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Find Out About the Minors on Campus Policy

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POLICY HISTORY

In January of 2015, the University adopted a Minors on Campus policy.  

POLICY OBJECTIVE

The objective of this policy is to promote a safe environment for minors by fostering a University culture that is committed to preventing, recognizing, reporting, and addressing child abuse and child sexual abuse. 

APPLICABILITY

This policy delineates how minors in programs that fall within the scope of the policy should be treated when being overseen by Authorized Adults/Program Staff (who are defined as individuals, paid or unpaid, 18 years or older, who interact with, supervise, chaperone, or otherwise oversee minors in program activities, or recreational, and/or residential facilities, including, but not limited to faculty, staff, volunteers, graduate and undergraduate students, interns, employees of temporary employment agencies, and independent contractors/consultants (including positions such as counselors, chaperones, coaches, instructors, etc.). 

Authorized Adults/Program Staff does not include temporary guest speakers, presenters and other individuals who have no direct contact with program participants other than short term activities supervised by Program Staff.

POLICY COMPONENTS

The Minors on Campus policy does the following:

• Prohibits one-on-one contact with minors;
• Informs all University employees of their Duty To Report suspected neglect or abuse of a child
• Outlines a Code of Conduct for individuals who work in camps/programs;
• Sets forth the duties of University units that sponsor a program/camp and sets staff to participant ratios;
• Mandates training for program staff annually;
• Sets Rules of Conduct for programs/camps;
• Provides additional guidance for residential camps;
• Requires background checks for individuals who work in programs/camps; and
• Provides guidance to non-university entities that use our facilities for programs/camps.

NOT COVERED BY THIS POLICY:

The following are considered exceptions and are not considered to be a program covered by this policy:

• Events or performances on campus which are open to the general public (athletic competitions, plays, concerts) wherein parents/guardians are expected to provide appropriate supervision of their children;
• Services provided by the University Student Health Services Clinic, the University Psychology Clinic, the University Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic, the Dubard School for Language Disorders, and the University Clinic for Family Therapy. These entities will follow separate policies that comply with the principles of this policy, but reflect their unique activities;
• Undergraduate and graduate academic programs in which minors are enrolled for academic credit;
• Campus tours or visits by minors considered to be prospective students;
• Non-residential field trips to campus supervised by a minor's school or organization;
• Off-campus clinical, practicum, or student teaching experiences supervised by a third-party entity;
• Private, personal events (e.g., birthday parties, weddings) that occur on campus;
  Interacting with minors in the context of curricular, practical training supervised by University faculty;
• Tutoring and mentoring by University students who are registered in recognized organizations (e.g. Big Brother/Big Sister), or are participating in community service activities sponsored by an administrative or academic unit of the University provided that such activities take place only in public settings (such as libraries and dining halls) during normal operating hours;
• Volunteering with or job shadowing a USM employee; and
• Other programs as may be designated from time to time by the appropriate University official in advance and in writing as exempted from this policy.

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