Updated February 28, 2023
The FAQ guidance below is intended to accompany the Safety of Minors Policy and related requirements for OSU programs and personnel.
In addition to this FAQ, please refer to the Safety of Minors Policy Flowchart.
*FAQs for mandatory reporting can be found here
Who is required by this policy to report child abuse or neglect?
University Policy 07-040 (Safety of Minors) became official OSU policy on 10/23/2019. The purpose of this policy is to promote the safety of all minors who participate in programs and activities both on and off campus and to establish requirements for youth programs affiliated with or supported by the university.
The policy applies to university employees and volunteers who interact with minors in their capacity as representatives of the university. For a graphical representation, please refer to the Safety of Minors Policy Flowchart.
In addition, the policy includes contract provisions for university employees or units that work with non-university entities, individuals or third parties operating youth programs on university property.
A youth program is any event or activity that involves minors (under age 18) who are not OSU students or employees, and who are unaccompanied by their parent or guardian.
This includes university-operated programs, which may take place on or off campus and are offered by a university unit or OSU representative, or university-hosted programs, which take place on university property but are operated by a third party contractor, vendor, student-run organization or other non-university entity.
Examples of youth programs include:
The following types of activities are not considered 'youth programs' under the policy but remain subject to the provision restricting One-on-One Interactions, and other laws, university policies and standards, and procedures, including but not limited to mandatory child abuse reporting:
All university employees, regardless of their affiliation with or involvement in youth programs, must follow mandatory reporting procedures if they have reasonable cause to suspect child abuse or neglect.
Separate from any legal duty, non-employees and volunteers acting as youth program personnel or support personnel are required by this policy to report reasonably suspected child abuse discovered while performing duties related to the program.
Additional FAQs for mandatory reporting can be found here.
Any youth program that engages a university representative in an official capacity, or which utilizes OSU property, resources or brand, must be registered by the college or departmental unit that is operating or hosting the activity.
The sponsoring unit must identify a university employee as the person-in-charge, who is responsible for registration and overseeing compliance and overall administration of the youth program, including programs operated by non-university entities using OSU property.
The registration process is outlined here.
Registration for ongoing programs should be completed annually.
Registration for one-time or seasonal programs should be completed at least 30 days prior to the proposed start date of the program.
An overview of minimum training requirements can be found here.
All youth program personnel must complete university-approved training annually, in one of two ways:
The following course is available in the OSU Youth Program Registry (login required) for anyone who is associated with a university youth program:
Youth Safety Training (30 min) - Content from United Educators Protecting Children series, which covers topics such as predators, codes of conduct, and reporting. Interactive course includes animated scenarios and a knowledge check/quiz related to OSU policy requirements.
The following course is made available in Bridge to OSU employees, which requires ONID login to access:
Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse - Critical training available to all OSU employees.
Criminal history checks are required for certain individuals working in programs and activities involving minors, including university employees and volunteers who meet the following criteria:
Additional FAQs related to criminal history checks can be found here.
Criminal history checks must be completed for all authorized adults before they are allowed direct access to minors in a youth program, and must be renewed every 2 years.
Additional FAQs related to criminal history checks can be found here.
Sponsoring units working with non-university organizations and entities running youth programs on university property must operate under an approved OSU contract or use agreement.
Such agreements must include, at minimum, language to address compliance with incident reporting, insurance requirements, and criminal history check protocol that meets or exceeds the university’s minimum requirements.
For more information about contracting policies, Facility Use Agreement Forms, and department responsibilities related to contracts, visit https://fa.oregonstate.edu/contract-services.
One-on-one interactions between a minor and an employee or authorized adult (who is not the minor’s parent or guardian) must occur within an observable or interruptible distance from another adult and should only take place in open, well-illuminated areas.
This provision applies to OSU employees regardless of their involvement in youth programs.