Safe Sport Training for Parents and Non-Athletes
U.S. CENTER FOR SAFE SPORT - PARENT TOOL KIT
On February 14, 2018, a new law went into effect, S.534, the “Protecting Young Victims from Sexual Abuse and SafeSport Authorization Act of 2017.” The Act designates the U.S. Center for SafeSport (The Center) as the independent national safe sport organization responsible for delivering education and resolving allegations of misconduct within the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Movements; additionally, the law requires the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) and U.S. Olympic national governing bodies (NGBs) to report child sexual abuse to law enforcement.
If your child participates in a sport organization that is a member of a national governing body recognized by the U.S. Olympic Committee, the U.S. Center for SafeSport Code and definitions apply. Click the link below for full details.
MINOR ATHLETE ABUSE PROTECTION POLICY (MAAPP)
The USA Swimming Minor Athlete Abuse Protection Policy (MAAPP) becomes effective June 23, 2019. MAAPP contains five sections: one-on-one interactions, travel, social media and electronic communications, locker rooms and changing areas and massage, rubdowns and athletic training modalities.
Additionally all our 18+ year old athletes must complete the Athlete Protection Training by June 23, 2019, before they are able to swim in a meet. Any meet that uses OME for entries (Sectionals, Far Westerns, Jr. Nationals, Nationals, etc.) will flag any 18+ athletes that have not completed the online course and they will not be allowed to swim in the meet. It is recommended that those athletes that are almost 18 years old complete the online course during the summer while they have time.
Below you will find all of the materials that USA Swimming has published regarding MAAPP, including answers to FAQs to date. Kelly Schott, our Safe Sport Chair, has also put together a presentation with more in-depth explanations of these policies. If you have a question that is not answered in USA Swimming's or Kelly's presenation, please email Kelly Schott and she will either answer your question(s) or forward it on to USA Swimming to get an answer.
Documents and FAQs
- Applicable Adults
- One-On-One Interactions
- Social Media and Electronic Communications
- Travel
- Locker Rooms and Changing Areas
- Massages, Rubdowns and Athletic Training Modalities
- Bullying - Coaches' Handbook
Presentation at House of Delegates
ATHLETE PROTECTION TRAINING
MANDATORY TRAINING FOR NON-ATHLETE MEMBERS, APPLICABLE ADULTS AND 18+ ATHLETES
USA Swimming LEARN, a new online education hub, has launched! The app requirement will have some slight changes. More details can be found below.
All non-athlete members, applicable adults and 18+ years old athletes of USA Swimming are required to complete the Athlete Protection Training by clicking the link below. New members will be required to have their non-athlete application form and payment processed by their LSC registrar before they can sign in to complete the course.
This certification is required for all new and existing members including coaches, officials, chaperones, meet directors. If you have registered with USA Swimming for the first time, this is the course you need to take.
The course is free of charge and, upon completion, should update in your membership record within 24 hours. Initiate the course by entering your information in the boxes below.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR INITIAL COMPLETION
To complete the Athlete Protection Training Certification, please follow the directions below:
- Enter your first name, last name, and birthday. Make sure to use your legal name. Click the Search button.
- When the system finds you, click on "CONTINUE" to access the LEARN site.
- You must take the Athlete Protection Training course to complete the requirement
Once you have completed your courses, your membership record will update within 24 hours with a new APT expiration date.
Your APT will expire 12 months after you complete the course.
Members must always enter LEARN via www.usaswimming.org/learn or www.usaswimming.org/apt. If you create a non-member account, you will not receive credit for the courses that you take.
If you get a "No Results Found" message, one of three things has happened:
- You may have made a typo on your name and birthday. Double check and resubmit.
- If everything is correct and you are or have ever been a member of USA Swimming, it is possible that there is a typo in your membership information in the USA Swimming database. Contact your LSC registrar.
- You have never been registered with USA Swimming. You must join through your LSC. New members will be required to have your application form and payment processed by your LSC registrar before you can sign in to complete the course.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR RENEWAL OF APT
ATHLETE PROTECTION EDUCATION
USA Swimming is committed to raising awareness about prevention of abuse in sport. We believe that the first step to creating an empowered team environment is education.
Our training will help you:
- Understand the scope and effects of abuse in sport
- Recognize the signs of grooming behavior and boundary violations
- Understand how to establish boundaries and protect against false allegations
- Know how to react and report suspected abuse
FREE TRAINING FOR PARENTS
Parents are a critical component to our overall goal of protecting children from sexual abuse. The comprehensive online programming includes information about how offenders operate; how to recognize and respond to boundary violations, myths and facts about child sexual abuse and USA Swimming’s Athlete Protection Policies and Procedures.
FOR USA SWIMMING MEMBERS: Access the training for parents at www.usaswimming.org/learn
If you are NOT a USA Swimming member, you can create a free non-member education account and access the courses at learn.usaswimming.org
