Yale Youth Hockey and Junior Bulldogs
Locker Room Policy
USA Hockey Locker Room Policy
USA Hockey requires that all local programs publish their locker room policies to the parents of all minor participants. The policies should be specific to the facilities they regularly use. The local program’s policies shall include the program’s (a) practices for supervising and monitoring locker rooms and changing areas; (b) permission or lack of permission for parents to be in the locker rooms; (c) prohibited conduct, including at least all forms of abuse and misconduct prohibited by USA Hockey; and (d) specific policies regarding the use of mobile electronic devices and phones and prohibiting the use of a device’s recording capabilities.
Yale Youth Hockey Association and the Junior Bulldogs Locker Room Policy
In addition to the development of our hockey players and enjoyment of the sport of hockey, the safety and protection of our participants is central to the goals of our program. Yale Youth Hockey Association adheres to USA Hockey’s SafeSport Program, as a means to help protect its participants from physical abuse, sexual abuse, and other types of misconduct, including emotional abuse, bullying, threats, harassment, and hazing. To help prevent abuse or misconduct from occurring in our locker rooms, Yale Youth Hockey Association and the Junior Bulldogs have adopted the following locker room policy.
At Northford Ice Pavilion, Ingalls Rink, Spurrier-Snyder Rink, Veterans Memorial Rink, Ralph Walker Rink and Louis Astorino Rink, there are multiple locker rooms available for our program’s use. Some of the locker rooms shares a central restroom and shower area with another locker room. In most rinks locker room team assignments will vary and will be posted and available at least 1 hour prior to practices and games.
Many teams in our program will travel to play games at other facilities, and those locker rooms, rest rooms, and shower areas will vary in size and layout from location to location. At facilities with which they are unfamiliar, parents should allow extra time and some flexibility in making arrangements for their child to dress, undress, and shower, if desired.
Locker Room Monitoring
It is the policy of USA Hockey that all USAH Member Programs must have at least one responsible SafeSport and background screened Adult (which may include coaches, managers, or other volunteers) present and monitoring the locker room during all team events to ensure appropriate supervision and conduct, and to ensure that only participants (coaches and players), approved team personnel, and family members are permitted in the locker room. Yale Youth Hockey Association and the Junior Bulldogs has predictable and limited use of locker rooms and changing areas (e.g., generally 30-60 minutes before and following practices and games). This allows for direct and regular monitoring of locker room areas and should facilitate coordination of efforts to ensure compliance with this requirement.
Acceptable locker room monitoring should include either a) monitors inside the locker room while participants are present or b) monitors in the immediate vicinity of the locker room (within arm’s length of the door), with the expectation that they will regularly and frequently enter the locker room to monitor the activity inside. When locker room monitors are inside the locker room, it is strongly recommended that there be at least 2 monitors present, both whom have been SafeSport and background screened. Any individual meeting between a minor participant and a coach or other adult in the locker room shall require that a second responsible adult be present.
For each Yale Youth Hockey Association and the Junior Bulldogs team, the coaching staff and team manager are responsible for compliance with the requirements of this locker room policy. A coach or team manager that fails to take appropriate steps to ensure the locker room policy is adhered to, and/or any USA Hockey participant or parent of a participant who otherwise violates this policy, will be subject to appropriate disciplinary action.
PLAYER CONDUCT IN LOCKER ROOMS
In addition to the general Code of Conduct set forth above, players will adhere to following locker room standards of behavior.
Players are expected to listen and follow the instructions of the designated locker room monitors at all times. Locker rooms, both home and away, will be left clean and in good condition. In particular, but not exclusively, players may be disciplined for:
Defacing or destroying property belonging to any individual, team, association, or rink
Wrestling, boxing, shoving, or engaging in physical contact of any manner
Throwing items in the locker room
Touching any equipment or clothing that does not belong to that player
Yelling, screaming, or shouting. Conversation is to be kept at a comfortable level at all times
Stickhandling or performing other hockey warm-up drills inside the locker room. Hockey warm-up drills are only to be performed in areas designated by Head Coaches
Exhibiting disrespectful behavior to fellow players, coaches or team representatives
Parents in Locker Rooms
Except for players at the younger age groups, we discourage parents from entering locker rooms unless it is truly necessary. Obvious exceptions to this rule are when a player suffers an injury or a uniform malfunction.
Naturally, with our youngest age groups it is necessary for parents to assist the players in getting dressed. We encourage parents to teach their players how to get dressed, so that players can independently dress themselves as early as possible. In circumstances where parents are permitted in the locker room, coaches are permitted to ask that the parents leave for a short time before and after the game so that the coaches may address the players. As players get older, the coach may in his or her discretion prohibit parents from a locker room.
Mixed Gender Teams
Some of our Yale Youth Hockey and the Junior Bulldog teams consist of both male and female players. It is important that the privacy rights of all of our players are given consideration and appropriate arrangements made. There are a variety of ways to comply with this directive, and what works best may depend on the individual players or the locker room availability at a particular facility. We encourage coaches, players and parents of those involved in mixed gender teams to work out an appropriate locker room arrangement that results in a comfortable and non-threatening environment for all players. Arrangements may include two separate locker rooms, shared locker rooms or alternating use of the same locker room. When separate locker rooms are used, both locker rooms require appropriate supervision and monitoring.
Cell Phones and Other Mobile Recording Devices
While we understand that occasional cell phone usage may be necessary in the locker room, Yale Youth Hockey Association and the Junior Bulldogs prohibits the use of voice recording, cameras and video recordings of any kind in the locker rooms.
Prohibited Conduct and Reporting
Yale Youth Hockey Association and the Junior Bulldogs prohibits all types of physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, bullying, threats, harassment, and hazing, all as described in the USA Hockey SafeSport Handbook. Participants, parents of participants, and / or volunteers of YYHA may be subject to disciplinary action for violation of these locker room policies, or for engaging in any misconduct or abuse that violates the USA Hockey SafeSport Policies. To report any actual or suspected violations, you may email USA Hockey or call 1-800-888-4656. You may also contact Charles Andriole, President at charlesandriole@charlesandriole.com and/or Jennifer Tinson, Safesport Coordinator at jtinson1@att.net
