SafeSport

MCDL SafeSport Resources

The Protecting Young Victims from Sexual Abuse and Safe Sport Authorization Act of 2017 codified the U.S. Center for SafeSport, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, as the nation’s safe sport organization. SafeSport was created to help abuse prevention, education, and accountability take root in every sport, on every court. Dedicated solely to ending sexual, physical, and emotional abuse on behalf of athletes everywhere.

MCDL strives to make our league a welcoming and safe environment. Education is a key component of any abuse and misconduct prevention strategy. Awareness training provides relevant participants with necessary information to more effectively monitor an organization, minimize the opportunities for physical and sexual abuse and other types of misconduct, and respond to concerns. We want our members to possess the information necessary to more effectively monitor and minimize the opportunities for child physical and sexual abuse and other types of misconduct, and to know how to respond to concerns. 

Reps, Parents, Coaches

Reps and Parents are encouraged to take the free online training course through SafeSafe Sport. The Parent’s Guide to Misconduct in Sport is designed for parents of athletes of all ages. This FREE online training course explains the issues of misconduct in sport and helps parents ensure their children have a positive and safe sport experience.

You can access the Parent’s Guide at no cost at http://safesporttrained.org

Simply create an account, add the parent training to your bag, and you’ll be able to access the training.

Youth Athletes

SafeSport now has two free online courses for children of varied ages and their parents or caregivers. These courses introduce minor athletes to the importance of positive welcoming environments in which bullying and abuse are not tolerated. The courses also let course takers know where to report abuse or misconduct, if it occurs.

A parent or legal guardian should create an account at http://safesporttrained.org to provide consent for their child to access the training. Once that account is created, parents can choose from either:
– SafeSport for Kids (ages 5-12, 15 minutes)
– SafeSport for Youth Athletes (ages 13-17, 15 minutes)

A Certificate of Completion is generated after the youth training is completed.  

Adult Coaches and Reps
We encourage adult coaches to become SafeSport trained. The training course is offered through SafeSport and costs $20.

You can access the training at http://safesporttrained.org
Simply create an account, and you’ll be able to access the training.

Additional SafeSport Resources (Prepared by SafeSport)

In addition to the training above MCDL Encourages Coaches, Athletes, and Parents to use the resources provided here to learn more about keeping athletes safe.

• Parent and Guardian’s Handbook for Safe Sport – Learn about athlete safety and best practices for parenting kids in sport. We created this Handbook for parents and guardians, but other family members and mentors can also find useful tips and resources here to help make sport safer for the kids in their lives.
• Signs and Symptoms of Abuse – How to spot common signs and symptoms of abuse, misconduct, and neglect.
• Is it Appropriate Coaching – or Abuse? – Tips to help you recognize the difference between abusive behavior and appropriate coaching.
• Tips for Creating a Positive Team Environment – Suggestions for coaches to help them respectfully, fairly, and consistently guide athletes.
• Creating Inclusive Sport Environments – Tips to help your team, club or facility be inclusive for people of all abilities, backgrounds, and identities.
• Emotional and Physical Abuse and Misconduct Tool Kit** – A positive sport experience at a young age can lead to a successful life. But too often, youth athletes are subjected to physical and psychological harm. This toolkit will help you prevent, recognize, and respond to emotional and physical abuse and misconduct with tactics you can put into play today.
  **This guide contains detailed information about trauma and abuse, including Emotional Misconduct, Physical Misconduct, Bullying, Harassment, and Hazing. Some of the words and examples used may be triggering and cause anxiety.