Welcome to U.S. Figure Skating

SafeSport Program

U.S. Figure Skating strives to provide a safe environment for its members that is free of abuse and harassment. The association will not tolerate or condone any form of harassment or abuse of any of its members including athletes, coaches, officials, directors, employees, parents, volunteers or any other persons while they are participating in or preparing for a figure skating activity or event conducted under the auspices of U.S. Figure Skating. All forms of abuse and harassment are unacceptable and in direct conflict with U.S. Figure Skating rules.

The U.S. Figure Skating SafeSport Program addresses the following types of abuse, harassment and misconduct:

Sexual abuse and misconduct
Physical abuse and misconduct
Emotional abuse and misconduct
Bullying, threats and harassment
Hazing
Willfully tolerating misconduct

U.S. Figure Skating SafeSport Handbook

As found within the U.S. Figure Skating SafeSport Handbook, the SafeSport Program includes policies and guidelines that apply to all U.S. Figure Skating members, clubs, programs, events and activities and involves several key components:

We all can play a role in preventing abuse and reducing misconduct in sport. The U.S. Figure Skating SafeSport Program provides resources for all members to identify abuse and misconduct, steps that can be taken to reduce it and procedures to respond to it.

The SafeSport Program also includes required training of coaches and select U.S. Figure Skating volunteers, officials and staff members on recognizing abuse and reducing circumstances for potential abuse to occur; information on U.S. Figure Skating's mandatory screening and background check program; the procedures for reporting suspected abuse or misconduct (including protections from any retaliation or repercussions for such reporting and procedures for disciplinary action for failure to appropriately report and for making a false report); the procedures and means by which U.S. Figure Skating and its member clubs and programs should respond to allegations of abuse and misconduct; and how U.S. Figure Skating and its member clubs can implement this program to help ensure its effectiveness.

Athlete Protection Policies

As found within the U.S. Figure Skating SafeSport Handbook, U.S. Figure Skating has developed policies for its member clubs to help them address abuse and misconduct if it should occur, and to reduce, monitor and govern areas where potential abuse and misconduct could occur. U.S. Figure Skating recommends that its member clubs adopt the SafeSport policies below that are applicable to their club and facility to reduce the risks of potential abuse:

Athlete protection and commitment to safety
Two-deep leadership and appropriate supervision
Locker room and changing room policy
Social media, mobile and electronic communications policy
SafeSport travel guidelines
Codes of conduct for skaters, parents, coaches and club board members

Club SafeSport Compliance Chair

To ensure that the SafeSport Program is implemented in all U.S. Figure Skating member clubs, each U.S. Figure Skating member club is asked to designate a club board member to hold the title of SafeSport Compliance Chair beginning July 1, 2013. The specific duties of the club SafeSport Compliance Chair will include monitoring the SafeSport policies and procedures of the club; verifying that all of the coaches who are engaged in any type of coaching activity with any club skater are in compliance with the U.S. Figure Skating coaching membership rules regarding background checks and continuing education requirements; and serve as the initial contact in the club for persons to report suspected abuse, misconduct or other violations, and when necessary, report such information to U.S. Figure Skating. Please refer to the Club SafeSport Compliance Chair job description for more information. In addition, it is highly recommended that every member club should have at least three members who have completed the SafeSport Program training course.

SAFESPORT PROGRAM RESOURCES

Links and Downloads:
Complete U.S. Figure Skating SafeSport Handbook (PDF)
U.S. Figure Skating SafeSport Brochure (May 2013 SKATING, PDF)
How to Make a Report (PDF)
Link to find state laws for reporting (HTML)
Register for the USOC SafeSport Training (HTML)