❖ Heads up! This article is intended for site managers. If you're a program facilitator looking for more information about how to review your programs, click here!
Waivers are a great way to ensure your volunteers meet prerequisite requirements for all of your Opportunities. With waivers, you can decide if you want them to be signed by adults and minors, adults only, or minors only—so which do you choose and when? Here we cover:
Which waiver type is best?
The Adults and Minors waiver options is the best option when you know you'll have both adult volunteers, and minor volunteers, responding to your Opportunities. You can make sure that volunteers complete their waiver prerequisite in registration when they first join your site! For more information about prerequisites, click here!
- The Adult and Minor waiver option is set up so that:
- Volunteers are required to enter their birthdate before signing the waiver
- Depending on the birthdate they enter, they're directed to their specific waiver type
- For example, if a minor—at least 13 years of age—enters their birthday, the system directs them to the Minor version of the waiver you uploaded for them to sign.
- If an adult—18 years or older—enters their birthday, the system directs them to the Adult version of the waiver you uploaded for them to sign.
ⓘ So you know:
- When an adult signs the waiver, they're done with the waiver portion for that prerequisite.
- Depending on your settings, you may have to manually approve their prerequisite submission so they can start responding to your Opportunities!
- When a minor signs the waiver, they're prompted to share the name and email for a parent or guardian to review and sign so that their waiver submission may be approved. The email they add for their guardian will get a notification from the system prompting them to sign the waiver.
- This protects the organization and minor in case of liability reasons.
❖ Heads up! According to COPPA, minors are defined as anyone between 13 and 17 years of age. To ensure your site adheres to COPPA's policies, nobody under the age of 13 may register an account on your site or manage a profile on your site. For more information, please click here.
What about the other two waiver types?
You may have noticed you also have the option to select either Adult Only or Minor Only waiver types. While these options are available, we still highly recommend using the Adults and Minors option if you know or think you may have minors volunteering for your Opportunities. Why? You might run into some issues when volunteers go to sign the waivers.
- Let's say you assign the Adult Only waiver type in your user registration.
- If your organization's volunteer program is open to all volunteers—adults and minors—and you have an Adult Only waiver, minors won't be able to sign the Waiver in registration. This means they won't be able to respond to any of your Opportunities.
- On the other hand, if you have assigned the Minor Only waiver, then if an adult inputs their birthdate, the system automatically bypasses that waiver prerequisite requirement since it's only geared toward minors.
How do I know which type to choose?
While we've already established which waiver type is the best for covering all bases, there are still some scenarios when you may decide to pick one of the other waiver types!
- Got a youth-focused summer camp where volunteers between the ages of 13 and 17 are welcome and encouraged to participate?
- This may be a scenario when the Minor Only waiver type applies!
- Do you have Opportunities that may involve work where sensitive subjects may arise?
- Depending on the situation, this scenario may require that all volunteers be 18 years of age or older to participate.
- This would be a scenario when the Adult Only waiver type applies!
