Every Scouter must complete updated Youth Protection training by Oct. 1, 2018

Source:  Bryan on Scouting, issued March 16, 2018.

The BSA has announced bold, wide-ranging updates to its Youth Protection program as part of an ongoing effort to protect young people from child abuse.

This starts with an enhanced online Youth Protection training course all volunteers and professionals must complete.

Even those Scout leaders who took the previous version of Youth Protection training must log into My.Scouting.org and complete the updated Youth Protection course. You have until Oct. 1, 2018, to do so.

The updated course will take about an hour to complete. It includes cutting-edge research from the top experts in the field of child abuse prevention. It covers topics like bullying, neglect, exposure to violence, physical and emotional abuse, and child sexual abuse.

>Next, the BSA has made it impossible for an individual to register as a new volunteer without first completing Youth Protection training. Unit rechartering is affected, too. Packs, troops, posts, ships and crews cannot recharter until all leaders — 100 percent of them — are current on their Youth Protection training

Finally, beginning June 1, 2018, all adults who will be present at a Scouting activity for 72 hours or more must register as volunteers and complete a background check and Youth Protection training. This includes parents, merit badge counselors and any other adult who will be there for an extended time.

The BSA is serious about fighting child abuse, and you’re an important part of that fight. Thanks for your vigilance and dedication.

Who must complete the updated Youth Protection course?

All registered Scouters (volunteers and professionals), including any adult who will be present at a Scouting activity for 72 total hours or more.

The updated course debuted in February 2018; if you took Youth Protection training prior to that, you’ll need to complete the updated course by Oct. 1, 2018.

How do I take the updated Youth Protection course?

Here’s a PDF that outlines the steps.

What’s updated in this Youth Protection course?

• Videos from survivors of abuse. “In developing this training, we discussed whether or not to include survivor videos,” Johnson said. “It was the right decision. Their testimony is powerful and highlights how predators work and the tragic impact like nothing else.”
• Video interviews with psychologists and law enforcement professionals who discuss the root causes of abuse, how to recognize it and how to respond.
• Three all-new training modules and a test.

What are the latest Youth Protection training requirements?

Youth Protection training must be taken every two years. (NOTE:  Los Padres Council has a ONE year requirement.)

Effective Sept. 1, 2017:

• No unit may recharter without all leaders being current on their Youth Protection training.

Effective Jan. 1, 2018:

• No new adult volunteer can be registered without first completing Youth Protection training.
• No council, region or national leader will be allowed to renew his or her registration if their Youth Protection training is not current.

Effective June 1, 2018:

Adults accompanying a Scouting unit who are present at the activity for 72 total hours or more must be registered as leaders. This includes completing a criminal background check and Youth Protection training. The 72 hours need not be consecutive.

Youth Protection
Begins With You

Youth Protection is best achieved through the shared involvement of everyone in Scouting.

Scouting's Commitment
to Youth Protection

• Educate Scouting professionals volunteers, parents, and youth members to aid in the detection and prevention of child abuse.
• Strengthen charted organizations' leader selection procedures to prevent offenders from entering BSA leadership ranks.
• Strengthen policies that create barriers to child abuse within the program.
• Encourage Scouts to report improper behavior in order to identify offenders quickly.
• Swiftly remove and report alleged offenders.

Scouting's
Barriers to Abuse

• Two-deep leadership required on all outings.
• One-on-one contact between adults and Scouts prohibited.
• Separate accomodations for adults and Scouts required.
• Privacy of youth respected.
• Inappropriate use of cameras, imaging, or digital devices prohibited.
• No secret organizations.
• No hazing.
• No bullying.
• Youth leadership monitored by adult leaders.
• Appropriate attire for all activities.
• Members are responsible to act according to the Scout Oath and Scout Law.
• Units are responsible to enforce Youth Protection policies.

For more information about Youth Protection, visit
http://www.scouting.org/youthprotection.aspx

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