Child Protection at the Y
The safety and well-being of children in our care is, and always will be, our top priority.
Our Commitment
As a youth-serving organization, The YMCA of Greater Michiana is committed to keeping children safe in our community. That any child or teen would experience harm in our care is unacceptable. Ensuring the safety and well-being of young people is foundational to everything we do at the Y to help them learn, grow, and thrive.
Creating a Child-Safe Environment
The YMCA of Greater Michiana works in partnership with parents and guardians of children in Y programs to protect children from abuse. To keep children in our programs safe, we have a series of measures in place to keep kids safe. Our child protection policies are developed using the Praesidium Safety Equation framework. To keep children in our programs safe, we take the following steps in our intensive screening of employees and volunteers:
- Conduct annual criminal history and sex offender registry checks on staff and volunteers.
- Conduct staff reference checks, which include questions on the applicant's suitability to work with children.
- Require staff and volunteers to complete training on preventing, recognizing, and responding to abuse. Staff go through refresher training annually.
- Require staff and volunteers to agree to our child safety code of conduct, which includes rules such as:
- Prohibits staff and volunteers from being alone with a child; interactions must be observable and interruptible.
- Restricts staff contact with children outside of YMCA programs (including babysitting, social networking, etc.).
- Provides acceptable and unacceptable physical and verbal interactions.
- Require allegations or suspicions of abuse to be reported to the proper authorities
- We continually evaluate and improve our child safe practices by conducting an in-depth child abuse prevention self-assessment using Know Your Score every two years.
- We share our policies with parents and the community to create a network that is equipped to know, see, and respond!
Praesidium Accreditation
The YMCA of Greater Michiana has been accredited through Presidium, the nation’s top agency on abuse prevention. Through a yearlong process, we have evaluated our programs and facilities and implemented policies to create a zero-tolerance abuse environment. Our priority is the safety of our members, participants and staff.
We know that today
- 1 in 10 children is sexually abused before their 18th birthday.
- 42 million adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse are walking among us.
- In 90% of cases, the child knows and trusts the abuser.
- Children are victims of 70% of all reported sexual assaults.
- 40% of sexually abused children are abused by an older or larger child.
- Survivors of child sexual abuse have a higher likelihood of psychological disorders, excessive drug and alcohol use, eating disorders, suicidal tendencies, and violence.
Yet, when we understand the risks and red flags of child sexual abuse, we can do more to keep kids safe. When we all take action, abuse is preventable.
How We Create Safe Spaces for Children & Vulnerable Adults
- Screening – All new employees and volunteers undergo a background check before hiring, and they must provide references. All adults in our facilities are screened against a national sex offender registry.
- Training – Comprehensive online and in-person child abuse prevention training is mandatory for all YMCA employees and volunteers, and they are required to refresh their training annually. We train on policies that define boundaries with youth and procedures for identifying and managing high-risk activities.
- Reporting – Should any allegation arise, the YMCA will proactively work with the authorities and all parties involved to respond in a prompt, thorough, and empathetic manner.
- Policy – The YMCA of Greater Michiana maintains a zero-tolerance policy toward child and vulnerable adult abuse and endangerment, and staff are to report any questionable behavior they see. Every staff member and Volunteer must abide by our Child & Vulnerable Adult Abuse Prevention Policy.
- Auditing –To ensure we continuously uphold the highest standards in child safety and protection, we have internal teams that routinely audit our policies.
Warning Signs of Sexual Abuse in Children
- Anxiety, chronic stomach pain, or headaches may occur.
- “Too perfect” behavior, withdrawal, fear, depression, unexplained anger, and rebellion
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- Nightmares, bed-wetting, falling grades, cruelty to animals, bullying, being bullied, fire setting, running away, and self-harm of any kind.
- Sexual behavior and language that are not age-appropriate.
- Use of alcohol or drugs at an early age.
- Could have bruising, bleeding, redness and bumps, or scabs around the mouth, genitals, or anus. Urinary tract infections, STDs, and abnormal vaginal or penile discharges can also be signs.
If a Child Discloses Abuse to You
- Give attention, compassion, and belief.
- Listen calmly and openly.
- Don’t fill in gaps.
- Don’t ask leading questions about the details.
- Ask open-ended questions like, “What happened next?”
- Don’t overreact.
- Say, “I believe you,” and “what happened is not your fault.”
How to Report Abuse
You do not need proof that abuse is occurring to make a report, only reasonable suspicion. Reporting child sexual abuse is key in preventing and intervening in abuse.
