|
Toward a Safe Congregation The information below is
excerpted from USR’s Safe Congregation Policy. For a pdf file of the
complete policy, click here. Safe Congregation Philosophy Recent events and societal trends have prompted more
questions and concerns about safety policies and risk management procedures to
protect staff, children, youth, friends and all members of our
congregation. It is prudent for us to
look at resources and establish guidelines around this broad and multifaceted
subject called a Safe Congregation. A
variety of potential dangers are inherent in operating a congregation. These include physical site (including
buildings and grounds), operation of the Religious Education (RE) program,
transportation and supervision of children off-site, and instances of
disruptive behavior involving members, friends, and/or staff of the
congregation. In the past few years, the issue
of making our congregations safe places has become more prominent. Congregations are carefully and
intentionally putting into place policies around all kinds of safety issues. Openness to a wide variety of individuals
is one of the prime values held by our congregation and expressed in our
denomination’s purposes and principles.
However, when any person’s physical, sexual, emotional well-being, or
freedom to safely express their beliefs or opinions is threatened, the source
of this threat must be addressed firmly and promptly. Our commitment, as Unitarian
Universalists, to the inherent worth and dignity of every person and to
justice and compassion, compel us to create a safe and nurturing environment
that protects children and adults from harm and promotes their spiritual
growth while part of our community.
Additionally, we affirm our commitment to maintain an environment free
of discrimination and harassment based on race, color, ethnicity, religion,
national origin, age, physical ability, gender, or sexual/affectional
orientation. We pledge to conduct
ourselves in a manner which conveys mutual respect and consideration. If we are to be a caring
community, we must ensure that everyone who comes here feels valued, safe,
and secure. This congregation accepts
responsibility to educate ourselves and our children about sexual misconduct,
abuse, molestation, harassment, and exploitation. We pledge to do our best to protect and
support those who come to us either at risk or in crisis. We
want everyone associated with the Society to treat this as a “living
document” that may need to be amended to reflect changing needs. Requests for amendments should be made
through the Board of Trustees. |
|||||||||||||
|
Safe Congregation Policies and Program This
Society is a Safe Congregation where
practices and procedures serve to ensure that all members, friends, adults,
children and youth are treated with respect.
Our policies and procedures cover a large range of issues related to
all aspects of safety at the Society. These issues cover everything from
building safety to the complex areas of sexual harassment, disruptive
behavior, response to abuse allegations of children and the prevention of
child sexual abuse and abusive relationships. Also included are safety on
field trips, first aid policy, and emergency evacuation of the
buildings. The complete policy is
available from the office. Emergency information is posted in
the kitchens in the main building and Reeb House and in classrooms in the RE
space. Instructions for evacuation in
case of fire are printed below. The Safe Congregation Response
Team is responsible for implementation
of our Safe Congregation policies.
Guided by the Philosophy Statement (Policy – Roman Numeral I), their
function, individually and collectively, is to offer confidential support,
advice, and counsel with concern for the safety of all parties involved. It has the following responsibilities: 1. Know about community resources for child abuse, treatment for sex
offenders, and support groups for survivors. 2. Know about state laws regarding reporting. 3. Be a resource for people to share their concerns. 4. Evaluate applications for religious education teachers and youth group
leaders as requested by the Minister or DRE. 5. Facilitate annual training for RE staff and teachers on issues, policies,
and procedures relevant to sexual/physical abuse. 6. Work with the RE Committee to assure that the sex abuse education
sections of the Our Whole Lives curricula are offered at each age level. 7. Receive allegations of possible abuse and develop a process for expedient
handling of such allegations. 8. Meet with convicted sex offenders to develop a Limited Access Agreement
for participation in Society activities. 9. All activities of the Team will be conducted in a confidential fashion
and may only be disclosed when necessary and appropriate as determined by the
Team. IN CASE OF FIRE On one Sunday every year, the Society will hold a fire
drill for the entire congregation.
Below are the procedures that must be followed in the event of a
drill, fire or other emergency that requires evacuation. When the fire
alarm sounds please do the following: Immediately leave the building through the nearest exit. Do not go
to the cloak room! Walk away from the building and assemble on the lawn in front of Reeb
house. Do not use the elevator! If you are accompanying someone who has difficulty walking or is in a
wheelchair, locate another person to help then proceed to the front
steps. Turn wheelchairs backwards and,
with one person in the front and the other in the rear, guide the wheelchair
down the front steps. All children in RE (with the exception
of the nursery) will be escorted out of the
building by their teachers. Infants and toddlers in the nursery will be taken to the kitchen next to the nursery and exit the building
through the windows in the kitchen.
Parents of nursery children only should exit the building as
quickly as possible and proceed to the driveway just outside the window of
the RE kitchen to assist in the evacuation process of the nursery. Parents and children will then assemble as
instructed below. For purposes of a fire drill
only, the children will not be passed out the windows. Rather, they will exit the building with
their teachers. If the main building is the cause of
the evacuation, teachers will assemble
with the children in front of the Reeb house garage. The DRE will send an adult to notify the
teachers in Reeb of the evacuation. If the Reeb building is the cause for
evacuation, the teachers and children
will assemble in the parking area of the main building. One of the teachers from Reeb should notify
the minister and the DRE of the evacuation. The Buildings and Grounds Committee
will be accountable for executing the Emergency Evacuation Policy. Reference:
Safe Congregation Policies Part VIII Safe
Congregation Response Team Members
of the Team include The Rev. Sarah Lammert, minister; The Rev. Tracy Sprowls
Jenks, RE minister; Don Campolo; Kass Seiter; and Ed Silver. The Response Team is composed of the
Minister, the Religious Education Minister and three members of the Society
appointed annually by the Board of Trustees.
Concerns may be addressed to any member of the
Safe Congregation Response Team.
Please call or email the office (201-444-6225 or usr.secretary@verizon.net) for
contact information. |
||||||||||||||
|
The Unitarian Society of Ridgewood, NJ |
|
|||||
