Youth Protection
Mid-Atlantic Robotics takes the safety and well-being of every participant seriously and puts Safety and Youth Protection at the forefront of what we do. Event Safety is more than just Youth Protection clearances and Mid-Atlantic Robotics has developed comprehensive safety plans for all of our programs and volunteers.
All volunteers participating in the program, including event volunteers and team coaches/mentors are required to follow any applicable youth protection laws and regulations for the state that they reside in and within the state(s) in which they choose to compete in.
FRC Event Safety
FRC Event Safety Procedures
Starting in 2024, FIRST Mid-Atlantic (FMA) will be enacting Event Safety procedures at all FMA events. The procedures help identify team participants, limit entrances, and better prepare all attendees for weather or other emergency situations. Each event has a Safety Plan that is customized for their individual venue to ensure better preparedness from event attendees and event management.
The FRC Event Safety Procedures document explains the procedure in more detail and teams should make sure they are aware of what is expected at events.
Summary of Safety Procedures
- Badging of all participants
- Only use designated event entrances
- Emergency Contact & Response Plan
- Enhanced Training for Key Event Personnel
The detailed FRC Event Safety Procedure is available below.
Badging Process
Pre-Event:
- Ensure all students and mentors are registered in the FIRST system
- Use Express Enrollment to add all team members to your teams roster and complete the Consent and Release Form electronically
- Have all mentors complete Youth Protection Screening
- Ensure your Team Roster on your FIRST Dashboard is up-to-date by January 31st
- Attend the Virtual Coaches Meeting on the Monday before your event(s) is supposed to start
- In case of emergency, make sure your team members are all aware of your teams safety plan
At Event:
- Lead Mentor or Alternate Mentor checks in at Pit Admin upon arriving at your first event
- Pit Admin provides your team badges (first event only), Drivers buttons and any other event specific materials
- If a student or mentor loses their badge at the event, please go to Pit Admin for instructions on getting a new badge.
- Badges should be worn by all students and mentors on the roster at all times during the event
- Team leads are responsible for ensuring all students and mentors have the appropriate badge and if replacements are needed, see Pit Admin
Post Event:
- If any updates are needed to your team roster, ensure your roster on your FIRST Dashboard is updated and email [email protected] alerting FMA of the update
- Updates to a team roster can include a mentor who has a change in Youth Protection status, a student who is now on your roster, or a student or mentor who has lost their badge
- Teams are responsible for managing their badges between events and ensuring students and mentors have their badges for all FMA events
Visitors
Visitors to the event, or those individuals who are not listed on a team roster, will not be badged for the event. Visitors will enter the venue through the designated venue entrance, which will typically be the main entrance to the venue that teams and volunteers use.
Upon entering the venue, visitors will need to check in at the ‘Visitor Check-In’ desk. There each individual over 16 will need to provide an ID to the Visitor Check-In Volunteer. This volunteer will scan the id (if possible) and provide an event specific, initialed, wrist band.
- Each visitor will only need to check-in once per event.
- Individuals without a scannable id will need to have their information manually entered into the system and should provide some form of identification confirming their name.
- Individuals under 16 will need to be accompanied by an adult and will receive a wristband when the adult checks in
A third party system (Raptor Technologies) will be used to facilitate check-in.
If any event staff or volunteers note a person without a badge or a wristband - that person should be directed to check in.
MAR Policy Regarding Megan's Law Alert
The purpose of this policy is to outline the procedures and protocols for responding to alerts received from Raptor Technologies indicating that an individual associated with MAR, or attending a MAR event is active on a list covered by Megan's Law. This policy aims to ensure the safety and well-being of all members of the Mid-Atlantic Robotics community.
Clearances
FIRST's Youth Protection Program
Information on FIRST's Youth Protection Program (YPP) can be found on their website.
All volunteers volunteering at a FIRST Mid-Atlantic official event must have passed FIRST’s Youth Protection Screening in order to be assigned as a volunteer at the event.
We strongly encourage all adult volunteers that work with a team to be listed on a team roster and complete FIRST’s Youth Protection Screening.
Pennsylvania Act 153
For those individuals (volunteers and coaches/mentors) participating at an event taking place in Pennsylvania and/or working with Pennsylvania based teams, adherence to PA Act 153 is required.
As an organization that has events that take place in Pennsylvania and teams that are from Pennsylvania, participants are required to comply with PA Act 153. Information on PA Act 153 can be found here. All adults 18+ that are participating in a PA Event as a mentor, coach or volunteer must be in compliance and provide the appropriate clearance documentation to FMA.
Clearances and clearance documentation are collected using a secure and encrypted collection site for the safekeeping of documents.
Pennsylvania Act 153
Coaches/Mentors
Coaches and mentors of teams competing in Pennsylvania events are required to be in compliance with Pennsylvania Act 153. Team leads will be required to attest that all coaches and mentors of their team are in compliance before attending a Pennsylvania Event. An attestation form will be provided to Team Leads by their respective FMA Program Director with steps on how to complete and submit. A sample attestation form of what Team Leads will be required to sign is provided below.
Any team that is not affiliated with a school or governing organization (e.g. The Girl Scouts of America), will be required to provide all of their PA Act 153 clearances directly to FMA for all adult volunteers, coaches and mentors. Specific instructions to provide these clearances will be provided directly to the impacted teams by FMA.
Teams will be required to submit any required clearance paperwork prior to participating in any event that they are registered for in Pennsylvania.
Please Note: Attending FMA District Championship Requires PA Act 153 Compliance and Documentation from All Teams
Volunteers
Volunteers at all PA Events will be required to have turned in the PA Act 153 clearances before they can volunteer at a PA event. In some instances, such as for FRC events, volunteers may not be assigned to a volunteer role until FMA has received their clearances.
FBI Fingerprints, PA Child Abuse, and PA Criminal Background Check clearances are valid for 5 years from the time they were obtained. FMA’s clearance database keeps track of volunteer clearance expiration dates and will notify volunteers when they need to provide updated clearances.
Clearances and clearance documentation are collected using a secure and encrypted collection site for the safekeeping of documents.
What Clearances Do I Need?
Use the flowchart below to help identify what clearances are required for PA Act 153 compliance.
If you already have a clearance check from your home state, that can be provided (as long as it is still valid) in place of acquiring a new clearance. For example: You are a teacher at a NJ School, and your school has your clearance, fingerprints, etc. on file. You would not need to obtain any additional clearances. Provided that all other coaches/mentors on your team also have their clearances on file with your school, you would be able to sign the Attestation form that FMA will provide.
Pennsylvania Clearances
Pennsylvania Child Abuse History Clearance
Visit https://www.compass.state.pa.us/cwis/public/home, create an account, and request a clearance for volunteer purposes
Pennsylvania State Police Criminal Record Check
Visit https://epatch.pa.gov/home and select New Volunteer Record Request
Federal Bureau of Investigation Criminal Background Check
Visit https://www.identogo.com and use Access Code: 1KG6ZJ
Please Note: This clearance requires getting fingerprinted and costs $23.50
Form A - PA Resident Affidavit
For PA Residents who have lived in Pennsylvania for 10 years or moreOut-of-State Clearances
New Jersey Child Abuse History Clearance
Service Code: 2F1BJG
Contributor Case Number: PRR
Additional information can be found at https://www.nj.gov/njsp/criminal-history-records/chri-nj-res.shtml and navigate to the Personal Records Request section
Visit https://uenroll.identogo.com/workflows/2F1BJG, schedule an appointment, obtain your fingerprints and receive clearance.
Please Note: This clearance requires getting fingerprinted and costs $45.73
Delaware Child Abuse History Clearance
Service Code: 27RVGT
Additional information can be found at https://dsp.delaware.gov/obtaining-a-certified-criminal-history/
Visit https://uenroll.identogo.com/, schedule an appointment, obtain your fingerprints and receive clearance.
Please Note: This clearance requires getting fingerprinted and costs $72.00
Form B - Out-of-State Resident Affidavit
For Residents of New Jersey, Delaware, etc.How Do I Provide My Clearances?
Volunteer clearances should be provided electronically, when possible. Volunteers will be contacted by their event Volunteer Coordinator (VC) or the FMA Senior VC on how to provide clearances electronically.
If clearances are not going to be provided electronically, clearances can be provided to the VC at the Volunteer table at your respective event.
For any questions on submitting your clearances to FMA, please contact our FMA Senior VC at [email protected].
Can I be reimbursed for my FBI Clearances?
FMA will reimburse the costs of the FBI Clearance (up to $27.50) to any official FMA-FRC event volunteer who is assigned a volunteer role in VMS (Volunteer Management System) at a Pennsylvania Event and has submitted Form C. All reimbursement requests will be verified after the official FRC season has concluded and will be sent out by the end of the fiscal year (June 30).
I still have questions, who should I contact?
Volunteers can contact the FMA Senior Volunteer Coordinator at [email protected] for further clarification.
Team Leads can contact their respective FMA Program Director for additional clarification regarding the requirements for teams attending an event in Pennsylvania.
- FLL: [email protected]
- FRC: [email protected]