How The Lodge Will Be Conducting Unit Elections
ALL Scouts BSA, Venturing, and Sea Scouts Units:
As of January 1st, 2021, we are NO LONGER able to accept requests via email, verbal, or postal
for OA Unit Elections, or OA/Camp Visitations.
ALL Requests, and Unit Election Data must go through the new Inductions Module.
This Also Means Units Can No Longer Run Their Own Unit Election and Send Us the Results.
Around February 1st the Lodge via their Online Database (OA LodgeMaster) will send an email to All Scouts BSA, Venturing, and Sea Scouts Units requesting they schedule an election and/or OA/Camp Visitation.
Emails from The LodgeMaster System will come from no-reply-382@lodgemaster.oa-bsa.org, Please check your spam folder.
PLEASE NOTE: NO LETTERS WILL BE MAILED, BUT PHONE CALLS MAY HAPPEN LATER IN THE YEAR
In this Email the Unit will receive a special link to a request portal where they will be able to schedule their election with the Lodge.
If your Unit did not receive an email, please email us at unitelections@ahcoa165.org
Please Note: The Inductions Module system will send a reminder email about every 15 days; this is because the Special Link is only valid for 14 days.
Please understand this email is not to "spam" or pressure you, but as with your unit's re-charter requirements, the lodge has our own set of re-charter requirements that we need to complete. One of our re-charter requirements is to make sure we have connected with every unit. This is also a program-based automatic reminder.
Please Note: If you wish to Decline an Unit Election AND an OA/Camp Visitation for the year, you must do so via email at unitelections@ahcoa165.org, as the request portal does not have an area to decline a visit at this time.
When making your request to decline you must state the reason for declining both an OA unit election and the OA/camp presentation as this information has to be recorded in order for the system to turn off the automated reminders.
After receiving the Election Scheduling Request (and/or the Election Scheduling Reminder) email(s) and clicking the Special Request Link it will bring up a custom page for your unit.
For a walkthrough of the request portal CLICK HERE
Once the OA receives the request, the team will work to get an Election and/or Visitation team together for one of the dates requested as soon as Possible (Note this - could take a few weeks).
But Please Remember, our Teams are Small, and these are Youth Members who could be Playing Sports in School, taking part in a School Play, etc... or they could have a job.
Once a date has been confirmed with the Election Team in your area the inductions system will send an email confirmation with the date they picked.
If the unit has just requested an OA/Camp Visitation and declined a Unit Election, the team will ask if the unit has any questions they would like answered beforehand and then follow up a few days before the visit to verify the visit and answer any other questions the unit may have beforehand.
The team may also send an email from our unitelections@ahcoa165.org email asking for more information.
If the unit is having a Unit Election (and OA/Camp Visitation if requested), the Inductions System/Election Team will send an "Election Preparation Email" with a Special Link to submit the units Eligible Scouts. For your convenience, an Excel template is also attached to this email that can be filled out and emailed back to us if there is a problem with the online submission.
A Walkthrough of the Online System can be found HERE.
Please Note the Lodge Requires ALL of the following Fields:
First Name
Middle Name or Initial
Last Name
Suffix (if applicable)
Gender
Date of Birth
Scouting Member ID Number
Rank or Award
Full Mailing Address
Scouts Email
Parent or Guardian Email
Home Phone Number with Area Code
Scouts Mobile Number with Area Code
Parent or Legal Guardian Mobile Number with Area Code
The team may also send an email from our unitelections@ahcoa165.org email asking for more information if needed.
Once the eligible member's information has been received by our team, the team will then create the election paperwork (Election Report, Youth Contact Information Forms, Ballots, and Scout and Parent/Guardian Congratulations Letters)
The team will then check in a few days before the visit to verify the visit and answer any questions the unit may have beforehand.
The team will then come out and conduct the election following the Guide to Unit Elections and other National Publications (and perform an OA/Camp Promotion if requested)
Announcement of results:
National Rule - Announcement of results. As soon as the election is completed, the unit leader may or may not choose to announce to the entire unit the names of members who have been elected. Often, if the unit will be participating in a call-out, the announcement of results may be postponed until the call-out. The names and addresses (plus additional information the lodge feels is necessary) are listed on the election report form. OA team members sign the form and mail it to the specified address immediately following the election.
Please Note:
Candidates who were elected MUST BE announced following the election that day or night.
YES, this is different from the National rule but due to problems in the past, the Lodge has voted to change the rule on a local level and results must be annouced that day or night so candidates know they were elected.
Announcements's can still be done during a Court of Honor or Call-Out event for the "public" but again the unit must announce the results the day or night of the election.
All Non-Elected Scouts data is deleted from our database after results have been entered, but their paperwork still needs to be turned in with the election paperwork.
The Scout and Parent/Guardian Congratulations Letters and Spirit of the Arrow Book One will be given.
They will also receive a welcome email and an invite to our member portal (if they are 13 or older), after the election data has been entered and verified.
The team will have all of the Elected scouts check and update their information before they leave.
Call-Out Events can still be done at a later date, but the Announcement MUST BE Made the night of the Election.
Please Note: A few changes have been made to the handling of the unit elections paperwork.
All Unit Election Paperwork is to be filled out by the Election Team, Unit Leader and Eligible Scouts, Parent and/or Legal Guardian.
ALL Paperwork (Election Report, Youth Contact Information Forms, and Ballots, Plus the unit contact update form (if filled out), and any Arrowmen contact information update forms) is to be put together in a document envelope for the Elections Team Adviser and labeled with the unit information.
Election Policy Update for Combined Troop Pilot Program:
Following the direction of the Scouts BSA division, units participating in the pilot should be operating as a single unit and using a single unit number. As such, those units should conduct only one unit election and all eligible members, girls and boys, should be presented on the voting ballot during the unit’s OA election. However, for data entry purposes, individuals will need to be updated in separate units in OA LodgeMaster reflecting their units prior to the pilot.
Unit Election Verification:
Once the Elections Team Adviser has received the envelope, he or she will enter the information into the inductions module, make any updates to the candidate's contact information if needed, and then submit the election for approval.
The Elections Team Adviser and Our OA LodgeMaster Administrator will then check the election for any mistakes before approving the election.
ADULT NOMINATIONS HAS CHANGED:
Adults are now nominated AFTER the Elections Team Adviser has received the paperwork and all the election has been approved.
This is because, with the New Inductions Module, Adult Nominations are now being done via a custom form that is sent as part of the Unit Election Recap Email. This Email will come from no-reply-382@lodgemaster.oa-bsa.org. Please check your Spam/Junk Folder as this email contains a special request link.
A Walkthrough of this Online System can be found HERE.
Units SHOULD NOT INFORM the adult of their nomination, nor should they publicly announce the adult nominee, until a reply from the Lodge has been given.
Once an Adult Nomination is submitted to the Lodge Unit Election Team, the nomination is sent to the Lodge Adult Selection Committee for review.
This Committee is made up of Adult Arrowmen and is a mix of both male and female members, and The Council Scout Executive.
During the review process, the selection committee looks for the following things:
Is the nominee is registered in the Allegheny Highlands Council?
Does the nominee meet the camping requirement as indicated on the nomination form?
The adult’s ability to perform the necessary functions to help the OA fulfill its mission and purpose.
How the adult will be an asset to the Lodge?
Will the adult be a positive role model for the youth?
OA membership is NOT a recognition for service either past or present nor is it a reward for achievement or position.
ALL Adult Nominees must receive the approval of both the Lodge Adult Selection Committee and the Scout Executive.
Notification of Candidacy for Adult Nominees will come directly from the Lodge.
Any Questions on this change please email our Election Adviser at unitelections@ahcoa165.org
If you have any questions on how our Lodge will be conducting Unit Elections, please email our Election Team and Adviser at unitelections@ahcoa165.org or use the Google Form Here