January 2, 2020

Dear Member Organization Presidents/Delegates:

By now, you and your respective Adult Members (aka Covered Adults) should be aware of MSYSA’s Athlete and Participant Safety Program. The program was adopted in early 2019 to effect compliance on or before September 1, 2019.

Part of the overall program includes a requirement that ALL Adult Members complete the ‘Core SafeSport Training’. As of September 1, 2019, ALL Adult Members must be ‘SafeSport Trained’. If still needed, you can access the SafeSport instructions here . Additionally, ALL Adult Members are required to apply for Risk Management (RM) clearance each year by using MSYSA’s Risk Management system.

All Adult Members must obtain RM clearance and also complete the ‘Core SafeSport Training’ by the earlier of 1) prior to regular contact with a Minor Participant; or 2) within the first 45 days of the Covered Adult taking on the role giving them access to Minor Participants. The SafeSport Trained requirement is considered valid for one year and a SafeSport Refresher course is available on the Safesport.org website in order for Covered Adults to maintain their SafeSport Certification.

In the months of September, October and November, MSYSA sent an online survey to our Member Organizations to complete regarding SafeSport Compliance. As we head into 2020, MSYSA is focusing on monitoring and compliance. Compliance audits to monitor SafeSport certifications and RM clearance have begun, with the primary goal being to encourage and ensure compliance. Specifically, MSYSA will be looking at each organization’s Covered Adults, with an emphasis on Board Members (as submitted on league affiliation forms) and registered team officials (coaches & managers). As MSYSA secures this information through the audits, the MSYSA Board of Directors, at their discretion, may fine Member Organizations, place Member Organizations in Bad Standing and/or refer Member Organizations to US Soccer (NGB) for handling (in the event of non-compliance).

Should you have any questions, comments or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact the MSYSA State Office.

Sincerely,

Thomas Faro
Executive Director