Guidelines for Interactions at Your Organization
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Home / Code of Conduct / About Mission Statements & Codes of Ethics
Keep in mind that a Code of Conduct is limited; it usually refers only to the most common and expected behaviors staff/volunteers may encounter each day. One of the ways to guide staff and volunteers in their response to situations and behaviors not covered by your Code of Conduct is through developing a Mission Statement and Code of Ethics.
Whether your YSO is large or small, you’re probably familiar with the concept of a “Mission Statement”—a short, foundational statement designed to capture the reasons why you exist, and what you hope to accomplish. A Mission Statement should motivate and inspire your staff and leadership toward the “higher goals” of your YSO, and can also help guide the day-to-day activities of your organization.
A Code of Ethics is a close cousin of the Mission Statement. It expands upon your Mission Statement by describing your YSO’s “character” more fully and expressing a set of ethical standards for everyone to follow. Your Code of Ethics can be very broad, describing your vision and guiding principles, what you aspire to accomplish, and how children and youth will benefit from your efforts. It should also reflect a commitment to child/youth safety.
Depending on your size and available resources, you may have only a Mission Statement or a Code of Ethics, or even a combined document. There are no strict rules, but each can be used to help guide the decision-making of your staff and volunteers in their day-to-day interactions with coworkers, children, and youth—especially in any unique or unexpected situations that lack clear direction.
National Level:
Local Level
Smaller, more locally affiliated organizations can also develop mission statements. An example of the mission statement of a small, privately owned business (a dance studio) reads:
Goals in Support of Mission Statements:
Immediately following its Mission Statement, the Boys and Girls Clubs of America (above) provides a set of statements about what it intends to provide to the children it serves in order to attain the goal its Mission Statement outlines:
The dance academy also combines its Mission Statement with a set of similar goals:
Ethical Principles that organizations may wish to reflect within a Code of Conduct:
1 50 example mission statements: (https://topnonprofits.com/examples/nonprofit-mission-statements/)
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