Minor DEFN: Under age 18 and not an enrolled OSU student.

We don’t need to validate age although most waivers include a self-authorization of age (over 18) under the signature section.

Youth program DEFN: (1) An event or program where participating individuals are under the age of 18 and not enrolled college students.  (2) The event / program is oriented towards minors or inclusive of minors who are not enrolled OSU students and unaccompanied by a parent / guardian.

Scenario: We host U/Gs from other schools for internships of limited duration, some of them who are minors.

  • This is not considered a “youth program” so does not require registering at youth.oregonstate.edu.
  • No parental consent required since they are undergraduates at another institution.  Youth Safety & Compliance office is still looking into this but this is their best guidance now.
  • Depending on activities at the event, OSU Risk Services should be consulted for whether Waivers of Liability, Acknowledgement of Risk forms or Certificates of Insurance are required.   Since this is an internship, please also work with OSU Risk Services to determine if the “Conditions of Volunteer Service” form is also required.

Scenario: We host weekly campus tours where minors might come on the tour by themselves.

  • This is not considered a “youth program” so does not require registration at youth.oregonstate.edu.
  • If the tour is targeting a pre-college audience though, then the activity should be registered.
  • If a minor presents on the tour and they are without a parent or other authorized adult (i.e. guardian or school teacher) then, a parental consent form would be recommended.

Scenario: We visit high schools to talk to them about Science at Oregon State.

  • The school being visited would be responsible for any parental consent forms if any are required (e.g. if we are doing some activities of risk or where OSU personnel will have direct access without a teacher present).  If activities of this sort are going to be done, we should also have OSU risk waivers in addition to the school’s parental consent forms to make sure OSU’s liability is covered.

Scenario: We have high school (and possibly younger) students that visit us at Oregon State to participate in a variety of events – some where they are just listening to lecture to other events / programs where they are participating in experiential learning.

  • This event would be considered a “youth program” and would need to be registered atyouth.oregonstate.edu.
  • This would require some form of parental consent form for the trip to OSU initiated by the student’s school (preferred) or OSU.
  • Depending on the nature of the activities the students are participating in, this may require OSU Waivers of Liability or OSU Acknowledgement of Risk forms. The Youth Safety and Compliance office is still working on the question of what minor can and can’t do but for now are relying on expertise from OSU Risk Services, the Colleges and EH&S.
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