Guidelines & Expectations for Regular Attendees

Guidelines & Expectations for Regular Attendees

Please remember:

Reverence for God- We want to honor God in all we do.
When dealing with non-Christian students, our desire is to be gracious, compassionate, and loving. At the same time we want to provide a safe environment for them to hear and respond to the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The safety of all who participate in our ministry.
Effective and consistent communication. Respect for each other and adults.
Discipline is an essential part of making disciples. Hebrews 12:1-11


Note:

We want students to be assured that if an incident occurs, necessary people will be involved in the process. Example: Student(s), Parent(s), Adult leader(s), Pastoral Staff, Elders, and Local Authorities are possible people who might be involved.


General Respect Expectations:
Student Participation- We expect students to be involved, connected, and cooperate fully with the adult leadership.

Appropriate Attire- It should be the desire of
every Christian to please God with their life and
appearance. Paul said, “I appeal to you
therefore, brothers, by the mercies
of God, to present your bodies as a living
sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God,
which is your spiritual worship. Do not
be conformed to this world, but be
transformed by the renewal of your
mind, that by testing you may discern
what is the will of God, what is good and
acceptable and perfect.” (Romans 12:1-2)
With this in mind, we expect modest and
appropriate clothing. To be specific: clothing
with holes in inappropriate places, skirts and
shorts that go above the length of the mid-
thigh, pants or shorts that show underwear when walking or sitting. Also, shirts that are low cut exposing cleavage, shirts that show belly and tank tops that expose the bra and or bra straps are not acceptable.

Remember- “under” wear means under
clothes. As for visitors/guests, our main goal is
to point them to Christ, not rules.

Alcohol/Drugs- We have a no tolerance policy
concerning the use of alcohol and drugs. Not only does it have negative spiritual and physiological implications, it is against the law. If a student is found to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol at a FBC youth sponsored event, the process of dealing with it will be:
Local authorities and parents called and a report given
A follow up meeting with parents to discuss the students ongoing involvement with our youth ministries.


Weapons - If any weapon (open knives, mace, guns of any type, clubs, brass knuckles, or any other item that can be used to inflict bodily harm) in the possession of the student the process of dealing with it will be:
Item(s) immediately taken from the student.
Parents will be contacted.
The student(s) will be suspended from youth ministries until a meeting with their parents has taken place and criteria for the student to return is discussed and determined.
If any student brings a gun of any type Police will be contacted and a report will be filed.
Fighting- Our student ministries are to be a safe place where students can come to learn about God and enjoy the fellowship of those in the church. If a fight occurs on the church property, the manner in which it will be handled is this:
Parent(s) and /or Police will be called and student(s) will leave with their parent. A follow-up meeting will be made with the student(s) and parent(s)


Disruptive Behavior- We expect students to have fun, interact, and participate in an orderly, respectful manner. Therefore, any student who is not cooperative with the adult leadership will be addressed in the following manner:
Adult leadership and student will discuss actions and seek resolution.
If a student persists in the disruptive behavior after Adult leadership has given a warning Leadership will have to meet with parents before the student will be allowed to return to any of our youth activities.
Continued incidences after parent meeting will result in the student not being welcome to return to any youth event without a parent as chaperone. After a period of time and in concert with the parent’s and student’s affirmation of compliance to our policies regarding behavior we will allow the student to return without a chaperone.
When legal action is necessary, local authorities will be notified.
In the case of inappropriate touching, parents will be immediately contacted and steps 3 & 4 will be followed.


Public Display Of Affection (PDA)- The displaying of affection among members of the opposite sex is unacceptable (this includes but is not limited to kissing, frontal hugs, and inappropriate touching, holding or caressing etc.). When this problem occurs, the process will be:
Adult leadership will speak privately with the individual(s) involved explaining our expectation and how it was violated. They will also receive a warning about the consequences should it happen again.
Second incident will require a parental meeting to discuss a strategy for future behavior.
Continued incidences after parent meeting will result in the student not being welcome to return to any youth event without a parent as chaperone. After a period of time and in concert with the parent’s and student’s affirmation of compliance to our policy regarding PDA we will allow the student to return without a chaperone.


Student Drivers- We are excited (and scared!) about students being able to drive. With that in mind, a couple of expectations are required:
Licensed driving students are encouraged to drive safely especially while on church property.
If a student brings a friend, please make sure their parents know about it. Parental permission is a high priority to us.
Students are to drive safely in the church parking lot, NO goofing off will be permitted.
Once a student is on church premises, he/she is to be transported with the rest of the group. No Exceptions! We will not allow any students to drive to any event large or small so please don’t ask.


Cell Phones- Due to the distractions which cell phones present to our ministry we ask that students do not bring their cell phones to any FBC sponsored youth event, including Sunday morning and midweek activities. Parents who need to reach their student while at church can call the church office or youth pastor Phill Crust at 303-519-2413 (additional phone numbers may be designated in the future).

We recognize that on rare occasions there may be an emergency situation where a student might need to carry a cell phone. If your family is in this situation please discuss the situation with the youth pastor prior to sending your student to an FBC Student Ministries event.

Our disciplinary process for cell phone use is as follows:
Student will be made aware of our expectations regarding cell phone use and asked to leave their cell phone at home or in the car in the future.
If after being made aware of our expectation the student continues to bring and use their cell phone, the cell phone will be immediately taken from the student and a meeting with parents will be arranged to discuss our policy regarding cell phones.
Continued incidences after parent meeting will result in the student not being welcome to return to any youth event without a parent as chaperone. After a period of time and in concert with the parent’s and student’s affirmation of compliance to our cell phone policy we will allow the student to return without a chaperone.


Discipline-We value justice and mercy. Issues of discipline will be handled when students and parents have had the opportunity to hear/view the expectations and policies of our ministry. If there is a need for discipline, the goal will be loving correction. Therefore, the first disciplinary step will be for the adult leader to remind the student of the standards of our ministry, and inform the student of the standard that has not been maintained. At the time, the adult leader will inform the student of the consequences should the same standard be broken again. If the standard is not observed for a second time, a meeting with the parents will be initiated. Continued incidences after a parent meeting will result in disciplinary action being taken.


Special Event Discipline- Inappropriate student behaviors such as punching, pinching, hitting, kicking, inappropriate language, while away from FBC will be handled in the following manner:

When this kind of activity takes place, the youth leader will warn the participants to stop.
If the warning is ignored or if the activity restarts later during the event, the youth leader will immediately stop the event, escort the offenders from the room; call their parents asking that they come for their student(s) at the parent’s expense.
When the parents arrive to pick up their student(s) the youth leader will report to the parents what took place.
The students will not be welcomed to return to youth events without their parent as chaperone After a period of time and in concert with the parent’s and student’s affirmation of compliance to our policy we will allow the student to return without a chaperone.


I have read the guidelines and expectations and understand the disciplinary actions that will be taken if I break the guidelines. I further agree to uphold expectations realizing that my conduct at FBC Youth Ministries is a reflection of the body of Christ at Faith Baptist Church. I desire to see Christ honored in my actions attitudes and words.



Student Signature ____________________________________



Parent Signature_____________________________________