0. Leveraging Diversity Through Inclusiveness
H. C. Davis
For the next 30 minutes, I want to go over something very important in scouting, but sometimes overlooked.
Every group or organization now is made up of a diverse group of individuals – what I want to get you to thinking about is leveraging that diversity within your on groups by inclusiveness
It is also very important because one of your ticket items has to include diversity

1. Objectives What is Diversity?
How diverse are we?
Importance of Inclusion to Achieve Diversity
How do we get diversity?
Strengths of a Diverse Group
What benefit is it to scouting?
Simple Behaviors to make Diversity Work
Understand what diversity is
Recognize the importance of inclusion to achieve diversity
Strengths of a diverse group
Understand the simple inclusive behaviors that can make
diversity work for a patrol

2. - Have you ever wanted to be on a team (sports or work) or work
on a project and you didn’t get picked? Did you ask to be
included or not? How did that make you feel?
- Keeping that in mind –
- Either at work
- Your troop
- Your pack
- Your crew
Think about those you work with in these situations. When you really need to get something done, do you turn to the same people every time? The same co-workers, same ASM, same crew advisors, same council members, same scouts? Are they your “First String Players?” Why do you do that?
Think about First String Players –
Do they have the same work ethic as you?
Are you alike?
Do you know them better than the others?
Are they “the usual suspects”?

3. “The Usual Suspects”
How about others on your team? How are they different? When do you decide as a leader to go to the bench?
For that matter – why do they have to be adults?
This is your second day in Woodbadge by now, you have gotten to know pretty well all of your patrol members.
- Are some like you?
- Are others not like you?
- How diverse is your patrols? – your makeup and diversity is probably not that different than dens, patrols or crews
Let’s discuss the differences.
When I call on you, stand up-
Left handed
Red hair
Taller than 6’2”
From a state other than VA
What did you think the first time you heard me speak?
What do you think of when you are asked for a definition of diversity?

4. Any dimension that can be used to differentiate people
So – What is Diversity?
Any dimension that can be used to differentiate people 4

5. Diversity Types Human Cultural Organizational Gender Race Age Physical
Appearance
Health
Generation
Disability
Language
Lifestyle
Heritage
Belief
Systems
Religious
Beliefs
Economic
Teamwork
Roles
Relationships
Leadership
Empowerment
Education
Affiliations
Examples –
Human – Restaurant in Clarksville in youth – signs
- Father with Disabilities
Cultural – Most misunderstood – Muslim Religion
Did you know that the Huguenot Trail district just chartered a troop from a Muslim mosque?
Also, Economic – Examples in Troop 876 – do you have that?
Organizational – Education, affiliations – that diversity is here
Example of VSP from 1946 to present

7. Me 30 years later – that’s me, top center
We are much more diverse by then – plus
We had another first for the State Police – we had the first female trooper 7

8. Joe Now here we go – 18 years later to 1994
The reason I picked this one was because another one of you FQM’s – Joe Walters, was in this class
Joe 8

9. How does leveraging diversity make us stronger?..
It is a uniqueness that each of us brings to the table to fulfill our mission and achieve our vision.
Now in the state police, we are more closely representing the citizens we serve.
When our own backgrounds get in the way of recognizing solutions to problems, embracing diversity by inclusiveness allows for full
utilization of all people involved. 9

10. “Out of Many, One”
Especially when the concept was so important in America that we put it on our coins along with “In God we trust.”
We are a mixing bowl full of diversity – how can we use it?
Diversity types are sort of like Oil and Vinegar in that salad dressing for the salad bowl.
They will work when put together, but sometimes, you just have to shake them up! 10

11. How can we make BSA a better organization?
By leveraging the diversity that is all around us by including them in our units – How?
By Recruitment – that’s how we have achieved a level of diversity in the state police. You need to actively recruit a diverse group to better represent your community.
It’s very important – makes BSA stronger because of different views, ideas, viewpoints
Helps us stay relevant in a changing society – need to bring our message to that greater variation of society
Allows us to help scouts learn how to be successful in a diverse society
Encourage all members to contribute – inclusiveness has to be active
Challenge unacceptable behavior – guide, don’t drive
Be a Role model for the kids. There is an old saying “Don’t worry that your kids don’t listen to you, worry that they are always watching you”.
Ex: When I can’t be at all meetings, ask a ASM to be
in charge – don’t pick the same one.
How can we make BSA a better organization?

12. “Don’t worry that your children never listen to you – worry that they are always watching you”

13. Barriers to Leveraging Diversity
We resist change
Comfort in sameness
Peer pressure
Lack of Understanding
Why is it that our communities look like the left side of the picture, but our dens, patrols or crews look like the one on the left side?
Ex. * Remember the signs at the restaurant – Dad saying “that was the way it was done”
Peer Pressure – ex: OA Elections, Way they run meetings
Sometimes we fall short – most of the time, it’s from a lack of understanding of the diversity.
Realize that we all make mistakes; Fess up, apologize, ask for guidance

14. Population of Virginia
Years
White
African American
Asian
Hispanic
1990
80%
20%
2000
72%
19% 3% 5%
2010
70% 6% 7%
2020
65% 9%
2030
62%
18% 8%
11%
2040
58%
17%
10%
15%
We need to change – remember, When your background or mine get in the way of coming up with solutions, others can give you new ways to solve.
Backgrounds can make some difficult to deal with and make us tend to pass over them. Because it’s a change, no one wants to be uncomfortable
Stats:
1990 and prior – 80%W, 20%AA
2000 census – 72% W, 19% AA, 3% Asian, 5% H
2010 – 70%W, 19%AA, 6% Asian, 7% H
2020 – 65% W, 19%AA, 7% Asian, 9% H
2030 – 62%W, 18%AA, 8%Asian, 11%H
2040 – 58%W, 17%AA, 10%Asian, 15%H
Where do we get these diverse folks? 14

15. So how do we get to this diverse group?
These next slides are from the BSA website – Ethnic and generational slide is from “Ethnic and Generational Diversity”

17. Remember the “bait and switch” aspect in my presentation to the parents

18. Keys to Reaching Ethnic Markets
Parents and Youth Suggest:
Be relevant to their age, gender and cultural background
Promote fun activities matching their culture and the markets where they live
Parents Suggest:
Focus on Success
Emphasize Safety
Provide information about long-term benefits of Scouting
Youth Suggest:
Marketing include a variety of ethnicities

19. Overall Awareness and Perceptions of Scouting Programs
African Americans, Hispanics/Latinos and Asians:
Have an overall positive image of the BSA
Describe scouts as honest, responsible, disciplined, trustworthy, and good citizens
Parents have a general awareness of Cub Scouts, but are not familiar with what they do
Have a general awareness of the Boy Scouts program but are not familiar with what it does
Venturing-age youth do not know that Venturing exists
Youth from all three segments look for activities that
Are fun
Include their friends As

20. As leaders and role models, we have the responsibility to young people to strive to make our units look like these – a diverse group – a “salad bowl” if you will
Boy Scouts are a value-based organization – we are not talking about compromising our values here
Everybody has thousands of traits – some we can’t accept – if we can put them aside, we get the best out of everyone.

21. Diversity – Working as a Team
Achieving Diversity
- Use that word it a lot, but making it a part of how we think takes one word - “inclusiveness”
Patrols – Function as a team
- Successful Patrols put differences to work. Every member of a team is responsible for the entire group.
How do you make diversity work in a Patrol?
- Inclusiveness
“Go to the bench”

22. Ex. * Upward Basketball – Every person plays
All experiences are put to work to achieve success
- Richer experiences for all
Does anyone here have personal experiences to share?
What if we don’t leverage diversity?
We go in different directions
- People feel negative treatment
- Emotions build
- Isolation
- Not talking about traditional discrimination – it’s a matter of
going to your first string players all the time 22

23. 23

24. Optimizing Inclusiveness. . .
What does success look like for your Wood Badge Patrol?
Ticket? Important Diversity Item
Do you sense how other team members are doing?
Are you teaching each other skills so all can participate?
Do you support each other?
Even in conflict?
Values?
Do you listen to each other?
Does the team work to ensure Everyone is performing?
Success – Your ticket? – you’ve had a class in that
Support – What about values? – you’ve seen that before as well
Listening – How about your Listening to Learn class?

25. Leverage the Power of Diversity through Inclusiveness!
By including all team members, you can leverage the power of diversity.
This picture – right in the Scout Shop, main hall beside the store
If you make these concepts work, your team will grow!
I asked you earlier to think about diversity in your patrols-
That was no accident – it was intentionally done to expose you to see the importance of leveraging that diversity
Think about the 1st Brownsea Island by Baden-Powell. He brought in people of different social classes – that was a big step then
Now, it’s up to you to do that as you leave here in your leadership roles 25

26. Review – Why is Inclusiveness so Important?
Makes us better leaders
Prepares future leaders
Scouting is stronger due to a variety of different ideas
Helps us stay relevant
Society is changing
Bring our message to a wider audience
Allows us to help scouts be successful in a diverse society
Lets sum this up
If you pull diverse groups together, you can accomplish so much more – remember, you can pull much more together than you can apart. 26

27. Summary – How do we get and use Diversity?
Recruitment, Recruitment, Recruitment!
Seek it out in groups
Ask for help from diverse members
Take advantage of diverse abilities
Admit our mistakes
Learn from them 27

28. Anything that differentiates groups of people
Four Points:
What is diversity?
Anything that differentiates groups of people
Most important way to leverage diversity?
Inclusiveness
Helps BSA stay relevant
Scouts learn how to be successful in a diverse society
Test time!! Not really – lets review what I said I was going to tell you 30 minutes ago 28

29. If you use inclusiveness to achieve diversity, your group does so much more – it was an important concept years ago – so much so, Norman Rockwell painted a picture about it.
In closing, I want to read to you an excerpt from Baden-Powell’s speech to the 1920 World Jamboree
“Brother scouts, I ask you to make a solemn choice. Differences exist between the peoples of the world in thought and sentiment, just as they do in language and physique. The war has taught us that if one nation tries to impose its particular will upon others, cruel reaction is bound to follow. The jamboree has taught us that if we exercise forbearance and give and take, then there is sympathy and harmony. If it be your will, let us go from here determined that we will develop among ourselves and our boys that comradeship, through the world wide spirit of the scout brotherhood, so that we may help to develop peace and happiness in the world and good will among men. Brother scouts, answer me – will you join me in this endeavor?”
Will you?