If you volunteer in any capacity at St. John XXIII Parish, you must be in compliance with the Diocesan Safe Environment policy. If you have not yet completed the Safe Environment requirements, please contact our Safe Environment Coordinator.
Some clearances expire every five years. Give Mary Jane Jurofcik a call or contact her by email to see if your clearances are current. She will get back to you in a timely manner.
If any volunteer has clearance forms from other sources, please check with Mary Jane Jurofcik to verify that they are acceptable.
Diocese of Pittsburgh Safe Environment Database Registration (Complete online. When getting on the Diocesan database, the access code is protect. Please remember you must complete all 10 steps on the application and click submit, to process the application.)
PA Child Abuse History Clearance (Turn in Certificate to the Parish Office) - There is no charge to process this clearance for volunteers. There is a $13 charge for employees.
Online Training for Protecting God's Children Workshop (Turn in the certificate you receive to the Parish Office)
Live Training and Registration for Protecting God’s Children Workshop (Turn in the certificate you receive to the Parish Office)
Check with our Safe Environment Administrator to determine if this training is required for your ministry. Some of these ministries include: Catechists, Babysitting, Athletic Coaches/Volunteers, Youth Ministry Volunteers, Scouting Leaders/Volunteers, Chaperones, Childcare Givers, and Adult Servers.
Online Training for Mandated Reporter Training through Pennsylvania Child Welfare Resource Center (Turn in your certificate to the Parish Office)
Live Training Registration for Mandated Reporter Training
Waiver for FBI Criminal Background Check for Residents of Pennsylvania for the Last 10 or More Years (Turn completed form in to the Parish Office)
Residents of Pennsylvania for Less than 10 Years - Use code 1KG6ZJ. If you need to do the FBI fingerprinting, pay for the fingerprinting, and keep your receipt. When your clearance comes in, submit that to the Safe Environment Administrator along with your receipt for reimbursement. No reimbursement will be made without your clearance.
The following two booklets are online when completing your initial application. After you have read the two booklets, print the signature page, and date and sign it. Turn this into the office for your file.
Code of Pastoral Conduct Pamphlet (Read and turn in the signature page to the Parish Office)
Reporting of Child Abuse Pamphlet (Read and turn in the signature page to the Parish Office)
The necessity for our parish to be in compliance with Diocesan directives for the Safe Environment policy is serious. We are expected to hold all those who volunteer and serve as ministers, as well as the staff, to be liable for having each of the pieces that demonstrate the person is in compliance. It is understandable that some people are reluctant to do this when they believe that personal information is made available because the database is online. We have been assured that the site is secure and the Diocese assumes responsibility if there are any breaches in security. The Bishop has stated many times that our concern here is for the victims of abuse. We have an obligation to raise awareness to this issue that, sadly, is part of our culture today. It is because we do care for our children that we ask those who are around them in the liturgical as well as social and other parish settings to be trained to recognize any potential signs of abuse. If you have not yet completed all the steps, you are asked to please follow through as soon as possible. It is mandatory and will affect programming as well as ministries if we have to prohibit volunteers and ministers who have not been trained and cleared.
Everyone is a permissive reporter and is encouraged to make a report of suspected child abuse. Reporters of suspected child abuse fall into two categories.
Mandated reporters are those adults who come into direct contact with children in the course of their employment or volunteer of a regularly scheduled program or activity, who accepts responsibility for a child.