Thank you for protecting children

As we wrap up the Five Days of Action—KNOW. SEE. RESPOND campaign, we would like to say thank you for committing alongside us to child protection.

Over the last five days, we joined individuals and youth serving organizations across the country to understand the importance of KNOW. SEE. RESPOND. and we gained knowledge and practical tools we can use to engage child sexual abuse prevention in our communities.

All of our tips, resources and information from the past week are available on our website for you to revisit any time.

It was a monumental week! But remember that prevention does not end today! Child sexual abuse prevention is a year-round commitment to child safety, in which we all have the responsibility to engage in. The Family YMCA of Greater Augusta will continue our child protection initiatives that create safe spaces for our children to grow and learn, every day.

We hope that you will join us in continuing to prioritize and put into action, child sexual abuse prevention. Start today by creating your own Family Code of Conduct and sharing it with families you know!

Get more tips on activating prevention by visiting www.fivedaysofaction.org.

 

Five Days of Action is an initiative of the YMCA Champions for Child Protection created and designed by Darkness to Light, with support from YMCA of the USA, The Redwoods Foundation, The American Camp Association, and the Monique Burr Foundation for Children.

RESOURCES

5 Days of Action: RESPOND.

We know that responding to child abuse may seem daunting, but with proper preparation you can feel confident in responding to a child in need and being the hero, they deserve.

First, it is important to know that you do not need evidence that a child is being abused to report it. All you need is a reasonable suspicion that abuse is happening. There are three reasons you should report – a child discloses that they are being abused, you discover abuse happening, or you suspect that something is not right. Disclosure, Discovery, Suspicion.

All adults should always act in the best interest of the child. But some individuals, like employees at the Y and teachers, are Mandated Reporters and required by law to report abuse. Laws vary by state – it may be to child protective services, a department of family and child services of your county, or law enforcement. Click your state below to see how to make a report and to find resources in your state including child advocacy centers and mental health services:

Learn all the ways to respond to suspected abuse, including report it at www.fivedaysofaction.org.

Five Days of Action is an initiative of the YMCA Champions for Child Protection created and designed by Darkness to Light, with support from YMCA of the USA, The Redwoods Foundation, The American Camp Association, and the Monique Burr Foundation for Children.

5 Days of Action: SEE

Now that you KNOW more about child sexual abuse, let’s talk about SEE! When we SEE boundaries being crossed or suspect a child is being abused, we can act—and act quickly! Our ability to recognize the signs of abuse is a critical component to child protection.

Potential offenders are often seen breaking rules and pressing boundaries long before a child is harmed. Active bystanders who KNOW. SEE. RESPOND. can intervene on a child’s behalf and save them from a potentially dangerous situation.

Seeing is not just a matter of keeping our eyes open for signs of abuse, but also a conscious awareness of the things that make children vulnerable to boundary violations. When we know what to look for in our environments and other people’s behavior, we can install safeguards to prevent abuse long before it ever occurs.

Learn more about being an active bystander at www.fivedaysofaction.org/knowsee.

 

Five Days of Action is an initiative of the YMCA Champions for Child Protection created and designed by Darkness to Light, with support from YMCA of the USA, The Redwoods Foundation, The American Camp Association, and the Monique Burr Foundation for Children.

5 Days of Action: KNOW

As part of the Five Days of Action this week, we are learning how to KNOW. SEE. RESPOND. to protect children from sexual abuse. Today we want to introduce you to KNOW. and the significant role it plays in child protection.

KNOWing the facts about child sexual abuse can help you better understand what to look for and how to prevent the situations that lead to abuse. Here are five facts about child sexual abuse, you may not have heard.

  1. 1 in 10 children will be sexually abused by the age of 18.
  2. 90% of survivors know and trust their abuser
  3. 40% of advisors are abused by older or larger children
  4. The most common sign of abuse is dramatic changes in behavior or mood
  5. Establishing healthy boundaries is one of the greatest protections against abuse

Remember, child abuse is preventable if we work together to KNOW. SEE. RESPOND. Learn more about ways you can do your part by visiting www.fivedaysofaction.org/knowsee.

Five Days of Action is an initiative of the YMCA Champions for Child Protection created and designed by Darkness to Light, with support from YMCA of the USA, The Redwoods Foundation, The American Camp Association, and the Monique Burr Foundation for Children.

Five Days of Action

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month! As part of our commitment to protecting the children in our community, we’re joining youth serving organizations across the country by participating in The Five Days of Action—a week-long campaign to increase awareness of child sexual abuse and empower and equip us all to prevent it. By taking part in this important campaign and through implementing abuse prevention practices year-round, the Family YMCA of Greater Augusta is committing to the safety of all children in our community.

The Five Days of Action enforces critically important habits— KNOW. SEE. RESPOND. —which enable us to understand how and when abuse happens, recognize the signs of abuse, and quickly and appropriately respond to it. When we embrace these habits, we foster a culture of child abuse prevention—a culture of happy and healthy children!

We take our commitment to child protection seriously and we hope you do too. The Y has a number of safety measures intended to keep kids safe. This includes criminal background checks on staff and volunteers; required staff training on recognizing and preventing abuse; limiting staff contact with children outside of Y programs; and reporting any allegations or suspicions of abuse to law enforcement.

We pledge to protect the children we serve, and we hope you will too! Head over to www.FiveDaysofAction.org/pledge to sign the pledge & learn more! Share your pledge on social media and tag three of your friends to ask them to take the pledge too.

Learn more about protecting the children you love at www.fivedaysofaction.org.

Five Days of Action is an initiative of the YMCA Champions for Child Protection created and designed by Darkness to Light, with support from YMCA of the USA, The Redwoods Foundation, The American Camp Association, and the Monique Burr Foundation for Children.

RESOURCES

Listening and Responding to Children

Listening and Responding to Children

Throughout April, we’ve addressed the importance of understanding the Y’s abuse prevention policies, recognizing red flags and boundary violations and how to talk with your children about abuse. Now, it’s important that all parents and caregivers know how to respond to boundary violations and warning signs if children tell you about abuse. At the Y, we are mandated reporters, so we have procedures in place for responding and reporting suspected abuse. As a parent, you can follow these 5 steps:

  1. Keep your eyes & ears open
  2. Talk with your child.
  3. Ask your child about any concerns you have.
  4. If what you learn from your child or what you have observed/overheard sounds like abuse, call Child Protective Services or the police.
  5. If what you’ve heard or observed sounds like a boundary violation, suspicious or inappropriate behavior, or a policy violation:
  6. Share your concerns with the employee/supervisor/person in charge of the organization.
  7. If you are unable to do this, make a report to the organization by making a call, sending an email, or submitting an online form.

Talking With Your Children

Talking with Your Children About Abuse

Many parents and caregivers find speaking to their children about abuse to be uncomfortable. Framing these conversations around other safety conversations you have may help you work through some of that uncomfortableness. Below you’ll find age-appropriate ways to talk to your child about boundaries and preventing abuse.

Young Children

Parents can start these conversations simply by ensuring young children know the correct names for their body parts. Children who know the proper names are able to talk more clearly to parents or other adults if something inappropriate happens. As you’re teaching body part names, you can help your child learn that parts of their body are private and that only their parents/caregivers can see them. Don’t forget to note that doctors may see them naked but only because you’re there with the doctor!

Equally important is to teach children boundaries both for themselves and for others. Boundaries have easily teachable moments, such as when a child doesn’t want to hug a relative, or during a tickle fight a child yells “Stop!”. Allowing young children to set their own boundaries teaches them body autonomy and helps them know when something makes them uncomfortable so that they can speak up. Many abusers will tell a child to keep abuse a secret. It’s important that children understand that adults should never ask them to keep a secret, and if they do, they should tell you.

Teens

As children grow older, it’s key to keep lines of conversation open, so that they feel comfortable talking to parents or trusted adults if something happens to them or a friend. Talk to your teens about their friends, the other adults in their lives, social media and electronic communication. They need to know to not accept requests from people they don’t know, how to respond if someone (even a friend) asks them to send nude photos and that conversations online are never truly private. Continue the conversations about boundaries and what boundary violations look and feel like. Let them know that you are there to listen and support them.

Recognizing Boundary Violations

Recognizing Boundary Violations and Warning Signs

At the Y, creating safe spaces for youth to learn, grow and thrive is our top priority – especially following the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Kids need a safe space now more than ever, and we take pride in the measures we’ve taken to help keep your kids safe. Here are some important tips for parents to know as we work together to keep kids safe from abuse.

Offenders seek three things in order to abuse: access, privacy and control.

What does this mean for a parent?

  • Know who has access to your children. For example,
    1. When your children are at school, what are the school’s procedures for screening staff, volunteers, parents, etc.?
    2. When your children attend a sleepover, who will be in the home?
  • Know what type of privacy is allowed. For example,
    1. When your children play sports, can the coach be alone with a player?
    2. When camp is over, can the counselor text your child?
    3. When the program ends, is one adult ever alone with one child?
  • Know how offenders gain control through boundary violations. For example,
    1. Physical boundaries violations – Excessive tickling, hugging, massaging, etc.
    2. Emotional boundaries violations – Spending too much time with them; acting possessive; sharing personal information to make a child feel they have a special relationship, sending excessive or inappropriate texts or messages
    3. Behavioral boundaries – Offenders manipulate kids into doing things they wouldn’t otherwise do, such as: – Sneaking around – Keeping secrets – Looking at pornography – Use of drugs or alcohol

In response to the additional stressors added by COVID, Darkness to Light developed Protecting Children During a Crisis, an online training to help caregivers navigate through the unusual circumstances families may face during times of crisis. This change is any situation where you need to modify the steps you take to protect your children because of a situation that is out of your control. This training will help you consider your current strategies, help you identify the new situation, and help you change your strategy if necessary.

Employee Code of Conduct

The development of children is the core of why the Y’s values were built. This is why the safety of all children in our care is our number one priority. Staff and volunteers at Family YMCA of Greater Augusta follow our Code of Conduct to ensure the safety of all children who come through our doors, whether they are regular program participants or only visit once a year.

During Child Abuse Prevention Month, the Y wants to make sure that all members understand this Code of Conduct. A key tool in abuse prevention is knowledge, so it’s important that parents and caregivers are informed of the Y’s policies around children. Together we can work to ensure all children in the CSRA reach their full potential.

STAFF CODE OF CONDUCT

The Y takes very seriously its obligation to protect children. Y staff should not have contact or communication with minors (under age 18) who participate in Y programs outside of Y work time. With today’s electronic communication options (e-mail, text messages, blogging, social networking sites) it is more important than ever that all employees understand the Y’s policy on such contact or communication in order to protect youth and staff. For purposes of this policy a “youth” is anyone under eighteen (18) years of age who participates in Y programs or whom a Y employee has met though Y programs. 

  • Employees should not initiate personal phone calls with or receive personal phone calls from youth. A call is considered “personal” if it does not involve both a Y phone and Y specific subject matter. When employees receive calls from youth on non-Y phones and/or regarding a non-Y subject, this must be immediately reported to a supervisor.
  • Text messaging with youth is not permitted. If an employee receives a text message from a youth, a supervisor must immediately be made aware.
  • Employees must not share any personal e-mail addresses or instant message names or nicknames with youth. Employees should not initiate or respond to e-mail or instant messages from youth while using any personal (non-Y) connection to the internet.
  • Use of social networking sites to communicate with youth is only permitted if done through a Y- sponsored or approved site. No personal blog or social networking site should be used. Any website or blog maintained by an employee should not have pictures or make reference to any youth, and employees should not request or accept to be linked as “friends” or connections with youth in social networking sites.
  • Communication between employees and youth should only be through Y e-mail accounts and phones, any such communication with youth should be immediately reported to the employee’s supervisor.
  • Employees violating this policy or using electronic communication systems improperly are subject to disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment. Employees using Y electronic communication systems for defamatory, illegal or fraudulent purposes also are subject to potential and/or criminal prosecution. 

In addition to our Code of Conduct, the Y also has a number of safety measures intended to keep kids safe. This includes criminal background checks on staff and volunteers; required staff training on recognizing and preventing abuse; limiting staff contact with children outside of Y programs; and reporting any allegations or suspicions of abuse to law enforcement.