You CAN Help Prevent Child Sexual Abuse at Your Church

By Patrick M. Moreland, CPCU

More formalized hiring, supervision, education and reporting procedures are needed to help stop problems before they begin.

• Guidelines for selecting your employees and volunteers
• Guidelines for people who work with children
• Prepare your church in advance
• If it happens at your church

The incidence of child sexual abuse in America is startling. Although the true extent of abuse is unknown, estimates from the National Center on Child Abuse indicate that one out of eight boys and one of every five girls is a victim of some form of sexual abuse by age 12.

Studies show that about 80 percent of child abuse incidents are committed by someone known to the victim. In many cases it's a family member, and all too often it is a person in a position of trust and frequent contact with children­such as a teacher, child care worker, camp counselor, youth minister or even a clergy person.

Child sexual abuse happens at churches of all denominations and in all parts of the country. And it can happen at your church. But there are steps you can take to help prevent sexual abuse from occurring at your church and, if it should occur, to minimize the severity of injury to children and the legal ramifications for your church.

Guidelines for selecting your employees and volunteers

Many sexual abuse cases involving church employees and volunteers could have been prevented if churches had screened out known offenders. These guidelines should be considered seriously by any church when hiring any employee or seeking volunteers to work with children. Before implementing them, however, consult a local attorney regarding criteria that can and cannot be used in the employment process in your state and in your denomination.

1. All applicants should complete an employment application. Include questions regarding:

• Current and previous residence addresses.
• Current and previous employment, including addresses, dates, duties, titles and reasons for leaving.
• Names and addresses of schools attended, with date of graduation (and degree earned) or last attendance.
• References from previous employers and organizations that serve children.
• Pending criminal charges (where not prohibited by law).

Include a statement, which the applicant should acknowledge in writing, certifying that statements provided in the application are true and complete, and that any misrepresentation or omission may be grounds for rejection of the applicant or for dismissal if employed. This acknowledgment should also authorize you to contact any individual or organization listed in the application.

2. Review all statements made in the application, paying specific attention to any gaps in time and irregular employment patterns or unexplained absences. Pursue these gaps with employers listed and in a subsequent employment interview.

3. Contact in writing all listed references and employers. Ask why your applicant left and for any information that may help you determine the applicant's suitability for your position. Maintain the responses in a permanent file, and make a follow-up telephone call to nonrespondents. Make note of any information the contact was unwilling to provide.

If you find discrepancies between statements made by your applicant and the former employer or reference, discuss them with the applicant.

Applicants may be concerned about having their present employer learn they are seeking work elsewhere. If this is the case, agree not to contact the employer unless you are about to offer the candidate a job. Do, however, make the contact at that time­before you hire the applicant.

4. Conduct employment interviews with those applicants in whom you are still interested. Whenever possible, have an associate participate in the interview. A second opinion is helpful.

5. Depending on the nature of the position you are seeking to fill, and the budget available for your search, you may wish to check for arrest and conviction records of your key applicants.

6. You may also wish to ask for a complete set of fingerprints for your file. This seems tough, but it may cause individuals with criminal records to withdraw from the employment process. Fingerprints can also be helpful if sexual abuse or theft is ever suspected.

Check with your attorney and local authorities to make sure you go about records checks and fingerprinting in the proper manner.

Guidelines for people who work with children

Specific guidelines should be applicable to all employees and volunteers who work with children and should be communicated to them. The guidelines help protect your children and the vast majority of adults who wouldn't think of sexually abusing a child.

1. Designate a "confidential counselor" to whom any child may go at any time, to discuss any problem.

2. Make sexual abuse awareness part of an annual safety program.

3. Establish a policy of conducting fair and discreet investigations of all alleged incidents.

4. Encourage employees and volunteers to limit physical contact with children.

5. Require that activities be done in an open area or room, and not in a private office.

6. Require that more that one adult accompany children on field trips.

7. Periodically inspect areas where sexual abuse might occur.

8. Install windows in classrooms, and keep doors open except where excessive noise prohibits it.

9. Pay close attention to adults who spend considerable "off-duty" time with the same child or children.

10. Develop a written standard of conduct for adult/child relationships. Establish parameters of conduct and contact during and after working hours. Include guidelines for transportation of children, specifying where and when offers of transportation are acceptable, and by whom. Your staff, parents and children should be familiar with this standard so they know what is expected and what is unusual.

11. Communicate to your staff that these guidelines are for their benefit, as well as for the benefit of the children and your church.

Prepare your church in advance

Learn what your legal and religious obligations are before a case arises and develop procedures for handling a report.

Know your state's laws regarding mandatory reporting. All 50 states have such laws. These laws generally specify:

• What constitutes sexual abuse for reporting purposes.
• Who is required and/or permitted to report.
• What information must be contained in the report.
• The organization to which a report is to be made.
• Timeframe for reporting.

In most states, teachers, child care workers and certain counselors are required to report suspected cases of child abuse. States are less consistent regarding reporting by clergy.

For those required or permitted to file reports, most states grant some form of immunity against civil lawsuits if the report is made in good faith. This should not be confused with any civil consequences that stem from alleged negligence.

Failure to report, when required to do so, is punishable by a fine and/or imprisonment. Learn what your requirements are before you are put to the test!

If it happens at your church

If you discover or have reason to believe a case of sexual abuse has occurred or is occurring, seek professional advice. The well-being of the child and your church is at stake. Proceed in the following manner.

1. Inform your employee or volunteer of the accusations and discuss them.

2. Suspend with pay (for paid employees) the alleged offender while a confidential investigation is being conducted.

3. Consult your attorney for advice regarding compliance with reporting laws.

4. Together with your reporting agency official, meet with the child's parents and, in their presence and with their permission, with the child.

5. Notify your liability insurance company. It is not an admission of guilt or negligence to do so.

• Your policy may require immediate notification if coverage is to apply to any resulting lawsuit.
• You will need a determination of coverage applicability should your church be brought to court. Not all policies provide coverage for acts of sexual molestation.
• Your insurance company has dealt with many sexual molestation cases and may be able to give you helpful advice.
• Early involvement of your insurance company can help minimize the civil consequences to your church and can speed up treatment of the child.

6. Cooperate in the investigation conducted by your insurance company and the agency to which the report has been filed.

These guidelines are suggestions that may help you prevent sexual abuse at your church. They are not all-inclusive, and some may not be appropriate for your particular situation. Furthermore, there is no fail-safe way of preventing sexual abuse. Incidents may occur even if you have followed all of the guidelines in this article and those from other sources. Sexual offenders can be very effective at concealing their activities. Nevertheless, an effort must be made to prevent child sexual abuse at your church.

Patrick M. Moreland, CPCU, is a vice president at Church Mutual Insurance Company in Merrill, WI.