciliatory atmosphere.
As invited, SCOUT eh! submitted a governance proposal to the Board of Governors in January, 2005. In March, Mike Scott sent a response indicating that they had reviewed the proposal and believed it to be unworkable, but that they had asked the Operations Advisory Committee to consider changes to the process for selecting the three Voting Members from each council. No changes have resulted from this.
In June, 2005, SCOUT eh!'s National Officers met with Scouts Canada CEO Rob Stewart
. Mr. Stewart put them in contact with Keith Martin, a member of the Board of Governors working on developing a policy regarding democracy in Scouting. A meeting with Mr. Martin was held the following August. No progress towards democracy has resulted from this meeting.
In September 2006, SCOUT eh! announced it had surpassed 700 members nationally.
In 2007, Scouts Canada
announced Policy 1014 which requires that each council's Voting Members be elected by representatives of the council, and its areas and groups. While acknowledging that the system is an improvement, SCOUT eh! criticizes the policy because:
Organization
An organization is a social group which distributes tasks for a collective goal. The word itself is derived from the Greek word organon, itself derived from the better-known word ergon - as we know `organ` - and it means a compartment for a particular job.There are a variety of legal types of...
of "registered Scouts Canada
Scouts Canada
Scouts Canada is a Canadian Scouting association that, in affiliation with the French-language Association des Scouts du Canada, is a member of the World Organization of the Scout Movement...
members dedicated to transforming Scouts Canada into a democratic association". The name is an acronym for "Scouts Canada Ordinary-member Unity Taskforce Association".
SCOUT eh! was founded in August, 2004 by Scouter Mike Reid of Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. As of September, 2006 it had over 700 members from every Scouts Canada council and Canadian province.
Roots
In the late 1990s, Scouts Canada embarked on a restructuring process aimed at addressing the ongoing problem of membership decline. A team led by Larry Fox wrote what was officially known as the Millennium Report (sometimes called the Fox Report). The report described a dramatically more centralized and staff-directed structure for the association. The report was extremely unpopular with the portions of Scouts Canada's membership, especially those at the District level. Scouts Canada formally set aside the report, but continued work on restructuring.In 2000, Scouts Canada replaced its General By-Law with By-Law No. 1. The amendments replaced the 52-member National Council with a 23-member Board of Governors and divided the membership into Ordinary Members, who have no voting rights; and Voting Members, a group of 100 or fewer people who elect the Board and vote on matters presented to the national Annual General Meeting.
2002 saw the implementation of restructuring. Scouts Canada passed By-Law No. 2 which replaced the Provincial, Regional, and District Councils with 20 new councils, comprising an entire province or a large part of a province. Councils are led by a Council Commissioner, appointed by Scouts Canada's CEO, the top staff member. The Districts were transformed into Areas overseen by an Area Commissioner
Commissioner
Commissioner is in principle the title given to a member of a commission or to an individual who has been given a commission ....
appointed by and accountable to the Council Commissioner. Scouts Canada's Ontario Incorporated Body, which is the trustee
Trustee
Trustee is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, can refer to any person who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility for the benefit of another...
for most of the Scout camps in Ontario, quietly started a property review process.
By 2004, dissatisfaction was growing among some of Scouts Canada's membership. While some of the national leadership and staff considered the restructuring to be a success, some others at the local level objected to the changes and found the new system to be ineffective at helping Scouters deliver the program. The property review had also become public knowledge and Scouters were worried about losing local camps. An information session at an April, 2004 Scouts Canada conference near Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
did not reassure all the membership. In the middle of that summer, Scouts Canada produced a list of Scout camps they wanted to close.
During this time some volunteers, inspired by the leadership of Mike Reid, spearheaded the creation of a committee aimed at giving the disenfranchised membership direct management of the management and direction of Scouts Canada.
Early growth
Scouter Mike Reid's email in early August, 2004 caught the attention of many inside Scouts Canada who sent the email on to others they knew. The new association also caught the interest of the media. Reid did eleven interviews with various CBC RadioCBC Radio
CBC Radio generally refers to the English-language radio operations of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches, all of which are outlined below.-English:CBC Radio operates three English language...
stations across Canada. In early September, he was interviewed on the Rafe Mair Show on the Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
radio station 600am. Scouts Canada' Chief Commissioner, Mike Scott was interviewed following Reid and, while acknowledging that SCOUT eh! members were dedicated to Scouting, he rejected democracy and the possibility of a dialogue with SCOUT eh! members. This media publicity combined with word-of-mouth contributed to SCOUT eh!'s early rapid growth.
The first SCOUT eh! gathering, referred to as CAMP eh! was held September 24–26, 2004 at Camp Timken near Iona
Iona Station, Ontario
Iona Station is a hamlet located on the border of Dutton-Dunwich and Southwold Townships, in Elgin County, Ontario, Canada.The "station" in the name was on the Canada Southern Railroad owned by the Michigan Central Railroad, later by the New York Central Railroad.The Canadian-American economist...
in Ontario. Two-dozen Scouters including Scouters from Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, and Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...
gathered to learn about the issues, discuss strategy, and draft a constitution for the association.
Following CAMP eh!, SCOUT eh! published a series of backgrounders and short videos on its web site. Members continued to spread the word with fellow Scouters. Some newspaper stories spread word further. They also held a ratification vote on their constitution and, following its ratification, elections for leadership positions. This constituted the first democratic governance for a national association of Scouting members in Canada. The first National Officers were Mike Reid as Chair, Ted Claxton as Treasurer
Treasurer
A treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury of an organization. The adjective for a treasurer is normally "tresorial". The adjective "treasurial" normally means pertaining to a treasury, rather than the treasurer.-Government:...
, and Liam Morland as Secretary
Secretary
A secretary, or administrative assistant, is a person whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project management, communication & organizational skills. These functions may be entirely carried out to assist one other employee or may be for the benefit...
.
Scouts Canada AGM 2004
By early November, Scouts Canada changed their approach to SCOUT eh!. Ted Claxton was invited to speak at the Scouts Canada Annual General Meeting on November 27, 2004 at Camp Samac in Oshawa, OntarioOshawa, Ontario
Oshawa is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the Lake Ontario shoreline. It lies in Southern Ontario approximately 60 kilometres east of downtown Toronto. It is commonly viewed as the eastern anchor of both the Greater Toronto Area and the Golden Horseshoe. It is now commonly referred to as the most...
. SCOUT eh! organized its first eh!GM (AGM) at Durham College
Durham College
Durham College of Applied Arts and Technology is located in the Durham Region with campuses in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada and Whitby and additional locations in Uxbridge, Port Hope, Port Perry and Beaverton...
that weekend. Fifty SCOUT eh! members attended including Scouters from British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
, and Newfoundland. Following their meeting, SCOUT eh! members paraded to Camp Samac for the Scouts Canada AGM.
Ted Claxton addressed the meeting. Following his address, Mike Scott invited SCOUT eh! to submit a proposal to the Board of Governors regarding governance. The meeting had a friendly and conciliatory atmosphere.
As invited, SCOUT eh! submitted a governance proposal to the Board of Governors in January, 2005. In March, Mike Scott sent a response indicating that they had reviewed the proposal and believed it to be unworkable, but that they had asked the Operations Advisory Committee to consider changes to the process for selecting the three Voting Members from each council. No changes have resulted from this.
Recent developments
SCOUT eh! has pressed ahead with membership growth and the publication of information on its web site, particularly detailed analysis of Scouts Canada's finances by SCOUT eh! member and accountant Joseph Grittani.In June, 2005, SCOUT eh!'s National Officers met with Scouts Canada CEO Rob Stewart
Rob Stewart
Rob Stewart is a Canadian actor born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada principally known for the lead role of Nick Slaughter in the 1991–93 television series Tropical Heat . He has also guest starred in numerous television roles and was one of the leads in the television show Peter Benchley's Amazon...
. Mr. Stewart put them in contact with Keith Martin, a member of the Board of Governors working on developing a policy regarding democracy in Scouting. A meeting with Mr. Martin was held the following August. No progress towards democracy has resulted from this meeting.
In September 2006, SCOUT eh! announced it had surpassed 700 members nationally.
In 2007, Scouts Canada
Scouts Canada
Scouts Canada is a Canadian Scouting association that, in affiliation with the French-language Association des Scouts du Canada, is a member of the World Organization of the Scout Movement...
announced Policy 1014 which requires that each council's Voting Members be elected by representatives of the council, and its areas and groups. While acknowledging that the system is an improvement, SCOUT eh! criticizes the policy because:
- most members of voting age are still not allowed to vote
- votes are distributed in an unequal manner which favors councils, areas, and small groups
- Ordinary Members remain many levels removed from the decision-making process of the Board of Governors, resulting in mis-communication