Maybe What is Needed....

[Tony Flores]

23 hours ago, Keith Hall said:

Safety and Security Team for each corps!

 

Each corps hire a team to keep watch over corps members as well as staff. One on one meetings with adult and MM should only happen with a Safety and Security team member present. Kind of like, member doesn't meet one on one with a staff member without representation. Also making sure MM's are safe on tour from outside issues.

I have  mentioned this many many many times over the last several years. Every corps needs a compliance officer that has no affiliation to the corps they are hired. The direct contact to the MM's if something is feeling wrong or is wrong. with direct contact with the director and the DCI whistleblower department. Also the compliance officer should have freedom to engage law enforcement or local authroties when needed. 

[Tim K]

Just a note before I begin. My knowledge of this area comes from familiarity with church settings, Scout settings, and elementary (K-8) and Middle/High Schools (7-12). I understand that some of what I say may not fit drum corps exactly but can be modified for the activity. 

I’ve read the posts in this thread as well as other similar threads both past and present, but as I read “hire a team,” that’s all well and good, but something else has to happen too. Best practices guides say predators love getting “lost in the crowd” so to speak. Corps often have large instructional staff, with assistants who help, not to mention volunteers that help the instructional staff and staff and volunteers doing a host of other tasks. Monitoring these numbers and specific tasks is difficult. Drum corps can be an ideal place to be unnoticed and “get lost in the crowd.” Hire a team if you think it will work, but streamline staff and volunteers. I know the argument for 165 was bus capacity, but if bus monitors are needed, decrease the number of marching members if need be. 

Not all predators are staff. Some are marching members and it is not always a situation with an 18-22 and a minor. A thorough investigative process is not easy with the age of kids in drum corps, but applications, while not fool proof, can be a deterrence to those with problematic behavior. I understand the audition process, or I think I do, but how does a marching member apply and who verifies the application? I’m sure it involves more than name, address, and phone number, but do those who want to march have to submit references? Does anybody verify the references? Are potential members interviewed to make sure drum corps is a suitable activity for the person? The band director being friends with the percussion caption head is not good enough. Getting a good vibe while watching a member of a corps rehearse and perform and then recruiting the person is not thorough enough. Most bad behavior is not done for the public to see. Have across the board applications. This may already happen with some corps but I don’t think it happens across the board. 

[Jeff Ream]

another thing to consider is how to monitor electronic communications. not just say texting, but i am told some corps use platforms like Slack and others like it. so how to monitor that? one cannot easily reach out to the platform to demand copies of communications without legal documentation, and some of these platforms don't retain stuff to make it easier to hide.

[keystone3ply]

3 hours ago, Jeff Ream said:

another thing to consider is how to monitor electronic communications. not just say texting, but i am told some corps use platforms like Slack and others like it. so how to monitor that? one cannot easily reach out to the platform to demand copies of communications without legal documentation, and some of these platforms don't retain stuff to make it easier to hide.

Immediately Googles "Slack".

 

 

[craiga]

6 hours ago, Tim K said:

Just a note before I begin. My knowledge of this area comes from familiarity with church settings, Scout settings, and elementary (K-8) and Middle/High Schools (7-12). I understand that some of what I say may not fit drum corps exactly but can be modified for the activity. 

I’ve read the posts in this thread as well as other similar threads both past and present, but as I read “hire a team,” that’s all well and good, but something else has to happen too. Best practices guides say predators love getting “lost in the crowd” so to speak. Corps often have large instructional staff, with assistants who help, not to mention volunteers that help the instructional staff and staff and volunteers doing a host of other tasks. Monitoring these numbers and specific tasks is difficult. Drum corps can be an ideal place to be unnoticed and “get lost in the crowd.” Hire a team if you think it will work, but streamline staff and volunteers. I know the argument for 165 was bus capacity, but if bus monitors are needed, decrease the number of marching members if need be. 

Not all predators are staff. Some are marching members and it is not always a situation with an 18-22 and a minor. A thorough investigative process is not easy with the age of kids in drum corps, but applications, while not fool proof, can be a deterrence to those with problematic behavior. I understand the audition process, or I think I do, but how does a marching member apply and who verifies the application? I’m sure it involves more than name, address, and phone number, but do those who want to march have to submit references? Does anybody verify the references? Are potential members interviewed to make sure drum corps is a suitable activity for the person? The band director being friends with the percussion caption head is not good enough. Getting a good vibe while watching a member of a corps rehearse and perform and then recruiting the person is not thorough enough. Most bad behavior is not done for the public to see. Have across the board applications. This may already happen with some corps but I don’t think it happens across the board. 

Even unpaid volunteers now need to fill out full applications and undergo full background checks including fingerprinting.  Gone are the days when some random person can show up and volunteer. 

[IllianaLancerContra]

1 minute ago, craiga said:

Even unpaid volunteers now need to fill out full applications and undergo full background checks including fingerprinting.  Gone are the days when some random person can show up and volunteer. 

Agreed.  
 

But there are 2 parts to the stopping member abuse equation: 

1- Prevention — keep the predators away

2- Response— what happens when step 1 fails? 
 

Drum Corps has made more strides in prevention than response.  

[Jeff Ream]

5 minutes ago, craiga said:

Even unpaid volunteers now need to fill out full applications and undergo full background checks including fingerprinting.  Gone are the days when some random person can show up and volunteer. 

but background checks don't show issues if they are never reported

[IllianaLancerContra]

11 minutes ago, Jeff Ream said:

but background checks don't show issues if they are never reported

Plus, the perpetrator has to do it for the first time, which is why the hammer that falls after it occurs has to be brutal. 

[Tim K]

21 minutes ago, craiga said:

Even unpaid volunteers now need to fill out full applications and undergo full background checks including fingerprinting.  Gone are the days when some random person can show up and volunteer. 

I understand about background checks for volunteers and agree they are necessary, but I never mentioned that in my comments because I believe it is already the case with most corps. Regarding staff and volunteers, I believe it is important to keep staff and volunteers to a manageable number for supervision and having clear boundaries is crucial.

The application process I am referring to is for marching members. I know no process is fool proof, but when you hear that someone who exhibits problematic behavior in one corps marches with another and often better corps the next year, bullying behavior was ignored because of talent or connections, or a person who just can’t handle the experience and often becomes a target, I wonder how some marching members are vetted. I do believe that the majority, I would even venture to say well over 90% of kids who march are hard working, talented, motivated individuals who attend top colleges and universities, and from what I see these kids are usually polite and friendly, these folks will have no problem with a thorough application process. That being said, something has to be done to discover potential problems. We’re not doing any kid a favor by ignoring problematic behavior just to win a show or accept someone just to fill a bus seat. It’s not fair to the other marching members and it’s not fair to the young person in question.

[Keith Hall]

I am the OP and it was an idea. DCI can take the ball and run with it or toss the ball towards the sideline. I have no affiliations with any corps as all mine are gone.

Maybe the person or persons are hired by DCI and assigned a corps for the summer (and camps). The corps pay DCI so DCI would pay these "compliance officers." If DCI and the corps openly show that they care for their members and want to ensure a safe experience, it has to be worth it. The members know they can talk to someone.