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GOAL:

 

The goal of moderation is to produce the best experience possible for those engaging in the group while adhering to the established objectives of the group as stated in the group description online. WE ARE PEACEMAKERS.

 

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Matthew 5:9

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Please use the following guidelines of moderation:

Member Admission:

 

As we admin members let’s lean towards error on the side of allowing people to join rather than declining. In my experience, most who try to join the group are legitimate, and spammers are almost always immediately obvious. With that said, admission of members should be done based on one of the following criteria. So if any of the following are true, admit them:

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1. If they fill out the questions

2. If they were invited by someone inside the group already.

3. If they are in any other ministry groups let them in. Here are other groups as an example:

   1. Youth Pastors Only

   2. Youthmin.org

   3. Download Youth Ministry Community

   4. Stuff You Can Use

   5. Worship Leaders Central

   6. Senior Pastors Central

   7. Worship Leaders +

   8. Worship Leader Collective

   9. CMG Community

   10. PCO Mastermind

   11. Church Communications

   12. Gear Talk: P&W

   13. Small Church Pastor

4. If none of the above is true, consider a quick investigation of their profile and search for any ministry activity of any kind.

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One hint to use is the number of groups they are in and the length of time they’ve been in Facebook. For example, if someone who joined Facebook in 2009 is in 11 groups, joining our group is probably legitimate even if none of the criteria is met. But if someone joined Facebook in three months ago and is in 140 groups, skepticism is warranted.

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Thread & Comment Deletion:

• Avoid deleting entire threads. If you feel it is absolutely necessary, please consult with the group of moderators for discussion. Instead, delete specific comments if they are out of line.

  • If the post is found to become particularly out of control, and efforts to remove problematic comments aren’t softening the discussion, it may be necessary to turn off commenting. This should be a last resort as we try to allow difficult discussions, but it is understandable when it becomes necessary.

• If there is a negative post made about YPCentral, the thread should be deleted immediately as well as all subsequent “aftershock” threads. An aftershock thread is a thread that is posted after a problematic thread is deleted or shut off. The member responsible for either of these kinds of threads (negative about YPC or an aftershock thread) should be muted until discussion can be had around what to do regarding the post. Nothing good comes out of posts like this.

• If posts are found to be spammy, you can delete them without any further discussion in moderators group. Follow the process below for dealing with the member.
   

Member Discipline Process:

• 1st offense: Delete post/comment if necessary. Contact them personally by messenger and let them know what they are doing wrong and get an acknowledgement. If the post/comment is left, public engagement may be needed so that our members know we’re doing something about it.

• 2nd offense: Delete post if necessary. Contact them personally by messenger and let them know if they don’t stop, they will be removed from the group.

• 3rd offense: Delete post if necessary. Remove them from the group, block them from the group and let the moderators know. At this time, let the member that has been removed know that they have been blocked from the group and that they may appeal this decision by following the instructions found in the notes tab on the YPCentral Facebook Page (not group). They can fill the form out and submit.

• When you engage publicly: If you come across a post/comment that you feel is inappropriate, and the poster does not respond in remorse and in submission, you have the authority to increase your intensity and/or kick & block them from YPCentral. We will not tolerate such behavior in our group. If they won’t respect moderators, they won’t respect anyone.
   

 

Here are two principles to keep in mind before enacting the disciplinary process:

• It is better to be a little lenient than to be too strict.

• Value the discussions being had. Remember that a youth pastors page is a place where hard discussions can be had. In fact, if pastors can’t talk about a subject, who in the world can?
   

When to Use the Discipline Process:

• If a person is calling someone names or being excessively rude. Please do not confuse a little intensity with rudeness because they are different. Some intensity is ok.

• If a person is speaking about a group of people in a derogatory manner.

  1. It’s ok for someone to state their belief, even if controversial.

  2. It’s NOT ok for someone to use their belief to talk about a group derogatorily.

     • The litmus test for this is to ask the question, The litmus test for this is to ask the question, “Did they state their controversial belief respectfully?” If not, it’s probably worth reaching out to them.

• If a person is spamming the group with unnecessary posts or comments.

• Don’t remove a member for disagreeing with you on something. If you think a member needs removed that you’ve been debating, make other moderators aware and have them decide whether or not to remove them (and the other moderator should perform the removal if that action is decided).
   

Restoring Someone’s Membership:

• If a moderator removes a member, only that moderator can restore that person’s membership.

• It is highly recommended that a former member attempt to reconcile with the moderator who removed them from the group prior to an appeal.

• If the removed member appeals the decision through the appeal process, the case will be decided by the group of moderators. NOTE: If a person has gone through the appeal process, this is likely a sign of good faith. So most cases should lean toward re-approval to the group.