Gamehaven Council > About > Safety & Insurance

SAFETY, Youth Protection & INSURANCE

The Gamehaven Council is Committed to delivering safe and high-quality programs for more than 2000 Scouts and their families across southeast Minnesota. Our Council Continues to provide a values-based program that develops the character, ethical behavior and leadership skills of our region’s youth.

We are committed to providing a safe and secure environment for our youth members. Youth protection requires sustained vigilance, and we work every day to protect children through mandatory policies and procedures at every level of our organization. We are also committed to continuous improvement in our approach to youth protection.

Our policies, procedures, and training have evolved to learn from the past while also borrowing from best practices developed by leading experts in this field. Today, the youth protection practices of the Boy Scouts of America are the gold standard among youth serving organizations. 

BSA’s safeguards in the areas of Mandatory Youth Protection Training, Mandatory Background checks, Banned One-On-One Interactions, Mandatory Law Enforcement Reporting, and a Volunteer Screening Database are key parts to our multilayered approach to help keep kids safe. These measures were informed by respected experts in the fields of child safety, Law enforcement, and child psychology, and are among the strongest safeguards found in any youth-serving organization. 

It is critical that every adult in our program – whether they are a uniformed leader or a parent of a Scout – knows and follows BSA’s Youth Protection policies. Even if you are not a registered Scouting leader or volunteer, it is your responsibility as a parent or guardian to know and understand the Boy Scouts of America’s youth protection guidelines. One of the best ways to do this is to take BSA’s Youth Protection Training. Another is to review the youth protection parent guide included at the front of your child’s Scouting handbook. This knowledge will not only benefit you and your child in Scouting, but also equip you to recognize the behavior of potential abusers in your child’s school, sports teams, house of worship, or other activities. 

YPT Logo

There are two types of Youth Protection related reporting procedures all volunteer must follow:

  •  When you witness or suspect any child has been abused or neglected- review the “Mandatory Report of Child Abuse” below.
  • When you witness a violation of the BSA’s Youth Protection policies – Review the “Reporting Violations of BSA Youth Protections policies” below.
MANDATORY REPORT OF CHILD ABUSE
All persons involved in Scouting shall report to local authorities any good-faith suspicion or belief that any child is or has been physically or sexually abused, physically or emotionally neglected, exposed to any form of violence or threat, exposed to any form of sexual exploitation, including the posession, manufacture, or distribution of child pornography, online solicitation, enticement, showing of obscene material. You may not abdicate this reporting responsibility to any other person. 
 
REPORTING VIOLATIONS OF BSA YOUTH PROTECTION POLICIES
If you think any of the BSA’s Youth Protection policies have been violated, including those described within Scouting’s Barrier to Abuse, you must notify your local council Scout Executive or his/her designee to appropriate action can be taken for the safety of our Scouts. 
 
STEPS TO REPORTING CHILD ABUSE
  1. ensure the child is in a safe environment
  2. In cases of child abuse injury or medical emergencies, call 911 immediately.
  3. In addition, if the suspected abuse occurred in the Scout’s home or family, you are required by state law to imediately report/contact the local child abuse hotline.
  4. Notify the Scout Executive or his/her designee, if he/she can not be reached call the 27/7 Scouts First Helpline at 1-844-726-8871 or email, Scoutsfirst@scouting.org.

GAMEHAVEN COUNCIL EMERGENCY CONTACT PERSONNEL

Franklin Sears

Scout Executive

Office: 507-287-1410 Est. 5344

Cell: 607-422-4529

Email: Franklin.Sears@scouting.org

Past experience has led the Boys Scouts of America to create and implement the best youth protection procedures among youth-serving organizations nationwide. We constantly evaluate and invest resources to strengthen our policies and ensure they are in line with, and where possible, ahead of best practices for prevention. To support the ongoing effort we regularly consult with survivors and experts from law enforcement, child safety, psychology, and other relevant fields. 

  • “Two-Deep” Leadership – A youth is not allowed to be alone with an adult leader who isn’t his or her parent/guardian during Scouting activities. Additionally, no youth is permitted to sleep in the tent of an adult other than his or her own parent/guardian. We also prohibit one-on-one contact between adults and youth members, including texting and communications on social media.
  • Criminal Background Checks– The BSA has a formal leader-selection process that includes criminal background checks and other screenings.
  • No Hazing– Hazing and initiations are prohibited and may not be included as part of any Scouting activity. 
  • No Bullying – verbal, physical and cyberbullying are prohibited in Scouting.

Any Time an incident occurs when persons are injured or when property damage occurs, leaders must submit an Incident Report. These reports are compiled to give volunteer and staff risk managers an overview of risk areas so Scouting can continually improve safety. Please provide this form whenever ANY incident occurs, preferably within 48 hours of the incident. Once form is complete you should safe it and add it as an attachment to send to council office. 

A “near-miss” is an incident that does not result in injury, illness, or damage, but had the potential to do so. Reporting near-misses helps safety leaders to learn and adapt Scouting programs. This form is a tool to gather information. If an injury has occurred, use the incident reporting form mentioned above. Near-Miss form

When a unit(pack, troop, etc.) rents or uses the property of a business or other organization, the property owner will often ask for a “Certificate of insurance” that demonstrates that insurance will cover their property. To request of certificate of insurance please send an email to Barbara Swan  with the following information:

  • unit type & number
  • Unit contact person
  • when is the event happening and what is it for?
  • Name of company/organization asking for COI. 
  • Address of company /org.
  • Email name and address of person we need to send COI to. 

Gamehaven Council provides accident and sickness coverage for registered members through Health Special Risk (HSR). This coverage for Scouts and Scouters furnishes medical reimbursement in case of death, accident or sickness with the policy amounts. 

HSR coverage is secondary coverage and excess to any and all other available sources of medical insurance or other healthcare benefits. 

The coverage provided has maximum limits and a maximum benefit period, usually 52 weeks from the date of  the incident. Claims must be submitted within 90 days directly to HSR as described on the claim form.  

Gamehaven Claim Coverage

Claim Form

Help for Victims of Abuse

The Boy Scouts of America is outraged there have been times when individuals used our programs to gain access to and harm children, and for that  we apologize to victims and their families. Nothing is more important than the safety of our youth members. We are committed to providing ongoing support to victims and their families, including counseling. We want to help heal on their own terms. 

Support is available to anyone currently or previously involved in the Boy Scouts of America through our dedicated 24/7 Scouts First Helpline at 1-844-SCOUTS1 (1-844-726-8871) or at Scouts1st@scouting.org