Safe Environment Program
We at Saint Raphael the Archangel Parish are deeply grateful to those who, through their employment, or their volunteer efforts, help form our children academically, spiritually, socially and athletically. We are also aware that our children are a great gift - one that must be cherished and protected.
Through the efforts of the Archdiocesan Office of Child and Youth Protection, we remain committed to the prevention of sexual abuse of minors and vulnerable adults in the Church. It is the policy of the Archdiocese of St. Louis that all clergy, employees and volunteers whose service in the Church brings them into contact with children and vulnerable adults must complete a national criminal background check and agree to regular updates. They must also attend a Protecting God's Children workshop and sign the Code of Ethical Conduct, and complete all components of the Prevent and Protect training modules.
The five requirements of our Archdiocesan Safe Environment Program are:
1. Protecting God's Children Workshop: individuals must only attend a live training once.
2. National Background Screening: users only have to register one time with results reviewed by the Archdiocese's Office of Child and Youth Protection (OCYP) and additional reports are run as needed; automatic update every three months which means we have a current screening on file for all clergy, employees, and volunteers working with/near/around minors and/or vulnerable adults.
3. Code of Ethical Conduct: in order to maintain the highest level of accountability, there must be a clear and definitive blueprint of appropriate and inappropriate behavior. The intent of the Code of Ethical Conduct is to provide a set of normative standards of conduct for all clergy, employees and volunteers engaged in ministerial and other Church-related activities within the Archdiocese of St. Louis.
4. Mandated Reporting Online Training: provides information regarding appropriate use of state hotline and what to expect; hotline call discussed in more depth in the workshop and in handouts.
5. Code of Ethical Conduct Online Training: separate from reading and agreeing to the Code of Ethical Conduct, this module takes the parts of the Code that pertain to attendees' ministries and puts them into training modules to reinforce and remind them of those points.
Once all five components are complete, approval is not automatic. The OCYP reviews screening results and any other information before physically marking an individual as approved, which may take two or more business days to approve depending on circumstances.
Contact Pam Hager, SRA Child Safety Coordinator at 313-239-1221 or email [email protected] with questions, to enroll in a workshop and/or begin online training (including background check and sign the Code of Ethical Conduct).
MISSOURI DIVISION OF FAMILY SERVICES CHILD ABUSE HOTLINE NUMBER
1.800.392.3738
In addition to contacting civil authorities, victims of sexual abuse are asked to come forward in order to receive pastoral assistance. Reports of abuse may be made to any pastor or to Sandra Price, Executive Director of the Office of Child and Youth Protection for the Archdiocese of St. Louis at 314-792-7271 or [email protected].