Champion Force Athletics Sexual Abuse Prevention Policy

Champion Force Athletics considers the safety and well being of the youth in our program a top priority. We prohibit and strive to proactively address reports of this type of conduct. We want to hear about problems or concerns, and we will strive to act on them in a fair way in accordance with our policies.

We will report suspected abuse to the proper law enforcement agencies.

POLICY AND PROCEDURES

Champion Force Athletics has adopted the following Policy and Procedures in an effort to provide a safe environment for our coaches, athlete’s and their families:

THE EMPLOYEE HIRING & VOLUNTEER APPOINTMENT PROCESS TO INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING:

• Application – Every individual that may have an opportunity to interact with youth must complete our organization’s written application that sets forth the appropriate background information, requires disclosure of any prior claims or allegations of sexual abuse or other inappropriate conduct, and provides the names of at least two individuals as references.
• Screening – A designated representative(s) of the organization will interview each prospective employee and volunteer.
• Background Check – Prior to interacting with minors, any potential employee or volunteer will be subject to a background check, including appropriate inquiries regarding any previous record of sexual abuse or other unlawful activity. This background check will be updated at least every two (2) years for each employee or volunteer. All current employees and volunteers are required to update their background check every two (2) years.

OUTLINING PROHIBITED BEHAVIOR. Some examples of prohibited behavior are:

• Use of degrading language or behavior. Coaches are also responsible for stopping disrespectful behavior between team members, including sexual harassment.
• Threatening or intentionally inflicting physical injury upon anyone, especially a minor. Coaches are also responsible for stopping threatening behavior by athletes.
• Committing any sexual offense against a minor, or engaging in any sexual contact with a minor.
• Making any sexual advance, or engaging in other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature with a minor.
• Non-related one-adult/one-child interaction except in an emergency where following this policy would be dangerous to the child. In an emergency situation, the coach or volunteer must contact a representative of the organization’s management to inform him or her of this contact and the reason for it. If a child is receiving individual instruction or working with a private coach, this activity must be in a public setting rather than behind closed doors.

EDUCATION AND AWARENESS TRAINING TO INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING:

• Every individual that may have an opportunity to interact with youth will have completed the following courses provided by Darkness to Light (d2l.org) or National Federation of State High School Associations (nfhs.org).
• Stewards of Children® – Prevent, recognize, and react responsibility to child sexual abuse.
• Recognizing & Responding to Child Abuse and Neglect – Recognize other forms of child abuse and neglect, and how to respond as a mandated reporter.
• NFHS – Protecting Students from Abuse. 
• An Abuse Prevention Orientation conducted annually: A member of our management team will review this policy with coaches, volunteers, and parents each year. The Positive Coaching Alliance/Kidpower video, “Protecting Youth Athletes from Sexual Abuse”, will be shown and the companion information sheet, “Protecting Youth Athletes from Sexual Abuse: Key Actions for Parents and Coaches, will be distributed to every coach, volunteer, and parent .
• The acknowledgement and support by our program of the following statement: Parents are an important part of the solution as we all work together to prevent abuse in sport. We will share with the parents in our program resources to educate themselves on preventative measures and steps to take if they believe misconduct has occurred. At a minimum, the program will be shared via email and on our website as links to such resources.
• Consistent and ongoing training for all adults in our program who interact with minors. Our staff is educated on the prevention and reporting of child abuse as well as training that allows them to see and recognize problematic behaviors before a minor is abused.

REPORTING OF SUSPECTED CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE:

• A member of our management staff or other official representatives will be designated to receive reports of sexual abuse or other inappropriate conduct. This representative will promptly notify the proper law enforcement agencies.
• All coaches, volunteers, parents, and program participants are directed to report any incident of abuse or suspected abuse that they witness or that is reported to them to the designated representative. Note: This does not preclude individuals from reporting abuse or suspected abuse to the proper law enforcement authorities.
• The designated representative will keep the owner(s) and management members fully informed.
• The Program Owner or designated representative will report any incident of abuse or suspected abuse to the USASF. Note: This does not preclude individuals from reporting abuse or suspected abuse to the proper law enforcement authorities.
• Should a suspected incident of abuse be reported, the coach/volunteer in question may be temporarily suspended from duties while an investigation takes place.
• No Retaliation: The Company prohibits retaliation against anyone who reports sexual abuse, other inappropriate conduct or provides information in connection with such a report or investigation. Retaliation against an individual for reporting or for participating in an investigation of sexual abuse or other inappropriate conduct will be subject to disciplinary action.

EDUCATION AND RESOURCES FOR PARENTS:

• Safesport Tool Kit for Parents: https://resources.safesport.org/toolkits/Parent-Toolkit-Complete/index.html,
• FREE online parent training is available at www.athletesaftey.org,
• Darkness to Light Website https://www.d2l.org/,
• Stewards of Children Prevention Toolkit available on mobile devices, and
• USASF SafeSport code and the USCSS Policies document that is available to all USASF members: USCSS Policies.
• PCA—Protecting Youth Athletes from Sexual Abuse: Key Actions for Parents and Coaches.
• Handout: Protecting Youth Athletes from Sexual Abuse: Key Actions for Leaders
• PCA Produced Video: Protecting youth Athletes from Sexual Abuse: Parents and Coaches

This resource stems from the Positive Coaching Alliance Trusted Resource – Kidpower – a nonprofit leader in abuse and violence prevention for children and adults. The Positive Coaching Alliance granted permission to the U.S. All Star Federation to use the policy as basis for creating this membership policy and inclusion of the video and handout they created.

For more resources, visit: PCADevZone.org | For more information on Positive Coaching Alliance, visit: PositiveCoach.org

For more information on the U.S. All Star Federation, visit: USASF.net