Archdiocese of Newark

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Local Safe Environment Coordinator (LSEC) Update

July, 2015

Karen Clark, Director, Safe Environment(clarkkar@rcan.org)

The Local Safe Environment Coordinator job has three basic parts

Know the policies – you are the ‘go to’ person for people who have questions about what they need

Keep the paperwork – have individual folders for each person required to meet the safe environment guidelines

Do online recordkeeping: Maintain the Virtus database by having it

accurately represent the people, and Do the annual audit(s)

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Policies; you should know these when asked – refer to your manual’s Policy section and the Archdiocesan Code of Conduct.

All these people need ALL safe environment documentation

All employees All ushers All chaperones All volunteers who could have

unaccompanied contact with children at any time (catechists, coaches, peer ministers, altar server coordinators, etc.)

Anyone who could groom a minor and/or have time alone with them – your discretion

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Here’s what everyone needs in individual folders:

1. Application (volunteer or employee)If they have the pre-2012 application, volunteers will also

have to initial the last page of the new application (January 2012)

2. 2012 Code of Conduct (Page 23), either give them the whole thing to read, or the website where they can read it, print and sign the last page

3. PGC certificate and any recertification certificates

4. Letter(s) from parish/school saying they passed background check from SterlingBackcheck and Verified Volunteers (every 5 years) OR state-sealed document saying they passed fingerprinting (done once)

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For Boy Scouts, Bereavement Counselors, and third parties, some of the paperwork isn’t necessary.

Boy Scout troops – if your parish or school holds the Troop Charter: Get a list from Scoutmaster of all active adults,

and get written assurance that they’ve all been background screened

Have them attend PGC Bereavement/separated &divorced training

requires an application and a background check Third parties – e.g, landscapers, lunch providers in

a school Get written assurance that they’ve been

background screened No PGC necessary

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Having entered data into Virtus since the role started makes the re-training and re-screening that started this year much easier.

Run a compliance report / Master Report Check Protecting God's Children for Adults Check the relevant item(s) under

Background Checks Click Display the date for compliance

items Either:

Run it to the screen, and highlight those that need re-screening and re-training, or,

Run it to Excel, save it as an Excel spreadsheet, and sort the spreadsheet on the training date or on the background check date

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You see your Virtus lists in the Administrator Tab, by clicking “Users.”

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For the Virtus lists, it’s important to get down to only those people who are active in your parish/school.

Get lists of current people from the ministry heads, coaches, Scouts etc.

Use the Virtus hints and tips sheet to: Handle duplicates: Send me the names of any

duplicates on your list, and I will delete them or merge them.

Get rid of Pending/Awaiting Approval people Change status from Active to Inactive Move out the people who have left or died, or who you

don’t know at all Add anyone missing to your list

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Let’s talk about the difference between Awaiting Approval (also shows as Pending) and User (also shows as Active).

Awaiting Approval (Pending on your Compliance Reports) means that they enrolled in Virtus, but never had their enrollment approved They didn’t show up for the class The sign in sheet never made it to the

Archdiocese Their name was misread, and so they were

added by another name Once they get approved, their status

changes to User (Active on your Compliance Reports)

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You handle people who are inactive in your parish or school differently from those who are no longer there/unknown to you or who have died.

Attending Mass/still have kids in the school but are not volunteering at this point: Change the status (in the yellow area) to Inactive – but ONLY if yours is the only location in their record. If it isn’t leave it alone, or remove your parish/school.

No longer at your parish/school or you have no clue who they are: Change their location to “Z-Location Unknown/Left Archdiocese” – but ONLY if yours is the only location in their record. If it isn’t just remove your parish/school.

Have died: Change their location to “Z-Deceased”

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If the person took Protecting God’s Children in another diocese, they are handled differently.

Each diocese has its own Virtus system – we can’t see the other systems from Newark

Ask if the person still volunteers in the other diocese; let me know what they say: If not, I’ll have the record transferred to

Newark If they do, I’ll have the record

duplicated in Newark

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If there are people missing, let me look for them first, and if I don’t find them, then you can add them.

I will let you know if I find them, and if not: Go to Administrator tab Click Users / Add New User Enter their name, email if you have it, parish or

school, “Basic User,” volunteer or employee, you can skip the next page, then pick the session that’s on the certificate you have (if the session’s not listed, stop and let me know)

Fax me the certificate – 973-497-4001

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Some things to remember:

Send me lists of names of those missing before you add them. I may find them elsewhere and it will save you time and effort.

Many names were misspelled or had incorrect first names (especially in 2003). You need to correct them.

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The next step is to add the dates of the documents in your files.

Put the dates in the Background Check and Required Documents tabs in that user’s record. Our new background check provider will be linked to Virtus for volunteers, so the date will be entered automatically

Occasionally, run a Compliance Report / Master Report to see the progress you’ve made.

You can use this data to fill in the annual audit at youthprotection.rcan.org

Run a Training Report / Online Training Report to see the status of those who chose online recertification. You can also print their recertification certificate from here.

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All parishes and schools were asked by the Archbishop to apply for accounts no later than 11/14/2014.

There is a packet that was to be filled out. The document is in First Class in the Safe Environment folder.

Once you apply, you get training packages and are invited to training webinars.

Volunteers will do their own checks if they have access to a computer. They will also be asked to help subsidize the cost of the check, if they like.

Cost is $20, but you will have to pay more if they lived in a county that charges for access (e.g., the counties around NYC in New York).

Do a LEVEL 3 (Complete) check unless they have lived in NY in the last 7 years, or if the volunteer doesn’t have a SSN, then do a Level 2 check (Advanced)

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If you need to schedule a class, please follow the procedure below.

First Class always has a current list of facilitators by county; we run over 400 classes per year, taught by almost 200 facilitators. Contact them directly.

The facilitator will add the class to Virtus. Publish the session in the bulletin - Direct

employees/volunteers to sign up at www.virtus.org after the class has been added.

If they need help, use the procedures on page 14 to add them.

Once I get the sign in sheet and approve those who attended, they will move from Pending/Awaiting Approval status to User/Active status in your Virtus list. You can then add the dates from their other required paperwork.

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All attendees must be registered on Virtus either before (preferred) or after the session, or their attendance will not count.

Provide coffee and snacks, a working DVD player and remote

Facilitators are not responsible to give out any paperwork except PGC certificates to those who complete the class; the rest is your responsibility

Agree on who (you or the facilitator) will follow up and send me the sign in sheet after the session, and you need to follow up with those who didn’t enroll prior to the session

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All you need for Teaching Touching Safety is found in a DVD you should have at the school, in First Class, and in Virtus.

DVD: Same one is used every year If you need a replacement DVD, there is an order form in First

Class First Class:

Has all forms, including opt-out forms Use the Safe Environment Folder

Virtus: Use the Educator Tab in Virtus to provide the principal and

teachers with the Lesson Plans Audit:

Fill in the audit with the number of children trained/absent/opted out and the number of parents who wanted the info sent home

No Teaching Touching Safety is done if the school is using the newest version of RCL Benziger’s Family Life program (audit still needs to be done)

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All volunteers and employees subject to background screening must be screened every 5 years; this doesn’t apply to fingerprinting in the schools.

Run a Virtus list to see who needs a background check at the beginning of each calendar year. (assuming the dates are in Virtus)

Have them sign the last page of the 2012 volunteer application

Procedure is in the Verified Volunteers user guide.

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In addition, all employees and volunteers must attend some sort of re-training in child sexual abuse awareness every 3 years.

Attend Protecting God’s Children (PGC) again – good for 3 years

Read the Virtus articles and take an online recertification module EVERY YEAR

* Person must use their original Virtus ID, so send me a list of the name/email address/option they want to take

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The audit asks for numbers, not names, and only asks about training and background screening.

You must know: The number of total employees (not clergy –

hover over the word employees to see what is needed)

The number of total educators, if a school The number of volunteers For each of the above, the number trained in

Protecting God’s Children and background screened.

Don’t count anyone under 18, and there’s no need to count any volunteers that don’t have contact with minors.

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A pastor or principal must sign a piece of paper with the numbers on it, for our USCCB audit.

The online audit now has the capability to save and print the numbers.

Have Pastor, Juridic Pastor for schools that have one, or principal sign it

Mail, fax or scan and email to me. My fax is 973-497-4001

Annual Audit is due December 1, Teaching Touching Safety is due April 15

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Audit websites:

http://youthprotection.rcan.org/ (DUE DECEMBER 1)

http://youthprotection.rcan.org/mainschool.aspx (DUE APRIL 15)

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LSEC’s and facilitators are required to recertify online; many of you haven’t done this.

Go to your Virtus training tab Look on the right side of the page for your

bulletin status: “Click here to see your complete report”

Click “Click here for details” to see which articles you need to read

Click on the bulletin title, read it, and submit an answer to the question at the end.

Take the annual recertification module every year, print and file your certificate.

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Please make sure others in your parish/school know of your role.

Make sure they know that you are the person to come to first.

Make sure they know that you have the current forms.

Make sure they know you have information on background checking as well.

Use the manual sections – they contain a lot of information!