Wood Badgers provide pivotal leadership for recent NYLT course

NYLT Course Director Kelly Anderson,
sporting his fourth Wood Badge bead in
recognition of his service as an
NYLT course director.

When the Chattahoochee Council's 2014 National Youth Leadership Training course convened at Camp Frank G. Lumpkin on Sunday, July 13, some could have called it a Wood Badge Course S9-91-14 reunion. Under the leadership of NYLT Course Director Kelly Anderson, who served Wood Badge Course S9-91-14 as troop guide for the Buffalo Patrol, this year's NYLT course featured seven staffers and three participants from the most recent Wood Badge course.

Like Wood Badge, NYLT is a nationally devised BSA curriculum administered locally by councils. NYLT is an exciting, action-packed program provides youth members with leadership skills and experience they can use in their home troops and in other situations demanding leadership of self and others. And like its precursor, Junior Leader Training, or JLT, NYLT is an important part of the BSA's leadership training continuum for youth Scouts in the same way Wood Badge is for adult leaders. The NYLT course centers around the concepts of what a leader must be, what he must know, and what he must do. The key elements are then taught with a clear focus on how to. The skills come alive during the week as the patrol goes on a "Quest for the Meaning of Leadership."

The six-day course is delivered in a troop and patrol outdoor setting with an emphasis on immediate application of learning in a fun environment. Interconnecting concepts and work processes are introduced early, built upon, and aided by the use of memory aids, which allows participants to understand and employ the leadership skills much faster. Built on the legacy of past JLT successes, NYLT integrates the best of modern leadership theory with the traditional strengths of the Scouting experience. Through activities, presentations, challenges, discussions, and audio-visual support, NYLT participants will be engaged in a unified approach to leadership that will give them the skill and confidence to lead well. Through a wide range of activities, games, and adventures, participants will work and play together as they put into action the best Scouting has to offer.

2014 NYLT course participants

One of several instructional sessions held in Ft. Bradshaw.

The council's NYLT course, which lasted through July 18, brought together 40 youth participants and 29 staff members. The course format mirrors much of the Wood Badge course format, with leadership and patrols similarly structured, instructional sessions occurring in Ft. Bradshaw, meals eaten in the Dining Hall, and participants camping in Campsite 1 and Campsite 3. Instead of two full-weekend sessions, NYLT is delivered through a week-long experience, which is also an optional approach to delivering Wood Badge course content as well. Participants, working through six patrols, enjoyed team-building events and employing the leadership skills they learned during the week through a variety of activities, including the "Quest for the Meaning of Leadership" skits performed at the end of the course. 

Wood Badge Course S9-91-14 staffers and participants who staffed this year's NYLT course include:

• Kelly Anderson, course director, who served as troop guide for S9-91-14's Buffalo Patrol. He also serves as assistant scoutmaster for Yellow Jacket District's Troop 10 and currently is a doctoral candidate of commissioner science.
• Kevin Hicks, back-up course director, who served as troop guide for S9-91-14's Antelope Patrol. He also serves as assistant scoutmaster for Saugahatchee District's Troop 15.
• Don Scott, assistant scoutmaster for facilities, who served as one of S9-91-14's assistant quartermasters. He also serves as assistant scoutmaster for Muskogee District's Troop 205, as well as a member of Muskogee District's Religious Committee and Eagle Board, and the council's Camping Committee.
• Eddie Moone, assistant scoutmaster for facilities, who attended S9-91-14 as a member of the Owl Patrol. He also serves as assistant scoutmaster for Yellow Jacket District's Troop 326.
• Krystal Tumlin, assistant scoutmaster for program, who served as troop guide for S9-91-14's Bear Patrol. She also serves as troop committee chair for Saugahatchee District's Troop 356.
• Lisa Sandt, assistant scoutmaster for administration, who served as S9-91-14's volunteer adviser. She also serves as troop committee chair for Saugahatchee District's Troop 15, associate crew adviser for Saugahatchee District's Crew 15, and as council training chair.
• Graham Hurley, assistant scoutmaster for troop guides, who attended S9-91-14 as a member of the Eagle Patrol. He also serves as an assistant scoutmaster for Saugahatchee District's Troop 15.
• Bill Whealton, part-time quartermaster, who served as S9-91-14 assistant scoutmaster for facilities. He also serves as assistant scoutmaster for Muskogee District's Troop 100, crew adviser for Muskogee District's Crew 100, food service adviser for the Chattahoochee Order of the Arrow Lodge, and Muskogee District's Boy Scout Roundtable commissioner.
• Ted Whealton, part-time quartermaster, who served S9-91-14 as an assistant quartermaster. He also serves as a district commissioner for the Muskogee District.
• James Fogal, instructor, who attended S9-91-14 as a member of the Bobwhite Patrol. He also serves as troop chaplain for Saugahatchee District's Troop 15.