Anyone who has spent time in the Order of the Arrow knows that it is designed to be a youth-led organization. In order for the Scouting program to be successful, it needs to have quality youth who serve as trained leaders given the proper tools to succeed. Section NE-1 has taken a direct approach to providing these tools through its second annual Lodge Excellence Summit (LES).
The LES is designed to provide leaders from the twelve lodges of Section NE-1 with the tools to make their individual lodges, as well as the section, succeed. According to Section NE-1 Co-Chief Zac Gunther, the Lodge Excellence Summit shifts focus from general lodge improvement to the improvement of leaders within each lodge. Such a shift reveals a change in strategy to a more grassroots system of improvement, where better leaders make better lodges and not vice versa.
LES contains four different training tracks, each focusing on a specific aspect vital to a lodge's success. The four tracks (ceremonies, communications, program, and advanced leadership) are taught by seasoned Order of the Arrow trainers who have staffed at the regional level through the Northeast Region's National Leadership Seminars. Among the trainers for this year's Summit are former section chiefs, three current NER section chiefs, and 2014 Northeast Region Chief Kyle Piper.
Scouting prides itself on creating leaders out of its youth members, but the processes are different throughout the nation. The one common denominator is the belief that effective youth leaders make the Scouting movement better, not only for its members but for the communities affected as well. Section NE-1 takes on the task of training leaders through its Lodge Excellence Summit, a program designed to train lodge leaders in fields vital to the success of lodges, thus improving the Scouting program. The LES should be viewed as an example to other sections that effectively trained youth can and will make a difference in Scouting.