Give
Join

Give

Clubs

Join

Club Safety

The Safety and Well-Being of Young People is Our Number One Priority

Ensuring child safety is fundamental to the mission of Boys & Girls Clubs of Acadiana. Research is clear that when kids feel safe, they have better outcomes in life, which is exactly why we do the work we do. Inherent in this is safeguarding kids and teens who are entrusted to our care and engaged with our clubs. We work every day to create a safe, fun environment so all youth can have every opportunity to be successful in life.

Club teens are more likely to abstain from health-risk behaviors like alcohol and smoking than their peers nationally.

Clubs provide safety, mentorship and a sense of community during the critical out-of-school hours. 91% of Club members say adults encourage them to make positive choices.

Clubs help build a sense of civic responsibility and leadership. In fact, 82% of Club members believe they can make a difference in their community and 88% stand up for what they think is right.

Our Safety Approach

Boys & Girls Clubs of America has advocated the passage of the U.S. PROTECT Act, which improved background screening systems and access. The national organization has also partnered with the FBI, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and the Centers for Disease Control to contribute to the development of safety practices that benefit ALL youth-serving organizations.

Culture of Safety

Boys & Girls Clubs of Acadiana continually updates robust safety policies, programs, and training for our staff and volunteers that are designed to promote child safety and protect young people from threats that are present in our society.

Safety Policies

Boys & Girls Clubs of Acadiana has comprehensive safety policies in place that protect youth – including, but not limited to, supervision, transportation, communication and prohibiting private one-on-one contact.

Review our full Safety Policies and Action

Safety Trainings

Ongoing training and supervision of staff is critical. We participate in a wide variety of child safety trainings such as CPR and First Aid, Active Shooter, Recognizing Child Abuse as mandated reporters, and Bullying training, to name a few. 

MANDATORY BACKGROUND CHECKS

Mandatory criminal background checks are required every year for every staff and board member at Boys & Girls Clubs of Acadiana. All potential employees and volunteers are also run through the National Sex Offender Registry. In addition, criminal background checks are required for any volunteer who has direct contact with children.

Required Immediate Reporting

Boys & Girls Clubs of Acadiana staff and volunteers are all mandated reporters. We are required to report any critical incident/safety concern to local authorities immediately. We are also required to report any critical incident to Boys & Girls Clubs of America within 24 hours.

Mandatory Annual Safety Assessments

We complete a safety assessment each year to ensure we continually make improvements to safety at our Clubs.

Safety Committee

As part of our Board-led Club Experience and Safety Committee, we have an ongoing focus on safety, elevating it to the highest level of governance. 

Mandatory Employee Reference

Any employee interested in moving to another Boys & Girls Club is required to have a reference from the previous Club, even if the Clubs are within the same community

America’s young people deserve nothing less than our constant focus on their safety and our firm commitment to protect every child who is entrusted to our care at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Acadiana. To learn more about our national safety policies and actions, please visit Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s Child Safety page here.

Sign Up for News and Updates

Untitled