Youth Training

Introduction to Leadership Skills for Crews (ILSC)

The long-awaited Introduction to Leadership Skills for Crews (ILSC) syllabus is now available online. Click HERE to download the syllabus.

The purpose of the Introduction to Leadership Skills for Crews course is to teach crew members with leadership positions about their new roles and how to most effectively reach success in that role. It is intended to help Venturers in leadership positions within their crew understand their responsibilities and to equip them with organizational and leadership skills to fulfill those responsibilities. Introduction to Leadership Skills for Crews is the first course in the series of leadership training offered to Venturers and is a replacement for the Venturing Leadership Skills Course. Completion of Introduction to Leadership Skills for Crews is a prerequisite for Venturers to participate in the more advanced leadership courses National Youth Leadership Training (NYLT) and the National Advanced Youth Leadership Experience (NAYLE). It is also required for Kodiak.

Kodiak

The Kodiak course combines the elements of leadership and service to others as the two key tenets of Venturing. Servant leadership is a philosophy that teaches the leader to work with and through a team to accomplish the mission.

Kodiak's methods are the following: Challenging outdoor treks to use nature as a classroom (no indoor sessions). Five leadership skills, called "commissions," are taught. They can be offered over a week, or over two weekends. It uses a hands-on teaching approach with very short presentations.

National Youth Leadership Training (NYLT)

NYLT is now open to all programs, including venturing youth (male and female) between the ages of 13 and 17.

The course models a month in the life of a unit – three meetings (one each day for the first three days) all leading up to a big outdoor experience (an overnight outpost camp). The course uses the patrol method and presents model Leader Council meetings.

Teams are challenged early in the week to present to the training unit at the end of the week their “Quest for the Meaning of Leadership.” While the challenge is designed to have them go through the four stages of team development, it will help teams and individual Scouts internalize the leadership skills and concepts being presented to them along the way.

Throughout the course, the staff will be modeling the concepts and skills that are the core content of the course. The focus of the course is to impart knowledge of leadership skills to fill the Scout’s “Toolbox of Leadership Skills” and given them an understanding as to when and how to use these skills.

The course begins with the teams finding their team vision and ends with the individuals refining a personal vision of how to take the skills back to their home unit and communicate what they have learned.

VOA Officer Roster

Venturing Officer's Association
2012 - 2013 Officers

	Name
	Donnie Stephens - President Hello All! My name is Donald Stephens, and I am proud to serve you and the rest of the youth in the Northeastern Pennsylvania Council as your Council Venturing president! To read more about Donnie please click here.
	Tyler Sepcoski - Vice President of Administration Hey guys! My name is Tyler Sepcoski and I’m honored to serve as you and the rest of those in the Northeastern Pennsylvania Council as the Vice President of Administration. To read more about Tyler please click here.
	Caitlin Croke - Vice President of Program Hey Everyone! My name is Caitlin Croke and I'm so honored to serve everyone in the Northeastern Pennsylvania Council as the Council Vice President of Program! To read more about Caitlin please click here.
	Bridget McGowan - Vice President of Communications Hi Everybody! My name is Bridget McGowan, and I am honored to serve you in the Northeastern Pennsylvania Council as your Council Venturing Vice President of Communications! To read more about Bridget please click here.
	Aaron Grier - Vice President of Membership Hey everybody!! My name is Aaron Grier, and for the 2012-2013 term I will be serving NEPA as your Vice President of Membership.  To read more about Aaron please click here.
Previous Presidents of the NEPA Council VOA
	Cara Sepcoski - Immediate President - July 2010-June 2012 My name is Cara Sepcoski and I am the 2012-2013 NER Area 5 VOA President. I am from Northeastern Pennsylvania Council and I have been in Venturing for six years now. Prior to being in venturing, I was part of my Girl Scout Troop here in NEPA. If you count from the time I was a brownie scout, I have over 12 years in scouting experience. Within that time, I have earned both the Girl Scout Silver and Gold Awards. I have also earned the Venturing Bronze, Venturing Gold, Venturing Silver, Ranger and Council Venturing Leadership Awards. I am currently in my Junior year of College at Misericordia University in Dallas PA, Majoring in Speech Language Pathology. To read more about Cara please click here.
	Shelby Heart - June 2010-July 2010

Adult Training

Venturing Leader Specific Training

This basic course explains Venturing to all adults new to Venturing. There are five sessions: Here's Venturing, Understanding and Protecting Youth, Leadership and Organization, Awards and Recogniation, and Resources and Program Planning. These sessions may be offered at one time or individually. It usually takes about 5 hours to complete. This course is required for the Advisor Key and Venturing Advisor Training Awards.


Powder Horn

The Powder Horn course is designed to introduce and expose Venturing and Boy Scouting adult unit leaders to the activities and resources necessary to operate a successful outdoor/high adventure unit-level program. It is based on the eight core and eighteen electives found in the Venturing Ranger program. It is intended to help adult leaders get out of the box in finding and using resources and in the way they lead their unit-level high adventure programs. No high adventure skills are taught in this course. It is designed to have some disciplines introduced with a hands-on segment. Example: For scuba if a pool is available, it is suggested to do a Discover Scuba (PADI) session where participants get into a shallow pool and wear scuba gear. It is not scuba certification. Participants will not learn how to rock climb or shoot a skeet course, but will learn where to go to find those who can teach these skills to Venturers.  

Wood Badge

Wood Badge is leadership training for all Scout Leaders who are involved in the programs of the Boy Scouts of America – Cub Scouting, Boy Scouting, Varsity Scouting, and Venturing, as well as council and district leaders, and professionals.  This new contemporary training program focuses on leadership and “people” skills, and not Scoutcraft or outdoor skills.  Participants will learn techniques to make them better leaders, and also how to lead groups to achieve objectives.  The 21st Century Wood Badge incorporates the best of nearly a century of Scouting experience in addition to drawing upon the most current leadership models used by corporate America, academic circles, and successful outdoor leadership organizations throughout the country.    Skills developed from Wood Badge training will help a volunteer leader do a better job in any BSA program or at any level of involvement. 

Beginning summer 2010, older Venturing youth (18-20) are now eligible to attend Wood Badge.