AEthelmearc Chancellor of Youth

                                                                                       


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Here are some guidelines for offering  "Youth Friendly" classes at
events and scholas.

**This information does not pertain to Martial Activities, as the Youth
Chancellor office does not oversee Youth Martial activities.**

First, let's review the current SCA policies pertaining to Youth Activities.

1. The SCA states that persons must be background checked & warranted to
_run _youth activities, effective Feb 2008.
     "Officials who are required to have background checks include, but
are not limited to, youth activities officers at all levels, adults
acting as youth marshals for any martial activity, persons organizing/in
charge of youth activities for events."   (Dec 2007  
http://www.sca.org/BOD/announcements/background_checks.pdf)

2. The SCA also has the 2 Deep Rule in effect, which states "For all SCA
Youth Activities, a mininimum of 2 adults (at or above the age of legal
majority in the state, province or country in which the activity occurs)
unrelated to one another by blood, marriage or relationship, must be
present. This policy does not relieve parents of their primary
responsibility for the welfare and behavior of their children."
excerpted from 5-19-2007 SCA Board Memorandum
(http://www.youth.aethelmearc.net/adults/youth%2520activities%2520memo%255B1%255D.pdf)

3.  The Sight/Sound Rule states "Parents or Guardians who bring minors
to an event must ensure their children's activities are compliant with
SCA Governing Documents, Laws and Policies, and site rules-to include
any Kingdom-or-event-rules regarding a requirement for minors 12 and
under to be within sight/sound of a responsible parent/guardian at all
times." Parents must be present at all times with children under the age
of 5 years.

So, how does this affect teachers and artisans who want to make their
classes youth friendly?

First, determine what type of activity you are going to have. Is it more
of a classroom/lecture style activity or a hands-on, interactive
activity? Also, is the subject matter appropriate for all ages? And
might this activity attract students aged 13-17? For the sake of
discussion, I will assume that the class subject is appropriate for all
ages, and that the teacher wants to open the class to youthful students.

Example A:  A lecture class with discussion about period hats, materials
and techniques might appeal to a variety of ages, and I would recommend
the teacher have a warranted youth officer present at the class in case
students aged 13-17 attend. *"All ages are welcome to come--children
under 12 must be accompanied by an adult."*

Example B: A techniques class where hats were being made would not
necessarily be appropriate for very young students, due to sharp tools
and dexterity issues. There would be an increased chance of students
between the ages of 13-17. A warranted youth officer in attendance would
be recommended. And I would also recommend to add this disclaimer to
your course description *"This class is suitable for students aged 8 and
above. Children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult."* You can
change the "age ___ and above" to fit what you think is appropriate.

Example C: For a cooking class, with youth invited to participate,
generally held in a kitchen area, the warranted youth officer should be
running it in coordination with the teacher/artisan who is teaching it.
I would recommend having 2 warranted youth officers in case of bathroom
breaks, etc. (Remember, per SCA rules, the youth activity must stop if
there is not a warranted youth officer present.) You will most likely
have youth of all ages present, and parents must be within sight/sound
for minors 12 and under and parents must be present for age 5 and under.
It is not permitted to have a child "signed over" to the activity staff.
The parents can assign a babysitter to attend with a child aged 6-12,
but the babysitter must be 13 yrs or older. Here is your disclaimer for
your class announcement, " *"All ages are welcome to come--parental
supervision per the SCA guidelines is mandated."*

So, we have covered a few types of classes/activities, but what if you
cannot get a warranted youth officer to assist you, or you are not sure
if your subject would be acceptable to parents for their children, or
you are not comfortable having students aged 13-17 in your class, or you
just do not want to deal with the logistics of it all? Simply use the
disclaimer *"All ages are welcome-minors under the age of 18 must be
accompanied by an adult."

As you can see from the examples, the two main things are having a
warranted youth officer present AND following the 2 Deep Rule. These are
the hallmarks for running SCA youth activities.

*Please feel free to contact me if you have any additional questions or
concerns about opening your class to the youth of our kingdom. If you
need to coordinate with a Youth Officer, I can put you in touch with
someone. Event stewards--I am also happy to be a resource to you!

YIS
Baroness Clarice Roan
Aethelmearc Youth Chancellor