Our league grows every year and managing the success of the largest special needs league in the country takes a huge amount of effort from volunteers, coaches and directors. As the league gets bigger, we are trying to put in place protocol and etiquette so that everyone can have a good experience on our fields. If we all have patience with each other and look out for our players we know we can continue to build this amazing community.  Our players have all kinds of disabilities and we welcome the wide varieties of challenges that our families face. We hope you will read these so that you will have clear expectations on what it means to be a part of Challenger Baseball. Please read and check at the end.

By submitting my name using this form all statements in the code of conduct will be agreed upon and accepted. The Program Directors of Challenger Baseball, A Division of District 8 Little League, have implemented the following Code of Conduct for the important message it holds about the proper role of coaches, volunteers, parents, caregivers and mentors in supporting their player and behavior we will be encouraging from all of our players. The essential elements of character-building and ethics in sports are embodied in the concept of sportsmanship and six core principles: • Trustworthiness, • Respect, • Responsibility, • Fairness, • Caring, and • Good Citizenship. The highest potential of sports is achieved when competition reflects these “six pillars of character.”

I therefore agree:

COACHES AND VOLUNTEERS:  I assume responsibility to supervise the players on my team and any activity that happens at the field I am assigned.  Coaches are responsible for the successful management of the team.  Volunteers will be assigned significant roles by coaches on how to help the team and the players. Each role is important for successful games and teams.
 
I will make sure my team is supervised at all times & respects all others around us. I will give only encouragement & applaud only positive accomplishments of my player & his/her teammates. I will teach players that doing one’s best and being a part of a team is the most important part of our games, so that they are never disappointed in their performance. I will praise players for competing fairly and trying hard, and make players  feel encouraged.

I will encourage players to not become physically or verbally aggressive with other players, parents, mentors, and/or volunteers. If it does happen, I will immediately intervene & respect any requests made by the parent to help my player regroup.

I will never demonstrate threatening or abusive behavior, or use foul language at any event. These behaviors are grounds for immediate dismissal from the league. If I see any behavior that concerns me, I will immediately report it to an administrator.

If a coach or administrator receives a report of behavior by an adult that puts any of our players in harm's way, the administrators reserve the right to ask the adult to leave the fields until the report is fully investigated. The league may at any time perform a background check on coaches, assistants or volunteers.

LAST TO LEAVE:  At the end of the game I will make sure all players have left the field and have a ride home. The coaches and volunteers will be the last to leave the field. Coaches and volunteers from both teams should check on each other to make sure they have a working ride home.

PHOTOS:  I understand that pictures and videos will be taken of all players during games.  

SERVICE DOGS:  I will respect that players with Special Needs have fears associated with pets and recognize only Official Service Dogs are allowed at the fields. I have the ability to ask to remove a dog or another pet because I understand that players with autism or other disabilities may run from the pet.  If the league asks a dog owner to remove the dog more than once the owner will be ejected from the league.

SMOKING:  There is no smoking on or near the field at any time. The league creates a sports environment for players that is free from drugs, tobacco, and alcohol and I will refrain from their use at all sports events.

GRADUATING FROM JUNIOR LEAGUE:  Players who are 15 years and older on opening day of the league will be given the option to move to the adult or senior league. At age 17 all players will be moved out of the junior league. It is understood that change is difficult for all of our players, however in order to make room for new players we need to graduate players to the senior and adult leagues. Please prepare players as best as you can for the move and work with parents and or guardians on explaining the reasons for graduating players.

Players moving to the Senior League will be moved onto those teams at the discretion of the coaches and program directors. Players who would like to continue to play at the junior league level (no strikes called, all players get an at bat, fielding work is minimal) will be moved to the adult teams.

SENIORS:  Players on the Senior League are expected to follow the rules of the coaches. The Seniors play a more challenging level of baseball where strikes and outs are called. Players are expected to play the infield and outfield with attention to the batter during that time. If a coach sees behavior that leads him to believe that the Senior League may cause an injury to a player based on his/her behavior, the administrator will move the player to the Adult League. Parents will be consulted but the decision by the administrator is final.

ADULTS:  Players on the Adult League play the same game rules as the Junior League with no strikes or outs called and assistance in the outfield and infield expected.

SAFETY:  Safety is the number one priority of the league. Mentors and/or caregivers are expected to assist their players with the game. Challenger does not operate as "drop off" facility for adult players.If a player poses a risk to any other player or if playing the game may cause injury to that player, the league directors under the advice of the coaching staff, have the ability to move or dismiss players from the league regardless of the league rules stated above.

PRIVACY:  Our expectation is that any issues that arise will be handled privately. We reserve the right to discuss any negative use of social media and other group communications with parents and player representatives. We will take any negative communication as a serious issue and will work with parties to remove posts or emails.

RESTROOMS:  Any Challenger player under the age of 15 that needs to use the public restroom at Burnham Park or Carrier Park will be accompanied into the restroom by the appropriate parent, caregiver, family member and/or trusted adult. Any player needing special assistance over the age of 15 that needs to use the public restroom at Burnham Park or Carrier Park shall be accompanied into the restroom by the appropriate parent, caregiver, family member and/or trusted adult. If the parent, caregiver, family member and/or trusted adult is unable to physically accompany the player into the bathroom for any reason, the parent, caregiver, relative and/or trusted adult should seek out a Challenger administrator or volunteer to assist. Any failure to implement these restroom protocols shall be immediately brought to the attention of the Challenger Baseball Program Director or Administrators.

PARENTS, GUARDIANS, MENTORS, CAREGIVERS, AND OTHER INDIVIDUALS:  All parents, guardians, mentors, and caregivers are expected to abide by and follow all the protocols, rules and requirements listed in this Code of Conduct. The responsibility of parents, guardians, mentors, and caregivers assumed under this Code of Conduct is extended to, without reservation, to any and all individuals arranged by the parent, guardians, mentors, and caregivers to assist the player during participation.

COMMUNICATION:  Communication is important to the success of this league and responses to emails and texts are expected.

It is understood that if the above Conduct is not followed,  a participant, mentor, caregiver, family or audience member may be asked to leave the program for the season.

All decisions by the league directors will be final.  Coaches, volunteers, players, parents, guardians, mentors, caregivers and audience members waive any rights, and acknowledge that there is no recourse or claim of any nature whatsoever against directors, our volunteers or coaches. In the event of a dispute, the directors’ decision will be final and binding.

Syracuse Challenger Baseball is a volunteer organization, family involvement is critical to making our league a success for everyone involved.