Child Safeguarding
At SAS, we believe that schools fill a special institutional role in society as protectors of children, where all children in their care are afforded a safe and secure setting in which to grow and develop, and we’re committed to creating, maintaining, and promoting that environment.
To serve that goal, all faculty and staff engage in annual child safeguarding training to ensure we stay educated, focused, and mindful of student protection agreements and employee protection guidelines. We also strictly adhere to a Child Protection Policy, that defines how we treat all SAS students, based on international law and on the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of the Child, as well as local Chinese law.
On campus, we employ a full-time risk manager and a round-the-clock team of security officers. Each campus also features a full-time dedicated athletic trainer, divisional nurses, and an after-school activities nurse. All school-sponsored events on campus have a medical professional present.
Shanghai American School is committed to providing a safe, nurturing, and inspiring environment for our community in which to learn and grow in. In light of that responsibility, educators at SAS are expected to display the highest standards of professionalism. The Code of Conduct below lends substance to that responsibility. Our SAS Professional Code of Conduct for faculty and staff clearly outlines the following expectations for every employee relative to their engagement with students:
- Create an environment that engenders mutual respect, enhances each student’s sense of potential and self-worth.
- Build trust such that each student feels safe and valued.
- Ensure every interaction with a student must be professional in nature and serves that student’s learning and well-being.
Each year, all employees participate in Child Safeguarding training to build or refresh awareness of student protection concerns, types of abuse and neglect, signs/symptoms, prevention, policies and laws, and internal and external reporting processes. The Child Safeguarding Team attends conferences which focus on child protection procedures and provides ongoing improvement to school policies on a regular basis. Training occurs annually and focuses on continued mindfulness regarding student protection agreements and employee protection guidelines.
It is the School’s responsibility to ensure that its employees are fit and qualified to work with children. SAS has implemented a number of safeguarding policies and procedures for school recruitment with the aim of ensuring that:
- Employees have been thoroughly vetted, via non-criminal records and background checks, as well as verified professional references, confirming their suitability to work with children and commitment to child protection.
- Successful candidates fully understand their responsibilities towards Child Safeguarding while employed at the school.
- The School maintains appropriate record keeping, should employee files or documents be required in a future investigation or inquiry.
- The School’s partner recruitment agencies (e.g., ISS, Search, GRC) require reference checks and background screening which complement SAS’s own recruitment protocols and meet the requirements of the School’s Child Protection Policy. Background checks are required for all SAS employees.
Health Policies
And since we’re all about keeping our students safe, our nurses are in direct contact with the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to keep up to date with the ever-evolving nature of infectious diseases. The updated guidelines for infectious diseases can be found here.
To make sure everyone stays safe and comfortable, we check the Air Quality Index (AQI) three times a day. Outdoor activities and PE classes are modified if the AQI reaches unsafe levels. Click here if you want to know more about our detailed approach to maintaining the air quality on our campuses.