Case In Point

Volume 18 Issue 04 | April 2026

Spring graduation season is upon us, which means summer is right around the corner. One benefit of living in a college town is the range of programming the university offers for children in the community. Auburn sponsors more than 100 summer youth programs across many subjects and disciplines. This month, I asked Kim White, Institutional Compliance Manager and Youth Protection Officer, to share her perspective as she helps Auburn prepare for a full and busy summer.

At this time of year, many campuses are gearing up for summer camps, working diligently to meet the requirements of the policies and procedures designed to keep youth and our staff safe during youth programs. While more and more universities have built robust youth protection frameworks—including event registration, background checks, training, supervision plans, and collecting and securely storing information about youth participants—site visits are a critical component of internal monitoring and oversight that help youth protection move from policy to practice.

What Site Visits Tell Us
Many of the compliance requirements for summer camps and other youth programs happen before the programs begin. Site visits, whether formal or informal, are real-time checks that youth programs are operating in compliance with the university’s policies and procedures. Site visits usually verify basic youth protection requirements:

• Have the adults involved with the youth program completed background checks and youth protection training?

• Are the minors being effectively supervised?

• Do staff avoid one-on-one interactions with minors?

• What are the program’s procedures for check-in, check-out, and medication collection?

• Do staff know what to do if there is a problem, whether that’s a behavioral issue, an accident or injury, an angry parent, or a situation that involves mandatory reporting?

Site visits aren’t intended to be “gotcha” exercises—they allow compliance professionals to see youth programs in action, address issues, and discover if there are common struggles or risks across programs that require additional assistance or resources. When multiple programs are experiencing the same roadblock, policies or procedures should be reviewed to determine if a policy that looks good on paper isn’t workable in practice. If done thoughtfully, these visits can remind program directors that the university wants to ensure safe program operations and will assist in problem solving.

When Non Compliance Is Identified
When site visit observations show that expectations are not being met, the university’s response should be timely, proportional, and corrective. Depending on the nature and severity of the issue, actions may include:

• Required corrective action during the program

• Follow up training or procedural changes

• Removal of specific staff from youth programs

• In serious or repeated cases, suspension or prohibition of future programs

These measures are intended to protect minors, address risk promptly, and ensure consistency and accountability across campus programs. The site visits underscore that compliance isn’t a checkbox—it’s a continuing responsibility.

The Takeaway
Youth programs are a visible and important outreach activity for universities, but they come with risks. Site visits give compliance professionals a more accurate view of how summer camps operate in practice, helping to deliver on the promises made about care, supervision, and protection.

Thank you for that important insight, Kim. Protecting minors who visit our campuses is a critical responsibility for all higher education institutions. We invite you to review your university’s youth protection policies, as well as all the risk-related stories that have been in the news in the last month. As always, we welcome your comments and feedback. 

Kevin Robinson
Vice President
Institutional Compliance & Security