The first key to child and youth protection in Chapter activities of The First Tee is the Chapter's staff--both employees and volunteers. Careful selection, adequate training, and sufficient supervision reduce the likelihood of abuse or neglect.
The Chapter should have a comprehensive screening process. The screening process is based on four principles: legal compliance, systematic application of procedures, matching the level of screening with position-specific risk factors, and applying uniform selection criteria to all applicants for a specific position. Each step of the screening process should probe for abusive characteristics.

The Chapter's screening process should include:
1. A written application
2. Face-to-face interviews
3. Reference checks (at least three, unrelated individuals who are well-acquainted with the applicant)
4. Record checks including criminal history records, and motor vehicle records for anyone who may operate a motor vehicle on behalf of the Chapter

Once the Chapter selects its staff through an appropriate screening process, it should inform the staff members about the Chapter's commitment to child and youth protection through training. The training program should be designed around the Chapter's youth protection policies and the staff's responsibility to comply with them.

Training to prevent child abuse should include information about children's physical and emotional development, recognition of the signs of child abuse and neglect, and the reporting responsibilities of staff members. When new staff members learn how serious the Chapter is about protecting children and youth from abuse, potential abusers may decide to look elsewhere for their victims.

In addition to careful selection and effective training, the Chapter should provide sufficient staff supervision to spot problems before they reach crisis status. Each Chapter must develop supervisory techniques that meet the demands of its program.

Oftentimes a supervisor can sense problems that without intervention could result in violations of the Chapter's policies, for example, helping a stressed-out volunteer trying to deal with an unruly child as well as direct several other children in an activity. Without intervention the volunteer may have resorted to inappropriate physical discipline. By stepping in and removing the unruly child, the supervisor diffused the situation.

Supervisory personnel should give feedback to the individuals they supervise. Feedback is most often informal and should not be limited to performance deficiencies. Recognition of positive achievements and compliance with the Chapter's child and youth protection policies reinforces their importance with employees and volunteers. When supervisors detect policy infractions, they must confront the individual and take remedial action in a timely manner. If the infraction is serious or part of a pattern of infractions, the supervisor should initiate termination proceedings in accord with the policies of the Chapter.