Safe Environment News

News articles and other items of interest about or related to the Safe Environment Program of the Archdiocese of St. Louis:

Celebrating a Decade of Keeping Children Safe  (St. Louis Review--Archdiocesan News--April 13, 2012)

The St. Louis Archdiocese is committed to keeping children safe from abuse.

Since 2002, when the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops adopted its Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People in response to what the bishops' blog calls the "horrific crime" of child sexual abuse, the archdiocese -- and the other dioceses across the country -- established thorough training and prevention programs to protect children and youth from sexual and other abuse.  (To read more, click here)

In Honor of Child Abuse Prevention Month, Archbishop Robert J. Carlson, would like to thank the following people for their effort to provide a Safe Environment for all children who participate in programs in the Archdiocese of Saint Louis (Read More- honor of Child.tif)

Child Safety Program 'Opens Eyes' to Signs of Abuse  (St. Louis Review--Archdiocesan News--April 22, 2011)

Keeping children safe starts with communication.

"The most important step, if you're serious about ending child abuse," said Terry Edelmann "is to communicate your concerns."

Edelmann is director of the Safe Environment Program, the archdiocesan effort to protect children from abuse. Her goal, and the goal of the archdiocese is "to keep children safe" and to educate everyone on how to do that.

In conjunction with April designated Child Abuse Prevention Month, this is a good time to revisit the archdiocesan efforts, Edelmann said.   (To read more, click here...)

Archdiocese Takes Great Measures To Protect Our Children  (St. Louis Review--Pastoral Letter--April 7, 2010)

 To the Clergy, Religious and Laity of the Archdiocese of St. Louis,

I pray you all had a blessed Easter and that this holy season is filled with hope and joy.

Today, I am writing you this Pastoral Letter to remind you of what we are doing on an ongoing basis in the Archdiocese of St. Louis to protect our children from sexual abuse. I realize that the issue of sexual abuse has been in the news for the past several weeks, including stories about sexual abuse allegations in Europe and in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. (To read more, click here...)

Archdiocese Continues Work to 'Keep Kids Safe' (St. Louis Review—December 12, 2008)

Approximately 70,000 people have completed requirements of the Safe Environment Program, the archdiocesan effort to protect children from abuse, since its inception in 2002.

"Our goal is to keep kids safe," explained Terry Edelmann, director of the archdiocesan Safe Environment Program. The Safe Environment Program has three components: required background checks for everyone who works with or near children; required participation for everyone working with or near children in the educational/training Protecting God’s Children Program; and reading and signing the Code of Ethical Conduct. (To read more, click here...)

Church Called 'Unrelenting' in its Child Safety Efforts (St. Louis Review—December 12, 2008)

"The Catholic Church is unrelenting in its quest to ensure that children in its care are safe," according to Sister Mary Ann Walsh, RSM, director of media relations for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

 In a recent letter to dioceses across the country, Sister Mary Ann wrote, "Faced with the crisis of child sexual abuse by clerics that dramatically came to light in 2002, the Church, at great human and financial cost, set up an aggressive safe environment program that is the envy of other organizations that work with children." (To read more, click here...)

Archdiocese Complies With Safe Child Program (St. Louis Review—November 9, 2007)

The Archdiocese of St. Louis has once again been found to fully comply with the U.S. bishops’ national policy to protect children.

In 2002 the bishops, following revelations of child sex abuse in the Church, implemented a national Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People. Since then all U.S. dioceses have been audited four times for compliance with the charter. Each time the Archdiocese of St. Louis has completed the audit process successfully. (To read more, click here...)

Archdiocesan Review Board Reaches Out to Victims (St. Louis Review — March 30, 2007)

 An archdiocesan board of laypeople and specialists is at the forefront of the often difficult and emotionally draining task of analyzing reports of clergy sexual abuse and reaching out to victims.

Susan Harvath, a longtime member of the Archdiocesan Review Board, noted that "we, the Church, are on the same side as the victims. We believe, as they do, that no one should ever harm a child."

The review board ensures that those who have been harmed are given the care they need and that those who have done harm are not allowed to do so again, said Harvath, a psychologist who is professor of pastoral counseling at Kenrick-Glennon Seminary in Shrewsbury. (To read more, click here...)

‘Protecting Children’ Priority of Child Safety Committee (St. Louis Review — March 23, 2007)

 Inclement weather threatens during the school day. A bully picks on a classmate. A child feels threatened in some manner by a person in authority working for the Church.

These and other situations that place a youth in harm’s way are why the St. Louis Archdiocese created its Child Safety Committee.

The people on this committee — many of whom are parents and grandparents themselves — deeply care about the safety of children in the archdiocese. They have been working together since 2001 to reduce and, where possible, eliminate potential risks within the archdiocese youth may face. (To read more, click here...)

Program Aims To Ensure Protection for Children (St. Louis Review — March 16, 2007)

 "It’s all about protecting children."

Terry Edelmann, director of the Safe Environment Program, summed up the purpose of her office, begun last summer on the recommendation of the archdiocesan Child Safety Committee.

That office, which oversees all issues relating to child safety and protection in the St. Louis Archdiocese, carries out the mandate of the U.S. bishops’ 2002 Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People. (To read more, click here...