For Mentors

Research projects may be undertaken in any academic area. We consider research to be any scientific, scholarly, or creative activity that leads to:

• The production of new knowledge
• Increased problem-solving capabilities (including design and analysis of a research project)
• Original critical or historical theory and interpretation

If you have been contacted by a high school student seeking an opportunity on your STEM team then this guidance is for you!  We do not want to discourage colleagues from hosting students and providing life-changing career development opportunities to young people. Therefore we are sharing this checklist for you to consult to make sure you are protecting both yourself and the students.

• Minors not associated with a formal UMN program must still be protected by the UMN Safety of Minors Policy (and those in formal programs must be supported by those administrators). 
  • Not adhering to the policy creates potentially unsafe environments for minors and makes you and the university vulnerable to legal action.
• Examples of commonly requested activities that require following these policies include (but aren’t limited to): an informal internship, completing a research project in your lab, shadowing you or your team, and carrying out volunteer work or tasks for your team.
• This guidance is specifically designed for high school students ages 16 - 18 because students younger than age 16 are not permitted in UMN laboratories.
   

This guide is written from the perspective of a university staff or researcher already having a student in mind for the program. If the opposite is true and you have a project for a younger student and would like to support, we recommend using local school partners and campus organizations (such as TRIO, Emerging Leaders of Color, or Rooted in STEM) to help match you with a student who might benefit from this opportunity and otherwise might not have access to this level engagement with research.

If you have any questions, please contact:

• For anyone working at UMN: Sammy Loeks-Davis, Youth Safety and Compliance Manager [email protected] 
• Your Unit Contact Person: ____________ 
   

Checklist for Hosting High School Students in STEM Spaces

Items that are required and should be saved/documented to work with youth on-campus (and online). They will be checked during an audit and are marked with a ✔. 

Safety Planning

• Read the Safety of Minors Policy and familiarize yourself with how it corresponds with the proposed activity.
  • Pay particular attention to the section Health and Safety Requirements and Expectations for Programs Involving Minors as it reviews such details as physical environment, safe movement, and youth in laboratories. 
• ✔ Establish your own youth safety plan:
  • We strongly recommend using the new Youth Safety Worksheet developed by the UMN office of Health, Safety and Risk Management in 2025. 
    • You can use this as a template, filling in the sections relevant to your program.
    • You can also develop and write your own safety plan but it will need to be in compliance with all University and Health and Safety Policies. 
  • Make sure that this plan is widely shared with all adults who will be working with the students.
     

Train and prepare personnel to work with minors

• When minors are on campus they should never be alone with an adult. We must follow the “rule of three” - there should be at least two minors and one adult or two adults and one minor working together (with no more than 12 high school students assigned to one adult).
• Prepare for your activity by making sure that there will be enough trained adults available to support the minors. Account for the reality of supervisors needing to step out for meetings, etc. - if in doubt, you could train your entire team so that they are all prepared to safely work with minors.
• To train and prepare personnel, each person must:
  1. Complete the Safety of Minors Training Course on Canvas.
     • It takes roughly 15 minutes and training is valid for three years.
  2. Request from your HR background checks that are specific to working with youth
     • Valid for three years.
• ✔ Create a spreadsheet that documents the names and roles of the adults working with youth as well as the date of their last Safety of Minors Training Course and background check.
   

Confirm permission of the minor’s legal guardian

• Parents/guardians must approve of the participation of minors at UMN activities. The Office of General Counsel has already created forms for your use. 
• ✔ Legal guardians must complete the following documents (paper or electronic copies are acceptable) before the first day of the program and provide a signature:
  •  Release & Waiver Safety of Minors (OGC-SC250) 
  •  Lab Use Agreement - Individual (OGC-SC103)
• These must be safely stored for seven years.
• In addition to the required documents, we recommend including a cover letter describing the activity and outlining expectations for the experience.
• If you have questions about electronic documentation or accessibility of these documents- Contact your IT department or the Office for Digital Accessibility. 
   

Registration of the activity at UMN Youth Central

• ✔ Go to the Youth Central site and fill in the form.
• Each time you host minors on campus this form must be filled in.
• This form will ask about the completion of the above items.
• Program intake forms are reviewed on a weekly basis.

References

• FAQs about hosting high school students in STEM spaces (i.e., youth data and photo policies)
• “K-12 youth group’s“ guide to working with youth in a STEM education environment (TBD)
• U of MN Administrative Policy Safety of Minors 
  • Appendix : Health and Safety Requirements and Expectations for Programs Involving Minors 2.1 Administrative Controls (DEHS) 
  • FAQ : Safety of Minors 
• College Readiness Resources 

This guide was written and prepared by the UMN K-12 STEM Community of Practice ([email protected])