How we verify a program
What we check, and how — so you can say yes.
What we read. Before any program carries the IYSDF seal, we read its documents — background-check records, written child-safety policies, insurance in force, first aid, an emergency plan, legal registration.
What we do. Then we go see it: a facility visit, or a live video walkthrough with two Federation reviewers. The seal is dated, expires, and can be revoked.
What it is not: a guarantee. No seal anywhere can promise that.
What it is: proof that on the day we checked, this program met a published standard most programs never prove at all.
How long it lasts. The seal lasts one year and is renewed on documents, with a full re-visit every third year. It can be revoked — lapsed insurance, an unscreened adult, a substantiated complaint — and a revoked seal comes off the program’s verification page the same week. Have a concern about an accredited program? Write to info@iysdf.org, subject “IYSDF concern.” A person replies.
How the seal stays honest
- Term:
- one year from the date on the seal.
- Renewal:
- an updated insurance certificate, an updated screening roster, and a signed attestation that nothing in the standard has lapsed. A full re-visit every third year.
- Revocation:
- lapsed insurance, an unscreened adult with access to children, a complaint substantiated on review by the Federation, or refusal of a follow-up visit. A revoked seal comes off the verification page the same week, and the page says so.
- Concerns:
- any parent, coach, or club can write to info@iysdf.org (subject “IYSDF concern”) about an accredited program. Every message gets a reply from a person and a dated record.
- How a concern is handled:
- it is logged with a date, the program is told, a reviewer follows up, and a decision is recorded within thirty days.
In good standing means the seal is current, renewal documents are on file, and no revocation is open.