Child and Youth Protection Policies and Procedures
First Baptist Church, Huntsville, AL
Approved March 24, 1999
(Microsoft Word Document)

They are precious in His sight...and in ours.

I. Introduction

A. Statement of Need for Policy

The safety and well-being of children and youth is of utmost importance to First Baptist Church. We recognize our responsibility to endeavor to protect children and youth while they are involved in church activities. A Let the children come to me and do not forbid them for of such is the kingdom of heaven@ is our gospel call to care for children, to protect them, to empower them in their growing, and to be a sanctuary for them.

We recognize that today=s world is not always a safe place for children and youth. Reports of abuse of children and youth are on the rise. Churches are not immune to child abuse opportunities. Rather, the open, trusting atmosphere of a church environment can make it a prime target area for potential abuse situations.

Therefore, based on our strong commitment to provide a church environment for children and youth that is loving and safe, we have established child and youth protection policies and procedures. The purpose of these policies and procedures is to:

• Safeguard children and youth from any form of abusive opportunities while they are involved in church activities.
• Protect church staff and volunteer workers from unfounded allegations of child abuse.
• Limit the extent of our church's legal risk and liability due to child abuse issues.

B. Why Churches are Susceptible

Churches have unique features that can make them susceptible to incidents of child abuse, such as:

• Trust - Churches tend to be trusting and unsuspecting institutions. Children and youth are given into the care of various church organizations in trust.
• Lack of Screening - Very little may be known about a person before he/she is placed in a volunteer position of service in the church.
• Access - Child molesters are attracted to an institution in which they have immediate access to potential victims in an atmosphere of trust, such as in the church.
• Opportunity - Churches provide ample opportunities for unsupervised, close personal contact between adults and children. This risk increases dramatically for overnight activities or off campus activities.
• Need - Most churches struggle to enlist adequate help for children and youth programs. Since turnover among workers is often high, any willing volunteer can provide welcome relief, often with no questions asked concerning that individual=s background and qualifications.

C. Legal Aspects

The church insurance industry has focused on the risks in this area. Many companies are reducing the coverage they provide for child abuse, and, in some cases, carriers have stopped writing this coverage entirely. The number of lawsuits brought against churches as a result of child abuse is on the rise. Because many cases are settled out of court for undisclosed amounts and some are settled prior to the suit being filed, no one knows the full extent of the problem. Churches engaged in litigation can suffer devastating financial consequences involving substantial attorney fees, court costs and jury awards.

D. Definition of Child Sexual Abuse

(The terms children and youth are both used interchangeably to denote all young people ages birth through eighteen years of age.)

The precise legal definition of child sexual abuse or molestation differs in each state. In general, it includes any form of sexual contact or exploitation in which a minor is being used for the sexual stimulation of the perpetrator. Child sexual abuse is a criminal act prohibited by various statutes within the Code of Alabama set forth in sections 13A-6-60 through 13A-6-70.

Child sexual abuse may be violent or nonviolent. All such activity is an exploitation of a child's vulnerability and powerlessness, in which the perpetrator is fully responsible for his or her actions. Such conduct is criminal behavior that involves children in sexual behaviors for which they are not personally, socially, or developmentally ready. Child sexual abuse may include behavior that involves touching and nontouching aspects.

Child sexual abuse occurs in all demographic, racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, and religious groups. Strangers account for less than twenty percent of the abusers. In fact, estimates indicate that when a known assailant commits the abuse, most of the time it is a trusted adult who misuses his or her authority over the child. Scientific record indicates that pedophilic behavior (sexual molestation of a pre-adolescent child) usually involves many victims over a lifetime.

II. Policies and Procedures

The five critical areas of child and youth protection policies and procedures are:
A. Volunteer Selection
B. Employee Selection
C. Supervision of Children and Youth
D. Reporting Obligations
E. Response to Allegations

A. Volunteer Selection

All prospective children or youth worker applicants shall complete a Leadership Information Form, sign an agreement to follow policies, and sign a consent form for a criminal records background check before being considered for volunteer service. The church reserves the right to conduct a criminal records background check at any point on any worker. All applications will be forwarded in sealed envelopes to the screening consultant, who will be responsible for the processing of applications. Background checks will be conducted on all applicants through the use of telephone calls, interviews with personal references, and/or mail response using a reference contact form. Background checks will be conducted by the screening consultant; confidentiality will be maintained. Records will be kept under lock and key in a secure area of the church offices. Background checks for volunteers who will be chaperoning for overnight activities will include a criminal records check. This relates to the high degree of risk and responsibility involved with these children or youth activities.

If no questionable responses are received, either from the applicant or from the related background check, the screening consultant will notify the applicant of his/her approval and will place the applicant's name on a list of approved workers. Only the record of a person's approval for service will be available to others responsible for recruiting workers. The Associate Pastor and Minister of Education and Adults will be notified of all approved workers.

Any applications with questionable responses or questionable background checks will be forwarded to the Associate Pastor. The Associate Pastor will then confer with the minister responsible for the activities of the volunteer applicant concerning the matters under question, known mitigating factors, and approaches to pastoral care for the applicant in dealing with the issues under question. The Associate Pastor or conferring minister will contact the applicant for conversation concerning the questionable responses and/or background information. Additional pastoral and/or counseling resources will be made available to the applicant, as needed. Based on the conversation between the applicant and Associate Pastor, conferring minister or other counselor, the applicant is either returned to the application process, engaged in further counseling, or disapproved for working with children or youth.

As a condition precedent to volunteer work with children and youth, the prospective volunteer shall have been a member of First Baptist Church, Huntsville for the six (6) months preceding the commencement of the volunteer service. Exceptions to this rule may be made on an individual basis only by the minister in a specified ministry area with the approval of the Associate Pastor.

Applicants will not be permitted to work with children or youth in any church sponsored function if:

a. Applicant has been convicted, pleaded guilty, or otherwise adjudicated guilty of sexual or physical abuse.
b. Applicant has pending charges of sexual or physical abuse, other sex related offenses or other crimes of violence.

Applicants may not be automatically prohibited from working with children or youth, but will be subject to further screening including, but not limited to, a criminal records check and meeting with an appropriate minister responsible for the activities of the volunteer applicant before his/her application can be considered further if:

a. Applicant has been previously charged with, but acquitted, of sexual or physical abuse or other sex related offenses, or has a past history of sexual or criminal misconduct.
b. Applicant provides other affirmative responses or leaves the responses blank on "Section B, Background Information" on the volunteer questionnaire.

Anyone who desires to work with children or youth will be asked if they experienced sexual or physical abuse as a child. An alarming percentage of convicted child abusers were themselves abused as children. This question is asked, both out of the need to safeguard children under the church's care, and to help guide adults with such experiences toward personal and spiritual healing and wholeness. FBC staff ministers, as well as counselors and therapists with special expertise in this field, are available should applicants wish further conversation to deal with past experiences of abuse.

B. Employee Selection

Every applicant for any paid position of First Baptist Church, Huntsville shall complete an employment application and a consent form for a criminal records background check, or the applicant will not be considered for employment by the church. Upon adoption of these guidelines by the church, every present employee shall complete a consent form for a criminal records background check, and such background checks shall be completed and evaluated as soon as is reasonably possible. The implementation of these guidelines with respect to present employees shall be carried out under the direction of and within the discretion of the Associate Pastor, with the assistance of the screening consultant.

All information gathered from the employment application and related background checks will be held in strict confidence. Records will be kept under lock and key in a secure area of the church offices.

No person shall be employed before the Personnel Committee and/or the staff supervisor responsible for hiring that position has received and reviewed the applicant's completed employment application and the written results from the background check of the applicant.

No one who has been convicted, pleaded guilty, or otherwise adjudicated guilty of sexual or physical abuse or other sex related offenses, will be permitted to work at First Baptist Church, Huntsville in any capacity. No one with pending charges of sexual or physical abuse or other sex related offenses, will be permitted to work at the church in any capacity. Anyone who has been previously charged with but acquitted of sexual or physical abuse, other sex related offenses, or a past history of sexual or criminal misconduct will be subject to further screening. Victims of child sexual abuse will also be subject to further screening.

C. Supervision of Children and Youth

TWO ADULT RULE: All workers should avoid being alone in a one-on-one situation with children and youth.

A. When supervising children ages birth to third grade, a minimum of two adults, age 19 and older, should be present in the classroom. Exceptions to this rule are:

1. The Weekday Early Education ministry may staff a room with only one adult teacher with the following safeguards in place:
   a. The teachers, as paid employees, have been through the complete screening procedures, including a criminal background check.
   b. Visual access into the classroom is available at all times.
   c. Random, unannounced visits are made to the classroom regularly by another adult.
2. Classrooms may be staffed by one adult and one youth, age 16 and older, if:
   a. The youth has been approved by a minister to work in this area.
   b. Another adult, serving as coordinator or division director, makes periodic checks on the room, and is available to assist in the classroom if needed.
3. Youth younger than age 16, who have received permission from the appropriate minister to work with children, may assist in the classroom as helpers, but may not count as one of the two required adults.
   

B. When involved in a counseling session with children or youth, ministerial staff are exempt from the "two adult rule", however, the counseling shall take place in an environment which allows visual access by others. When numerous counseling sessions are contemplated, either:

1. Parental permission shall be obtained for the minister to meet privately with the minor, or
2. The "two adult rule" shall apply.

C. The "two adults" that are scheduled to work with children or youth may be from the same family. However, the church will seek to provide additional adult workers to assist couples and other family members when working together with children and youth.

BATHROOM PROCEDURES: Preschool classes are to use the restroom in their classroom. If a teacher must assist a child in the restroom, the door to the restroom shall remain open. Older preschoolers who do not require assistance in the restroom, should be given the privacy of being alone with the door closed. If a child must use the restroom when outside the classroom, every effort should be made to avoid a situation where one teacher and one child are alone in the restroom

WINDOWS ON CLASSROOM DOORS: All doors to classrooms for children and youth will have windows. The windows should remain uncovered at all times. If no window is present in a door going into an area where children and/or youth are present, the door shall remain open during use so that persons passing by can observe inside.

SHUT DOOR POLICY: In infant through three-year old classrooms, the door to the hallway should either be shut or a gate securely in place at all times preschoolers are in the room.

SUPERVISION OF ACTIVITIES: At all children and youth events, a coordinator will be present to make periodic, random visits to the classrooms.

RELEASE OF CHILDREN: Children in infant through three year old church classes will only be released to a properly identified and authorized adult.

UNUSED AREAS OF THE CHURCH FACILITY: All doors leading to hallways should be equipped with locks and windows. When not in use, all doors leading to the hallways should be locked after the rooms have been checked. Areas of the church facility not in use should be periodically checked by ushers during the worship services and by custodians at other times.

OVERNIGHT RULE: Special attention will be given to planning and carrying out activities that involve children and youth in overnight stays, on or off church property. Adequate adult supervision, appropriate separation of sexes, and other precautions will be taken. All adult chaperons must clear the appropriate screening procedures before being allowed to participate. Sleeping arrangements will be made to avoid one adult and one child being in a room alone except family members. All children and youth participating in overnight church activities will be required to furnish a parent or guardian consent and release form. Speakers and visiting volunteers who participate in overnight activities must complete a Leadership Information Form and include a reference from a minister in their own local church or ministry in which they regularly participate.

IMMEDIATE DISCUSSION OF SUSPICIOUS BEHAVIOR: Any questionable conduct between a worker and a child or youth will be confronted immediately and investigated. Workers will be advised to be alert if a child or youth appears withdrawn or aloof, exhibits a marked personality change, or exhibits any signs of physical abuse or other behavior that may indicate a problem that deserves attention.

EDUCATION OF WORKERS: Each church year, opportunities for training in understanding, preventing, recognizing, and reporting suspected child abuse will be provided by the various ministry areas of our church. Workers in children and youth will be required to participate in at least one of these opportunities for training.

PARENTAL SUPERVISION AND PARTICIPATION: Parents should not leave their children unattended at church, especially before or after scheduled events. Parents are encouraged to attend, participate in and observe all activities in which their children are engaged.

D. Reporting Obligations

Abusive situations often continue if they go unnoticed and unreported. All employees and volunteers in ministries involving children and youth must know what constitutes an occasion for reporting, the reporting channels they should use, and their legal obligations to make a report.

Alabama's child abuse reporting statute makes it mandatory to report child abuse cases for health officials, policemen, teachers, social workers, mental health professionals, day care workers and any other person called upon to render aid or medical assistance to any child, when such child is known or suspected to be a victim of child abuse or neglect. These persons are required by law to report known or suspected child abuse or neglect under a penalty of a misdemeanor fine or sentence. Alabama has statutes granting a privilege to clergy-penitent communications.

It is the policy of FBC, Huntsville, to encourage immediate reporting of all incidents or suspected incidents of child abuse. The volunteer or staff member making the report shall immediately notify his/her supervisor who shall in turn immediately report orally to the Pastor or other minister of FBC. With advice from the Associate Pastor and the legal committee, a determination will be made as to whether to report the incident or suspected incident to the proper state authorities.

E. Response to Allegations

All allegations of child abuse will be taken seriously. The care and safety of the victim will be the first priority and he or she will not be held responsible in any way. Situations will be handled forthrightly with due respect for rights of privacy and confidentiality, for both the victim and any accused. Full cooperation will be given to law enforcement authorities.

The parents of any alleged victim of child abuse will be promptly notified by either the Pastor or other ministerial staff, with legal counsel. They will be informed of the steps that are being taken, and will continue to be advised of the status of the investigation. The safety and privacy of the victim will be a paramount concern. The church will demonstrate care and concern for the victim and his/her family. Privacy and confidentiality will be preserved

The church will exercise care to treat the accused person fairly. If an allegation of child abuse is supported by evidence sufficient to cause reasonable concern with the Pastor, other ministerial staff, and/or a church attorney, then the alleged offender, whether employee or volunteer, shall be suspended immediately from all church duties involving minors until such time as the allegations are cleared or substantiated. Privacy and confidentiality will be preserved.

When an incident of child abuse arises, the Pastor, in consultation with other ministerial staff, legal counsel and the Chairman of the Trustees, will designate a spokesman for the church. This person will have all contact with the media and the congregation, and will handle all such communication in a discrete, informed and diplomatic manner. In appropriate circumstances, the church will develop a clear position statement regarding child sexual abuse, which can be released if an allegation of abuse occurs. This statement should be considered in lieu of a Ano comment@ response to the media in these situations. Legal counsel will be consulted regarding responses to all allegations of child sexual abuse.

 

 

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Huntsville, Alabama