We have several lines of defense to protect our children:

• Our first desire is to staff our ministry with trained, committed, and safe workers that love God and love children.
• Each worker is required to complete a criminal background check.
• The Two Adult Rule: There must be two adults present with children at any church-related activity.
• Do not report to class if you are ill. Please call the Elementary Ministry Assistant to find a sub. While it’s helpful for you to replace yourself, bear in mind that all persons serving with children need a completed background check—even if they just serve one time.
• If a child becomes ill or injured, please let the Elementary Ministry Leaders know. We will page parents, fix “boo-boos”, etc.
• Please do not have hot, open drinks around kids and finish your coffee before the children arrive unless you have a stainless steel container with a lid on it. Children are not allowed to have hot drinks.
• For your own safety and wellbeing, please wear non-latex gloves if you’re ever in contact with bodily fluids. Non-latex gloves are available in our storage room and First Aid Kit.
• In case of emergency, it is the Elementary Minister’s responsibility to give instructions of procedures to be followed. While we sincerely appreciate everyone’s willingness to help, situations can intensify when there’s confusing information.
• Be alert! If you see an adult or child wandering around, ask how you can help.
• If you have a ministry shirt, please wear it and your nametag lanyard each week that you serve, as this clearly identifies you as a safe adult. Please never donate your used ministry shirts to charity as children identify people in these shirts as “safe adults”.
• We are a gun-free/weapon-free campus.
• ‍We have a First Aid Kit and first aid supplies available in our storage room. Gloves, bandages, gauze pads, instant cold packs, eye wash, alcohol & alcohol swabs, and hydrogen peroxide are a few items inside. Please ask if there is anything you or a child need.
• No adults are allowed in the bathroom alone with a child.
• Stall doors should remain closed while a child is using the toilet.
• If a child needs further assistance due to illness, hygiene, or comfort, please inform your Elementary Ministry Leaders so that the parents can be contacted.
• While we greatly appreciate our high-school and middle-school aged volunteers, they are not to assist children in the restroom.
• Kids older than preschool should not sit in leaders’ laps.