Policies and Procedures

Policies and Procedures

All volunteers, parents, and students should read these policies and procedures each year.

Mandatory Safety Requirements For All ESA Programs  

• Life Jackets are required for all participants including staff, coaches, volunteers, non-members, safety boat operators, and students at all times when on or near the water.  

• Closed toe and closed heel shoes are required to be worn at all times when  engaging in all ESA on water activities.  

• All students and on-water staff will be required to pass a swim check.  

• All injuries must be reported to staff no matter how small.  

• During special events all non-members going on the water must sign a release waiver. Youth must have parent’s consent.  

• No smoking, drugs, or alcohol.  

• No running, hitting, pushing, or littering.  

• No swimming (except with the permission of an instructor).  

• All equipment to be properly returned, cleaned and put away after use.  

• Bring water and a refillable container to class each day.

Recommend Safety Items  

These items are recommended to all our students and staff. Remember we are  outdoors all day in Florida -  it’s hot and sunny most of the time. To make your sailing experience a positive one, we recommend the following items.  

Sunscreen, Hat with keeper, Sunglasses with strap, Towel,  Change of Clothes, Snack, Water Gloves, Extra Water  

Lightweight - long sleeve water shirts/ water pants

Emergency Procedure  

In the event of an emergency, an instructor on duty or  the designated beach master will get help.

First Aid supplies are located in the shed closest to the boat rack. 

*FIRE – Get people and staff out of area and call 911  

*INJURY – Provide immediate first aid, Call 911, control area, and disperse / control onlookers.  

*ON WATER INJURY– Captain of responding safety boat is in command.  Crew will notify the instructor on duty or beach master of the condition of injury.  Call 911 if necessary. Other boats remain out of the area unless called to  respond.  

*INCIDENT– Robbery, trespasser, missing property, irate individual.  Notify an instructor on duty - Call 911 if necessary -

Non emergency number for Sarasota County Sheriff - 941-316-1201

*REMEMBER PEOPLE FIRST, EQUIPMENT SECOND*           

All accidents, injuries, and incidents MUST be reported in writing as soon as possible.

Use the incident/ injury report to detail the  emergency.

Discrimination and Sexual Harassment  

Any harassment or discrimination of a member, student, volunteer, staff  member, or parent whether because of race, color, religion, sex, national  origin, ancestry, age, order of protection status, marital status, physical or  mental disability, military status, sexual orientation, gender identification, or  unfavorable discharge from military service is clearly prohibited and will not be condoned. 

No staff member, volunteer, student, customer, or vendor, male or female,  may sexually harass any other person associated with the organization by:  

1. Making unwelcome sexual advances or requests for sexual favors or other verbal or physical conduct of a sexually suggestive nature; or  

2. Creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive environment by such conduct.  

Anyone who has been found to have sexually harassed another member will  be subject to discharge from the association. Any ESA staff member who learns  of potentially criminal sexual or physical abuse directed at a minor—whether  perpetrated by an ESA member or not—must report said conduct to law enforcement immediately. 

All volunteers who work with youth must take SafeSport training, which is available on-line.

ESA will provide access to the training at no cost to  volunteers.

Procedure For Signing Youth In and Out of Camp  

Unless they drive themselves, all children must be accompanied by a parent or  adult guardian to the sign in sheet.

No child should be dropped off or picked up in the  parking lot.

There will be a bar code check in the morning and check out in the afternoon.

One member is assigned the responsibility of the daily log of attendance.

Emergency contact numbers must be listed each day with the child’s name.

Children will not be left alone in the event of a delayed pickup.

If a pickup is delayed more than 1 hour, the child is brought to a safe waiting area until the parent/guardian is located. 

Two responsible adult ESA members will remain with child/children.  

Youth Bathroom Procedure

Englewood Sailing has a strict youth bathroom procedure due to Indian Mound  Park being a public park, and that the bathroom facilities are a distance away.

Background-checked adults will walk all campers, students, and those under 18 to the bathrooms in a supervised manner.

We require that there be more than just one adult and one student present at a time - so a minimum of 3 people (either 2 adults or more than one student).   ***There are no exceptions.

Vehicle Transport Procedure  

If it is necessary for an ESA member to use their personal vehicle to transport a  youth, the member must ensure there is another adult member present or another student in the vehicle.

Inclement Weather Policy  

• ESA staff will monitor and assess prevailing weather conditions during all  sailing activities.  

• In the event of a rain only event, all students and staff will be called off the  water, but will remain under shelters at the Sailing Center.  

• In the event of torrential rain, all will proceed to the main pavilion.  

• Staff will electronically monitor radar with their cell phones in  addition to being alert to visual and auditory weather observations.  

• If lightning or thunder is observed or detected within 20 miles of the sailing  center, all students and staff will be called to shore immediately, and students will be escorted to the main park pavilion.  

• All will remain under protected cover for 30 minutes after the last lightning or thunder occurrence.  

• At such time as the ESA Safety Officer issues the "all clear," staff and students  will return to normal operations.  

• If rain and/or stormy conditions continue to intensify and it is apparent that  activities cannot proceed, parents will be notified to pick up their children at  the main park pavilion. After 1 hour remaining students will be taken to a safe location to await parent pick up.  

• Questions can be directed to the ESA Safety Officer or, in his/her absence, to the instructor in charge of instruction for the day.

Discipline Policy  

The rules and discipline policy apply to all students and staff involved in any ESA  program. Violations include, but are not limited to, breaking program rules,  breaking club rules, inappropriate language, destruction of property, physical/  verbal abuse of another student or staff member, and bullying. Consequences vary based on the severity of the offense.

For minor offenses, we will follow a three-strike process: 

1. First Strike: The individual will be warned by a senior-level instructor. The  strike will be recorded in ESA's files and the Program Director will be notified. 

2. Second Strike: The individual will be warned by a senior-level instructor and  may be asked to sit out for the rest of the class/day. For youth, a parent/guardian  will be informed and asked to meet with the Program Director to discuss the first  and second transgressions and to make a plan to avoid any future misbehavior.  

The strike and meeting notes will be documented in ESA’s files. 

3. Third Strike and Beyond: The board of directors will consider whether to  suspend or expel the individual from the program and ESA. No fees will be  refunded in the event of a board-approved suspension or expulsion.

Volunteer Background Checks and Certification  

To ensure the safety of our students, staff, and organization, ESA requires a background check every five years for all volunteers, board members, safety boat  operators, and age 18+ adults that are working, teaching, or helping with or near  youth students/classes.

Depending on the programs the volunteer is involved  with the background check may involve fingerprinting. ESA will arrange for  background checks at no cost to individual volunteers.  ESA will maintain a list of approved volunteers. 

Volunteers who work with youth must also complete online SafeSport training annually. This is available free of charge; ESA will provide instructions as to how to take the training.

All safety boat skippers and crew and all adult instructors must obtain and maintain CPR, AED and first aid training.

Also, all safety boat personnel must be approved by the Safety Officer prior to operating powerboats and all operators must have a Florida Safe Boating Card.  

National certifications such as American Heart Association, Red Cross, and American Safety and Health Institute are acceptable, as well as professionally-offered non-certified courses  such as those offered by Englewood Hospital. All ESA personnel are highly  encouraged to become CPR and first aid trained. 

ESA welcomes all volunteers, who have an interest in sailing, youth coaching,  watersports, and promoting the sport. 

Swim Check Procedures-Bay  

Bay swim check–Students can be swim checked in Lemon Bay. It is mandatory that everyone pass a swim check. If failed they will not be allowed to continue in  the program.  

One Safety Boat (SB) anchors about 25 yards off shore, engine off, Skipper + crew aboard. Students remove PFDs, swim from shore to SB and back. Instructors available to intervene if a student gets in trouble.

Safety Boat Operator  

Those volunteers who wish to operate safety boats during ESA classes must  comply with the following:  

1. Any members operating an ESA safety boat will have completed the ESA  powerboat workshop, and/ or must be signed off by the workshop instructor.  

2. All safety boat personnel must be approved by the Safety Officer prior to operating powerboats. All operators must have a Florida Safe Boating Card.  

3. Student members under 18 will only operate safety boats while occupied by  an adult who has completed the workshop. Minors will not operate safety boats in proximity to youth sailors. 

4. Safety boat assignment will be at the sole discretion of the safety officer.  

5. Completion and passing of the workshop will be at the instructor's sole discretion.  

6. A list of trained operators will be kept onsite. 

7. Safety boat operators will follow these protocols: 

a) All safety boats for training activities must have an able-bodied  crewmember in addition to the operator. 

b) The operator will not leave the helm unless the motor is off. 

c) The operator will turn off the motor if the safety boat is within one  boat length of a person in the water. 

d) The operator will use the engine kill cord at all times. 

8. The safety officer will test the engine kill cord and throttle lock on each Boat quarterly.

Volunteer Acknowledgement  

As a volunteer of Englewood Sailing Association, I have read, understand and agree to the terms, conditions, rules, and policies outlined within this manual.  

I do hereby release and discharge Englewood Sailing Association Inc. and its  officers, agents, students, employees, volunteers, and affiliates from any and all  claims for injuries, including death, damages, property damage, or loss which  may have or may in future accrue to me in account of participating in or  volunteering for the Englewood Sailing Association Inc. programs. Failure to acknowledge will not relieve a student, member, or volunteer from responsibility for the understanding and abiding to the polices contained herein.