U.S. Dioceses Are Complying With Charter To Protect Children
 

Virtually all U.S. dioceses, including the Diocese of Scranton, are compliant with the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, according to a report on the 2006 audits conducted by the Gavin Group, the company that monitors adherence to the U.S. bishops’ plan to address clergy sexual abuse of children.

Since the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People was enacted in 2002,  the annual auditing process has confirmed the Diocese of Scranton’s compliance with its provisions.

Scranton established a policy to deal with sexual abuse of minors by clergy in 1993, well before the issue received widespread public attention. After the national charter was promulgated in 2002, the Diocese refined its policy accordingly.

The Diocese hired a Victim Assistance Coordinator to provide outreach and confidential services to victims, and revised the membership of its Review Board that assesses allegations and advises the Bishop. The procedures and process for filing complaints have been published in brochures, on the Diocesan website and in all parish bulletins.

The Diocesan policy requires reporting of all allegations of sexual abuse of a minor to civil authorities, no matter the current age of the victim; and the Diocese has a clear policy that addresses the process of dealing with complaints, including a prompt preliminary investigation and placing the accused priest on administrative leave. The Diocese requires that, when sexual abuse is admitted or established, the offending priest is permanently removed from ministry.

The Diocese also established a Code of Pastoral Conduct to ensure that proper behavior is fostered whenever children and all members of the faithful gather for spiritual, educational or social activities conducted under the auspices of the Church. It also provides guidelines for the conduct of pastoral counselors and spiritual directors.

The code covers a range of situations and issues, including sexual and other forms of physical conduct, settings for meetings and counseling sessions, harassment of any kind (sexual, physical, mental, verbal, racial or ethnic), the nature of relationships, conflicts of interest, and reporting ethical or professional misconduct.

The national charter also mandates that all employees and volunteers receive training on how to create safe environments for children and young people.

The Diocese has been using the VIRTUS sexual abuse awareness and prevention program, “Protecting God’s Children,” to fulfill this requirement.

The program was introduced in the spring of 2003. To date, 465 training sessions have been held and 14,634 individuals – including the Diocesan clergy, staff, teachers, coaches, parents and volunteers – across the 11-county Diocese have been trained in ways to recognize and report child sexual abuse.

The VIRTUS program is ongoing. Four training sessions were scheduled for May.

The Diocese has also implemented a safe environment program for students in grades K-10 to teach them how to recognize and avoid situations that could lead to sexual abuse. It also encourages communication between children and their parents so that dangerous situations and incidents are reported promptly.

The VIRTUS “Teaching Touching Safety” program is designed specifically for children. It has been offered to students in Diocesan Catholic schools for the past three years.

Another provision of the national charter is that all employees in parishes and schools, as well as volunteers who spend 20 or more hours per year with children, must obtain a Pennsylvania Criminal Background Check (Act 34) and a Pennsylvania Child Abuse History Clearance (Act 151).

The Diocese has hired a Compliance Officer to assist pastors and school administrators to comply with this requirement. Information packets have been provided, and workshops were held in the various regions of the Diocese to answer questions about the acquisition of the background checks and clearances. Links to both of the state clearance forms are posted on the Diocesan website.

Every parish in the Diocese is to maintain a binder listing all employees and volunteers, along with their clearances, background checks and verification of their participation in the VIRTUS safe environment program.

For more information about VIRTUS training, contact Sarah Mountain, Diocesan VIRTUS coordinator, in the Office for Parish Life at 570-207-2213.

For information on the background checks and clearances, contact Gail Fromm, Diocesan compliance officer, at 570-207-2214.

The next compliance audit for the Diocese of Scranton will be conducted in November.