Youth Leadership
Troop 624 is a Scout-run troop. Utilizing the Patrol Method of leadership, the Scouts themselves are responsible for the operation of the Troop. The adult leaders support and guide the youth, but it is the youth leaders, in the form of the Patrol Leaders Council, who plan the programs, conduct meetings, and provide leadership among their peers.
Unlike Cub Scouts or most other youth programs, adult leaders and parents are expected to stay behind the scenes, providing support and instruction but not taking the reins. While it can sometimes be excruciating to watch a group of boys struggle with a problem that seems easily solved, it is only by letting them struggle and sometimes fail that they learn how to be leaders.
The Patrol is the fundamental unit of the Boy Scout program. Patrols are made up of up to eight Scouts who work together as a group. Each Patrol elects its own Patrol Leader, who in turn selects an Assistant Patrol Leader.
The two most senior youth leaders in the Troop are the Senior Patrol Leader (SPL) and Assistant Senior Patrol Leader (ASPL). The SPL leads Troop meetings and the Patrol Leaders Council. The ASPL assists the SPL and fills in for him when needed. The SPL and ASPL, along with the Patrol Leaders, compose the Patrol Leaders Council. The PLC plans, organizes, and assigns responsibilities for troop meetings and activities.
Adult support
The Scoutmaster is the adult responsible for working directly with the Scouts to help them create the program for the troop. The Scoutmaster trains boy leaders to run the Troop by providing direction, coaching, and support. The Scoutmaster attends all Troop meetings, PLC meetings, Troop Committee meetings, and conducts Scoutmaster Conferences for all rank advancements. The Scoutmaster is responsible for ensuring that all Troop activities are conducted under safe conditions, with qualified leadership and adult support, and consistent with the policies of the chartering organization and the Boy Scouts of America.
The Assistant Scoutmasters are the adults who help the Scoutmaster operate the Troop. Each assistant Scoutmaster is assigned specific program duties and reports to the Scoutmaster. They also provide the required two-deep leadership standards set by the Boy Scouts of America (there must be at least two adults present at any Boy Scout activity).
The Troop Committee is responsible for conducting the business of the Troop, setting policy, and helping the Scoutmaster staff and Scouts with the outdoor program and other planned activities. The Committee also has the responsibility to provide adults for boards of review. The Committee consists of a Committee Chairman as well as adult volunteers who fulfill various roles on the Committee. There are many behind the scenes roles for which adult help is needed, so all Scout parents are encouraged to volunteer for positions on the Committee, for driving or assisting with events, or other roles.