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Protecting God's Children Recertification
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Good morning Star Families,
I hope your summer is starting off well.
The Archdiocese of Detroit's Office of Child and Youth Protection has made some changes and new requirements to the Safe Environment compliance for all parishes and schools in the archdiocese. They have implemented changes to the Protecting God's Children certification process for all volunteers, coaches, teachers and staff at schools. If you have been or are looking to volunteer at the school - lunch/recess volunteer, read in your student's classroom, work at holiday parties, drive on a field trip, help at Field Day, etc. - anytime you would be working or helping a student directly during school hours (or on a field trip), please read this email in it's entirety to determine what action you may need to take to ensure your Protecting God's Children training is up-to-date. Volunteers for PTO or Ambassador Committee after-school events are not required to take Protecting God's Children as students attend the events with their families.
New Employees and Recurrent Adult Volunteers (individuals who will be volunteering many times during the school year)
All new paid employees, stipend individuals, coaches, catechists, shared-time teachers, VBS staff, lunchroom/ playground volunteers, and tutors must complete:
• A live Protecting God’s Children training, available either in-person or via Zoom
and
• The online Vulnerable Adults 2.0 Module
The live in-person and Zoom sessions are two-and-a-half to three hours in length and include the Protecting God’s Children 4.0 module. Sessions are available in English and Spanish. Registrants to the live sessions are automatically assigned access to the 40-minute online Vulnerable Adults 2.0 module, which they complete on their own time. The registrant can pause, save, and resume their position in the training if they cannot complete it in one sitting. Individuals in this category will receive certificates showing completion of the live module and the online Vulnerable Adults module. To register for these classes, please visit the Virtus website (https://www.virtusonline.org/virtus/), create an account in the FIRST-TIME REGISTRANT tab and follow the instructions.
New Intermittent/Occasional Volunteers (individuals who will volunteer for just one or two times during the school year)
Occasional new adult volunteers who do not serve in a recurring role with youth (as listed above) must complete:
• Protecting God’s Children certification either through a live session (in person or via Zoom) OR Protecting God’s Children Online Awareness Session 4.0
and
• Vulnerable Adults 2.0 combined self-paced training module.
The online modules take approximately two hours to complete. The online modules are available in English and Spanish. The registrant can pause, save, and resume their position in the training if they cannot complete it in one sitting. Individuals in this category will receive a certificate showing completion of the combined module
Recertification for all current Adult Employees and Volunteers
All priests, deacons, employees, and volunteers who completed a Protecting God’s Children workshop prior to January 1, 2020, are required to update their certification by completing the Protecting God’s Children Online Awareness Session 4.0 with Vulnerable Adults Training 2.0 combined module. The module is self-paced and takes approximately two hours to complete. Individuals may pause, save, and resume their position in the training if they cannot complete it in one sitting.
Virtus will be sending an email to all Adult Employees and Volunteers who are already certified asking them to verify their email address is correct in Virtus. If you do not remember the email address you utilized for Virtus when you completed the Protecting God's Children program originally, please go into Virtus and set up a new account. Virtus will be sending their email between June 23 - July 7, 2023. Please take the time prior to June 23, 2023 to verify you are able to log into Virtus so you can successfully receive their email.
Since it is required that any individual volunteering at the school for any reason be certified in the Protecting God's Children program, please take the time to ensure you have completed the necessary Certification/Recertification actions and sessions prior to the start of the 2023-24 school year.
We are so appreciative of all family members who volunteer at the school in any capacity. We cannot thank you enough for your time and care to support our students.
If you have any questions with regards to this process, please email Mrs. Waid directly.
Thank you again for your time, love and support of Star! God bless and have a great summer.