Audit Confirms Diocese in Compliance With Charter
To Protect Children
 

The Diocese of Scranton has again been found to be in compliance with the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, enacted in 2002 by the United States bishops to address the issue of sexual abuse of minors by clergy.

The compliance was confirmed following a review by The Gavin Group, Inc., which has been commissioned by the National Review Board to conduct yearly audits of all dioceses to ensure they are adhering to the provisions of the Charter. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops formed the National Review Board to oversee the implementation of the Charter.

Each of the annual audits has confirmed the Diocese of Scranton’s compliance with the Charter. 

Diocese Has Policy To Deal With Sexual Abuse Incidents

The Diocese 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, Joan Holmes, 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, in The Catholic Light, 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. 
 

Awareness and Prevention Training Continues

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 and is ongoing. It trains priests, deacons, candidates for ordination, Diocesan and parish staff members, teachers, coaches, and volunteers how to recognize and report child sexual abuse. Although the audit does not require an accounting for parents who were trained, when these are included the total number of people trained by the Diocese now exceeds 18,000.

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 since the spring of 2005.

In the fall of 2008 the Diocese began introducing safe environment lessons in its parish religious education programs. Henceforth the VIRTUS “Teaching Touching Safety” Program will be offered in religious education classes to complement the safe environment programs used by public schools. 
 

Background Checks and Child Abuse Clearances

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 have up-to-date criminal background and child abuse clearances. This includes coaches, who are reminded that no practice may be held until these clearances have been received.

Previously, the Diocese used the Pennsylvania State Police and Childline clearances to fulfill the background check requirement. As of January 2008, the Diocese now uses a more comprehensive background screening process through ChoicePoint VolunteerSelect, which provides a national criminal search, social security verification, and a sex offender registry search. 

Gail Fromm was hired as Diocesan compliance officer in 2006 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.

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. Background checks and clearances have been completed for 3,633 individuals in the past year alone.

For more information about VIRTUS training, contact Sarah Mountain, Diocesan VIRTUS coordinator, at 570-563-8500.

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

To contact Joan Holmes, the victim assistance coordinator, call 570-344-5216. 
 

Notice Regarding Sexual Abuse of a Person Under Eighteen Years of Age by Ordained or Lay Personnel of the Diocese of Scranton 

Such an act should be reported to the Diocese by calling the Victim Assistance Coordinator (570-344-5216) or the Chancellor (570-207-2216) or the Vicar for Priests (570-207-2269).

Upon receiving a report of this kind, the Diocese of Scranton is committed to assisting victims or survivors of sexual abuse in their pursuit of emotional and spiritual well-being.