Now that the new year is almost upon us, OA unit elections won’t be that far behind. So, I thought it might be helpful to remind everybody of a some important rules concerning unit elections. This information has been taken from the “Order of the Arrow Guide for Officers and Advisers”, which may be downloaded from the National Order of the Arrow Web Site (http://oa-bsa.org):
- It is important to remember that any member of the troop under the age of 21 is considered a youth and any member 21 or older is considered an adult for the purposes of OA elections. 18 – 20 year-olds in the troop may vote with the youth and must be elected by the youth.
- Youth members are elected into the OA by all of the active members of the troop as a recognition for their service to the unit. Adult members are nominated by the unit committee based on their ability to help the Order fulfill its purpose. Nominated adults are not guaranteed membership in the Order.
- It is possible for every eligible youth to be elected into the Order each year. Only one adult may be nominated for every 50 active youth in the unit each year, and only if at least one youth has been successfully elected.
- All youth and adults serving at the unit level must have attended a full week of summer camp as well as 9 additional nights of Scout camping outside of summer camp within the two years prior to the day of election to be eligible for membership in the Order.
- All eligibility requirements must be met on the day of election.
- The Scoutmaster has the final say on who is eligible in the unit. The Scoutmaster may deny eligibility for any individual that does not attend unit events regularly, or fails to show scout spirit. The Scoutmaster must certify the eligibility list before the election begins. Once the election starts, the unit election team will have the final say on who has been elected.
- A unit election can not take place unless at least 50% of the active youth are present.
- A unit may not conduct its own elections. At least one member of the unit elections team must be registered outside of the unit, be an active member of Wagion Lodge, and have completed an OA unit elections training seminar.
- All OA unit representatives are encouraged to attend unit elections training. The best way to make sure your unit elections happen is to help other units with their elections!
- In most cases, the Ordeal candidate must complete the Ordeal within one year of being elected or nominated. If they fail to do so, they must be re-elected or nominated.
- Scouts transferring from one unit to another may also transfer their Ordeal candidacy so long as they can provide proof they were elected.
- A Scouting unit may not participate in an out-of-council OA calling out ceremony without special permission from the Lodge Chief and Lodge Adviser. Ordeal candidates may not participate in an out-of-council Ordeal ceremony without permission from the Regional Order of the Arrow Chairman.