Teaching and Leading Children and Youth
Before Volunteering Begins
Part of our church’s mission is to care for our children and youth and to protect them. To this end, New Apostolic Church USA (NAC USA) requires all volunteers working directly with children and youth to complete three safety protocols before volunteering begins. Volunteers will be notified and sent access to the Safety Protocols when the volunteer has been added to the appropriate Group in the membership records of the church’s management system. All three protocols must be renewed annually. Those who do not complete all three safety protocols each year will be unable to serve in these capacities. Volunteers who have not received this years’ safety protocol renewal emails should contact their rector.
Protocol One
Safety Policies & Procedures
All Children and Youth Ministry volunteers will receive an email from our trusted partner Protect My Ministry (message@mobilizemyministry.com) containing the NAC USA Children and Youth Safety Policies and Procedures, and are required to read the policies in their entirety and electronically sign an acknowledgement that he or she has read and understood the material, and an agreement to comply with policy requirements.
Protocol Two
Background Check
NAC USA requires that all volunteers working or volunteering in Children and/or Youth activities or programming undergo an annual background check that searches for criminal and sexual convictions. The link in the email referenced under Safety Policies & Procedures, above, also requires volunteers to consent to and authorize a background check. Once completed, the background check is processed by our trusted partner Protect My Ministry.
Volunteers who have committed sexually-oriented or sex-related crimes may not serve in any area providing services to children. In addition, certain other past, present or pending criminal acts may preclude a volunteer from serving children.
Protocol Three
Child Abuse Awareness Training
NAC USA Safety Policies & Procedures require that volunteers do not engage in abusive behavior of any kind. Children and Youth Ministry volunteers should have a basic understanding of the characteristics of sexual abusers and their behaviors in ‘grooming’ a child for sexual abuse. Grooming is the process used by an abuser to select a child, win the child’s trust (and the trust of the child’s parent or ‘gatekeeper’), manipulate the child into sexual activity, and keep the child from disclosing the abuse. To equip our volunteers with information necessary to recognize abuser characteristics and grooming behavior, NAC USA requires all Children and Youth Ministry volunteers to complete child abuse awareness training. This training is provided by our trusted partner Protect My Ministry and a link will be sent by a separate email (message@protectingourkids.com).