Safety

SafeSport Policy

Training and Education

Our policies and procedures require staff members and/or volunteers to report abuse, misconduct and violations of its Participant Safety Handbook. To do so, staff members and/or volunteers should have a basic understanding of sexual abusers, as well as “grooming,” the most common strategy offenders use to seduce their victims. Using a combination of attention, affection and gifts, offenders select a child, win the child’s trust (and the trust of the child’s parent or guardian), manipulate the child into sexual activity, and keep the child from disclosing abuse.

Accordingly, staff members and/or volunteers complete an awareness training concerning misconduct in sport before performing services for Charleston City Rowing Club. Misconduct in sport includes:

·   Bullying

·   Harassment

·   Hazing

·   Emotional misconduct

·   Physical misconduct, and

·   Sexual misconduct, including child sexual abuse

 Staff members and/or volunteers must successfully complete the training and the quiz after the test.

 Those staff members and/or volunteers who are required to take awareness training will take athlete awareness training every two (2) years, or no more than 30 day(s) before they have contact with athletes.

Screening

Staff members, contractors and/or volunteers must consent to, and pass, a formal applicant screening process before performing services for Charleston City Rowing Club.

Elements of our screening process include, as applicable, supplying a resume, interview, reference check and criminal background check.

EDUCATION ABOUT CHARLESTON CITY ROWING CLUB’S PROTECTION POLICIES

To deter applicants who may be at risk of abusing athletes or participants from applying for positions, Charleston City Rowing club educates its applicants about its protection policies and offers applicants an early opt-out by:

•  Requiring awareness training before placement and/or before working with athletes and participants

• Informing applicants about our policies and procedures relevant to prevention

• Asking applicants to review and agree to our policies and procedures before proceeding with the process

• Requiring applicants to sign a document acknowledging review of our policies and procedures

RESUME

Each applicant for a position will supply a resume consisting of personal, identifying information and a general release with applicant’s signature.

 The information obtained:

• Previous work and volunteer experiences

• Provide a written release for contacting personal references and performing a criminal background check, including an indemnification clause

PERSONAL INTERVIEW

Appropriate staff will interview applicants whose experience and credentials are considered a fit for available positions. During this interview, Charleston City Rowing Club will ask questions to encourage discussion, clarify responses and expand on the applicant’s written resume.

 REFERENCES

References of applicants will be contacted (either by phone or in writing) and asked specific questions regarding the applicant’s professional experiences, demeanor and appropriateness for involvement with minor athletes and participants.

 RELEASE

Each applicant will also provide a signed release, consistent with federal, state and local laws regulating employment practices, that allows references to speak freely about the applicant’s qualifications without fear of reprisal and authorizing Charleston City Rowing Club to obtain information concerning an applicant’s past employment, volunteer experience and information provided by the applicant during the screening process (i.e., written application and personal interview).

CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECK POLICY

All applicants will be asked to undergo a criminal background check that complies with the Fair Credit Reporting Act before providing services for Charleston City Rowing Club. Through this criminal background check, Charleston City Rowing Club will utilize reasonable efforts to ascertain past criminal history of an applicant.

PROCESS

The Criminal Background Check Consent and Waiver Release form must be submitted and the applicant cleared before he or she may perform services for Charleston City Rowing Club.

On receipt of the Criminal Background Check Consent and Waiver Release form, the Charleston City Rowing Club will request that its vendor perform the criminal background check. As part of its criminal background check, Charleston City Rowing Club will, at a minimum and without limitation,

1. Perform a national search of state criminal repositories;

2. Perform a search of state sexual offender registries; and

3. Verify a person’s identification against his or her social security number or other personal identifier.