Clubs Care

USA Gymnastics is proud to announce the Clubs Care Campaign, an educational program designed specifically for clubs that focuses on establishing and maintaining a safe gymnastics environment in your club.

The Clubs Care Campaign is created to help individuals be more aware of the issue of child sexual abuse, and then suggest ways one can turn that awareness into action.

The Clubs Care Campaign can help:

  • Develop or revise policies
  • Establish standards of behavior for your staff and volunteers
  • Examine your hiring and training practices
  • Encourage parental monitoring
  • Set up procedures for reporting and handling misconduct complaints
Visit this page often for updated information and resources. Send questions or comments to ClubsCare@usagym.org.

Click here to learn what steps and policies USA Gymnastics has put into place to protect children and athletes.
Click on the images to view larger versions of the materials.
Promoting a safe gymnastics environment is a top priority for USA Gymnastics, and we continue to take steps to help educate coaches, parents and gymnasts about safety in the gym. April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month and provides an annual reminder to all of us about this incredibly important societal issue.

As part of the "We Care Campaign", the parent education outreach, USA Gymnastics is providing information and ideas to parents on how they can talk to their children about this topic. "Think First & Stay Safe" will go to the parents of 9-year-old athletes, with "Let's Talk Teens" sent to parents of 13-year-old athletes.

As part of the "Clubs Care Campaign," Member Clubs and Registered Businesses will receive a courtesy copy of each of these booklets, plus a set of two posters to display in their gyms to complement their efforts to promote a safe environment for all participants. A four-page summary that highlights USA Gymnastics' abuse and misconduct prevention efforts is also included and may be used as a resource and shared with parents and concerned adults. Click, download and share the four page summary with your staff, parents in your gym and all concerned adults.

Features

An annual evaluation is one way to stay on top of the issue of sexual misconduct and confirm your club is promoting a safe gymnastics environment. Here's a helpful checklist to use when evaluating your club's efforts.
The Clubs Care Campaign provides information on Child Abuse Protection Laws, mandatory reporting and acting on suspicions. Click here to read more.
This month the Clubs Care Campaign shares sample policies and templates that gym clubs can utilize in order to implement for a safe environment within their gym program. Click here to view.
USA Gymnastics recent email blast to members and clubs promotes reducing the opportunity of abuse by background and reference checks, implementing hiring and training practices and elimination of private access with children. Click here for the complete article.
USA Gymnastics provides information on how to create a safer environment with steps for "Zero Opportunity." Click here to read more..
USA Gymnastics continues to educate clubs on ways to create a safe environment by being Alert and Aware! Click here for complete communication piece.
USA Gymnastics educational partner has prepared an educational piece building awareness on the grooming process for predators. This piece can be printed and distributed to parents and concerned adults within a gymnastics facility. Click here to read the article.
USA Gymnastics announces their Clubs Care Campaign targeted to Gymnastics Clubs to create a safer environment. Amanda Borden, 1996 Olympic Gold Medalist, Club Owner and Mom acts as the Spokesperson for the Campaign. Click here for a PDF of the campaign postcard.
7 Steps to Protecting Our Children" provided by Darkness to Light. Click the following for one page flyers that clubs can redistribute to parents and concerned individuals regarding action steps one can do in order to protect our children - Color | Black & White

Click here to download the Complete 7 Steps for Protecting our Children.


Learn the Facts!

Did you know?

IT IS HIGHLY likely that you know a child who has been or is being abused.

-1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys will be sexually abused before turning 18
-More than 90% of abusers are people that children know, love or trust
-There are more than 39 million survivors of sexual abuse in America
-More than 20% of child sexual abuse victims are under the age of 8
-Source: www.d2l.org

  • 1 in 5 children are sexually solicited while on the Internet.
  • Nearly 70% of all reported sexual assaults (including assaults on adults) occur to children ages 17 and under.
  • Most child victims never report the abuse.
  • Sexually abused children who keep it a secret or who "tell" and are not believed are at greater risk than the general population for psychological, emotional, social, and physical problems, often lasting into adulthood. It is also likely that you know an abuser. The greatest risk to children doesn't come from strangers but from friends and family.
  • 30-40% of children are abused by family members.
  • As many as 60% are abused by people the family trusts- abusers frequently try to form a trusting relationship with parents.
  • People who abuse children look and act just like every one else. In fact, they often go out of their way to appear trustworthy to gain access to children.
  • Those who sexually abuse children are drawn to settings where they can gain easy access to children, such as sports leagues, faith centers, clubs, and schools.
CONSEQUENCES to children and to our society begin immediately.

Child sexual abuse is a direct source of a number of problems facing us.

  • 70-80% of sexual abuse survivors report excessive drug and alcohol use.
  • One study showed that among male survivors, 50% have suicidal thoughts and more than 20% attempt suicide.
  • Young girls who are sexually abused are more likely to develop eating disorders as adolescents.
  • More than 60% of teen first pregnancies are preceded by experiences of molestation, rape or attempted rape. The average age of the offenders is 27 years old.
  • Approximately 40% of sex offenders report sexual abuse as children.
  • Both males and females who have been sexually abused are more likely to engage in prostitution.
  • Approximately 70% of sexual offenders of children have between 1 and 9 victims; 20-25% have 10 to 40 victims.
  • Serial child molesters may have as many as 400 victims in their lifetimes.
Source: www.d2l.org

Visit the USA Gymnastics Educational Partners below to learn more facts as well as steps you can take to create a safer environment



National Helplines

Darkness to Light
1-866-FOR-LIGHT (866-367-5444)

Stop It Now!
1-888-PREVENT (888-773-2362)

The Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline
1-800-4-A-CHILD (800-422-4453)

National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

National Resources Related to Child Sexual Abuse

Click the icon on the above video player to toggle through the playlist

Educational Partners


U.S. Olympic Committee SafeSport program

SafeSport seeks to create a healthy, supportive environment for all participants. Through education, resources, and training, it helps members of the sport community recognize, reduce, and respond to misconduct in sport. It will provide tools, templates and other resources clubs can use to adopt policies and procedures or refine their current efforts.

Step-by-step guidance on building and monitoring a safe sport strategy. The SafeSport Handbook with general policy guidelines, policy templates, and sample forms and documents. Support resources for athletes.


Child Lures Prevention/Teen Lures Prevention (CLP)

CLP's mission is to help ensure the personal safety of children and youth through increased awareness, education, advocacy and action. Its initial focus will include educating clubs about grooming behaviors and signs of abuse.

Information on the grooming process and child lures offenders use to attract and manipulate youngsters Think First & Stay Safe™ Parent Guides and Let's Talk Teens parent handbook Multi-media broadcast clips, community plan and E-newsletter


Darkness to Light (D2L)

D2L exists to empower adults through awareness and educational programs to prevent, recognize and react responsibly to childhood sexual abuse. It will concentrate on building awareness among the adults in the clubs about what they can and should do to prevent harmful situations from developing.

7 Steps to Protecting Our Children, an introductory guide for responsible adults "Stewards of Children" child abuse prevention training, available online or in facilitated 'live' group classes "Partner in Prevention" distinction to demonstrate a commitment to child sexual abuse prevention


Stop It Now!

The mission of Stop It Now! is to prevent the sexual abuse of children by mobilizing adults, families and communities to take actions that protect children before they are harmed. Because of its belief that adults are in the best position to keep children safe from sexual abuse, it will focus on turning awareness into action.

Stop It Now! Helpline (1.888.PREVENT): email or call the free and confidential Helpline for information, guidance and resources Visit the Ask Now! advice column to learn about the common situations its users face in keeping children safe from sexual abuse and the information and resources offered by the Helpline Other website resources for gymnastics clubs including downloadable Warning Sign tip sheets

USA Gymnastics Member Conduct & Reponsibility

Resources

Templates For Gym Clubs:

Child sex abuse is a societal issue, and all of us - athletes, parents, coaches, administrators, officials - must team up and together work for prevention.
USA Gymnastics has created a parent resource. Please refer parents in your club to USAGymClub.com for more information regarding this topic.
Click here to view the parent focused initiative "We Care Campaign"


Awareness + Action = Prevention


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