Protection of Minors

Our Mission

Vanderbilt University is a center for scholarly research, informed and creative teaching, and service to the community and society at large. Outreach, service, and care for the community through academic programs, athletic camps, service projects, summer camps, specialty camps, health service, outreach programs, intern/observer experiences, and other activities is a vital part of who we are. As we carry out these missions, the protection of minors on our campus and in our programs is a priority. In 2012, the Chancellor commissioned a multi-disciplinary committee whose work resulted in the Protection of Minors policy.

Our Policy

The Policy was implemented in April 2013 and updated in 2018. The Protection of Minors policy includes:

• Provisions for background clearance checks of individuals who are interacting with minor participants in Vanderbilt programs and operations;
• Training and education provisions to include child abuse/child sexual abuse awareness, characteristics of offenders and red flag behaviors, and behavioral indicators of abused children;
• Codes of Conduct when interacting with minors;
• External and internal mandatory reporting requirements, and
• Language establishing administration of an inventory system to document Vanderbilt programs and personnel who interact with minors, available to program administrators through the Protection of Minors Web Application tool.

As the administrator of the Protection of Minors policy, the Office of Risk and Insurance Management will:

• Facilitate program registration, event documentation, and affiliated personnel compliance through the Protection of Minors Web Application.
• Maintain a database of individuals who have met the requirements of the Protection of Minors Policy;
• Provide resources for training and education, such as the POM Policy Handbook, and checklists for programs;
• Work with organizations and departments to assist with policy compliance;
• Provide guidance on creating University Participation Agreements to be completed by the parent/guardians of minor participants.
• Provide resources to and monitor feedback from programs affected by the Policy; and
• Provide a point of contact for any allegation of inappropriate behavior with minors.

Additional information regarding the policy, registration of programs and individuals (faculty, staff, students, volunteers) working with minors, and education may be found here. Also feel free to contact us directly at 615-936-5935 or protectionofminors@vanderbilt.edu. The Youth Protection program is a part of University Compliance Services (UCS) serving under the Office of the General Counsel (OGC); more about the OGC team.