Northern Trail District

Organization

Scouting is a multi-layered organization with the National BSA Organization at the top and the individual scout units at the base. Councils are chartered by the National organization and each council is divided into districts. A district usually services a small geographical area.

Northern Trail district is part of the Circle Ten Council and covers the same area as the Richardson Independent School District. The district team is made up of volunteers and usually one professional scouter.

The primary role of the district is to provide direct support to units with advice, training and district wide events for scouts, leaders and families. More details about our district may be found here.

Newsletter / Calendar

If you are looking for an activity, check the current newsletter and/or the district calendar.

The newsletter is the best way to keep abreast of the upcoming activities and opportunities for scouting in the district. We send out a newsletter once a week with occasional special emails when necessary. Sign up here.

District Services

Sometimes it can be difficult to find the information you are looking for. Don't panic, we have volunteers and professionals alike who are anxious to help you. If you get stuck and can't find the answers, stop and ask! You can send the webmaster an email webmaster@ntrail.org and get an answer or be directed to someone who can help you.

Unit Commissioners

We have a team of scouting veterans called commissioners. They are led by the district commissioner. Every scout unit has an assigned commissioner, If you don't know who your commissioner is, contact the district commissioner. Contact information may be found here. A commissioner is ready to provide answers to questions and advice about how to make your unit thrive. Don't hesitate to send an email to him or her. If you don't hear back, email the district commissioner.

District Leadership

In addition to commissioner service, the district organization has several other functions, including membership, finance, risk management and program to name just a few. Check the District Leadership page for names and contact information for the district leadership team.

Roundtables

All Roundtables, Cub, Scout Roundtables and Venturing Forums are normally held on the second Thursday of some months. Watch the newsletter and calendar for updates and locations. These events are for all leaders and parents in all programs.  Training, tips and information about all aspects of scouting is available.  Check the current newsletter or calendar for details.

Training

The real secret to understanding the scout program is to get training. Scouting has many training opportunities, online and in-person.

Every adult who is involved with the program must have a current Youth Protection Card. There are no exceptions to this rule, and this is in place to protect not only the youth in the program, but the adult volunteers as well. To get this training go to my.scouting.org, create an account and take the training. Takes about an hour and is valid for two years.

In addition to Youth Protection training, there are many other training opportunities to help you not only understand how scouting works, but importantly ensure that all participants have an enjoyable, positive and safe experience.

Position training for your specific scouting role is essential to the success of the program. If you are a den leader, merit badge counselor, scoutmaster, crew advisor or a cubmaster, there is a training curriculum for you.

If you have questions about training, contact the training chair on the district leadership team or your unit commissioner.

Watch the newsletter and calendar for upcoming training opportunities.

Advancement

An important component of the methods of scouting is advancement. At the district level, a committee is in place to assist with helping your scouts advance. The Eagle rank in particular requires additional support at the district level. A team of Eagle Designees is available to assist with this process. They work with candidates on project approval and participate in Eagle boards of review. The advancement team also assists in identifying merit badge counselors.

If you have questions about advancement, contact the advancement chair on the district leadership team or your unit commissioner. More resources

District Events

In addition to training the district puts on a several events during the scouting year. In the fall we have recruiting events such as School Night for Scouting. We also have an event for Cub Scouts and their families called Northern Trail to Adventure. Webelos Woods is camping event tailored for Webelos scouts to give them a taste of ScoutsBSA. In January we hold a banquet to recognize leaders who have gone the extra mile to make the program successful. In the spring we have a Camporee which is a camping event for ScoutsBSA which provides scouts an opportunity to demonstrate scouting skills. In the summer the district sponsors Twilight Camp for Cub Scouts and Tigers. This is a week-long day camp at a local park.

These are just a few of the events in the district. Watch the newsletter and calendar for information about these and other events.

Adult Recognition

Scouting only exists due the tireless work of volunteers and the unit, district, council and national level. We are indebted to these individuals who are critical to the success of the scouting movement.

Please take the time to nominate hard working scouters for recognition. A formal recognition is a tangible way to demonstrate to these individuals that their efforts are truly appreciated. Being appreciated is an energizing process and we need energized volunteers to energize scouting. More information

More Scouting Resources

Don't overlook the Forms and Information page. You will find lots of useful information. The resource menu also includes information about the Circle Ten Camps, Scout Shops links to the Circle 10 Council website and the National Boy Scouts of American website. Google is your friend. There is an amazing amount of scout related information on the open web. Like any web search, it can turn up bad or incorrect information, so use caution and good judgment, but it's a great resource.

Need to find a scout unit near your home?

Northern Trail covers the same geographic area as the Richardson Independent School District. This includes all of Richardson, parts of Dallas, Garland and Plano. If you need contact information for a unit,  the District Commissioner can get you this information.

The BeaScout.org Webpage allows you to search by zip code for units.

Order of the Arrow:

The order of the Arrow is an honor camper society whose members are selected by their fellow scouts. Northern Trail has an active chapter and their website may be found here: www.arapahochapter.org

Facebook Page:

Northern Trail has a Facebook page and it may be found here: facebook.com/northerntrailbsa  

Website Problems or Suggestions

We will do our best to help, just let us know! webmaster@ntrail.org If you find an error or missing content, please let us know. When you send an email to the webmaster, be sure and describe the problem with enough detail so that it can be found. Please provide the URL of the page with the problem and a description. If you have a suggestion or comment, please don't keep it to yourself, let us know.