Requirements
All volunteers who have contact with our players are required to obtain several certifications and clearances. The volunteer roles that must obtain these include all coaches, trainers, and board members. Travel volunteers and board members are required to obtain their clearances and certifications through the EPYS/Ridley United interface on GotSoccer. Intramural coaches and trainers are required to obtain theirs directly and upload documentation to their volunteer registration form in their SportsConnect account.
There are 3 clearances and 2 certifications required by our governing body, EPYS.
Clearances
All must obtain the PA Child Abuse History Clearance and the PA Criminal History Record Check. These can be obtained at no cost. Additionally, volunteers are required to obtain one of the two following clearances depending on their residency history within the state of Pennsylvania. Those who have lived in the state of Pennsylvania for 10 years or more need to sign an Affidavit of Compliance verifying their history. Those who have lived in Pennsylvania for less than 10 years are required to be fingerprinted and have their fingerprints checked against the national FBI database. There is a fee to have your fingerprints checked against the national database.
All of these clearances are good for 5 years (60 months) from the date of the record check. The Child Abuse History Clearance, the PA Criminal History Record Check, and the FBI Fingerprint Check are all required for Ridley School District employees and volunteers. They are also required for coaching volunteers in most other sports. Unexpired documentation obtained for the school district or other sports is acceptable in most cases.
Certifications
All must also obtain the CDC Heads Up Concussion Training Certification and the SafeSport Abuse Training Certification. These certifications must be renewed every year (12 months) from the date of issue. Both training courses are free.
Intramural Coaching Volunteer Directions
Use the following links to obtain your required clearances and certifications. Some will have additional instructions included below the link.
Clearance Links
PA Child Abuse History Clearance - Click Here To Begin
First time users should choose Create Individual Account and fill out the required forms. Returning users who need to update this clearance should choose Individual Login. Apply for the PA Child Abuse History Clearance through the Child Welfare Portal. Returning who do not need to update this clearance can also sign in choosing the Individual Login to obtain a pdf of their documentation.
PA Criminal History Record Check - Click Here To Begin
First time volunteers and returning volunteers who need to update this clearance should choose New Volunteer Record Check. Returning volunteers who do not need to update this clearance can choose Check the Status of a Record Check to obtain a pdf of their documentation.
Only one of the following two clearances is required. If you have lived in Pennsylvania for 10 years or more you should complete the next clearance.
Affidavit of Compliance - Click Here To Begin
Print out the pdf provided and sign and date the document with a witness who must also sign the document. Then scan or photograph the signature page.
If you have lived in Pennsylvania for less than 10 years you should complete the next clearance.
FBI History Check - Click Here To Begin
Follow the directions in the pdf provided.
Certification Links
CDC Heads Up Concussion Training - Click Here To Begin
Follow the directions in the pdf provided. Be warned, while the training is straightforward, the process of registering to take the training is complicated so please read all directions carefully.
US Center For SafeSport Abuse Training - Click Here To Begin
Use the following information when prompted.
Key Name: YC3E-6P5G-YYIL-CS2M
Organization: US Soccer
Role: Coaching
You will be prompted to create an account or log in to an existing account. Once that is complete go to the Dashboard and then My Courses to begin the training. First time volunteers will need to take the full course which takes a couple of hours. The training can be stopped at various points and continued from that point the next time you log on. Returning volunteers will need to take the appropriate refresher course. These courses tend to be roughly 30 minutes in length.
Uploading Documentation
Intramural coaching volunteers will need to upload their 5 pieces of required documentation to their volunteer registration form. This form can be accessed by signing in to your SportsConnect family account. Go to our website, ridleyunitedsoccer.org , and choose the Login option and then the My Account option. After signing in to your account select the Volunteer tab and then click the Details button next to the appropriate coaching role. This will reopen the volunteer registration form that was previously filled out. Scroll to the bottom and click the plus sign next to each clearance and certification to upload your documenation.