Safe Environment
Purpose and Mission Statement
Introduction: Although the abuse of children and adolescents is a reality in our society, such abuse, whether physical, sexual, verbal or emotional, whether inflicted by lay or ordained, professionals or volunteers, cannot be tolerated in the Church.
Purpose: The purpose of the Decree on Child Protection is two-fold: to prevent the abuse of children and adolescents and to provide a system for handling incidents of abuse after they occur.
Mission Statement: Abuse of any kind, whether physical, verbal, or emotional, whether inflicted by lay or ordained, professionals or volunteers, cannot be tolerated in the Church. The Safe Environment Office for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati assists the Archbishop in protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse. Policies, requirements, and practices for the Safe Environment office are based on the Decree on Child Protection (July 2018). This environment includes both a rigorous training program through SafeParish and a robust system of background checks and fingerprinting through SELECTION.com. We are Restoring Trust.
Click the link for information on how we are Restoring Trust.
WHO WE SERVE
Parishes, Schools, Pastors, Priests, Deacons, Business Managers, School Administrators and Staff, Coaches, parish and school local safe environment coordinators, parents, grandparents, family members, volunteers, all those involved in activities concerning youth and vulnerable adults throughout the Archdiocese of Cincinnati.
WHAT WE DO
Ensure that all youth and vulnerable adults can learn and worship in an environment free from the possibility of harm. To do that the Safe Environment office ensures that the requirements of the Decree on Child Protection are made clear through a series of policies and procedures –
- Complete background checks on all clerics, employees and volunteers;
- Ongoing required training for clerics, employees, and volunteers on recognizing the signs of abuse of children and vulnerable adults;
- Procedures for reporting suspected abuse;
- Immediately reporting all allegations of abuse to the appropriate civil authorities;
- A Child Protection Review Board that is comprised primarily of lay people;
- Training of children in Catholic schools and religious education programs on warning signs and appropriate responses for their own protection; and
- Onsite independent audit of policies and procedures by an outside firm.
LEARN More
Find additional information and resources regarding the Safe Environment office and what the Archdiocese of Cincinnati is doing to keep our youth and vulnerable adults safe by visiting Restoring Trust and the links for the Decree on Child Protection, SafeParish, and Background Checks.
REPORTING MISCONDUCT
If you need to report an incident of misconduct committed against one of our youth or vulnerable adults within the Archdiocese of Cincinnati please click Reporting Misconduct and follow the instructions.
