Mandatory Requirements to Fulfill Before Volunteering or Working with Minors and/or Vulnerable Adults in the Parish

To foster a safe environment for children and vulnerable adults, the Diocese of Joliet requires that church personnel (clergy, seminarians, diaconal candidates, religious, employees, and volunteers who work with minors and/or vulnerable adults) comply with the safe environment compliance requirements of the Diocese. All are required to register for a VIRTUS account with their legal name, as printed on their driver’s license, state ID or passport and complete the compliance requirements before ministering/employing/volunteering at http://www.virtusonline.org

For assistance with the registration process, please see the VIRTUS online registration instructions for the Diocese of Joliet.

All volunteers and employees are required to indicate their primary role and location (in our case, St. James the Apostle Parish and School). In addition, all volunteers are required to chose a secondary role to indicate the type of volunteer work being done. It is very important that you indicate your correct secondary role, (i.e. Volunteer: Parochial School; Volunteer: Religious Education or Youth Ministry; Volunteer: Parish; Volunteer: School Board Member; Volunteer: Coach) as this is what will prompt your to complete the appropriate requirements in your online VIRTUS account. If you are unsure as to what your secondary role is, please contact our parish Safe Environment Coordinator, Lisa Gilligan here.

Next, all volunteers and employees are required to complete an educational program identified by the Diocese which contain information about sexual abuse, its identifying signs, controlling access to children and vulnerable adults, appropriate boundaries in relationships, reporting incidents of abuse and the effects of abuse on victims/survivors. This education program, Protecting God’s Children, is currently offered as an online training, which is accessed through a user’s VIRTUS account. Employees are required to complete monthly educational bulletins and continuing education every three years. Some volunteer roles require completion of continuing education every three years.

In addition, every diocesan, parish, school or religious education/youth ministry volunteer who is involved with minors and/or vulnerable adults is required to complete and submit the following which you will be prompted to do when you create your Virtus account:

  • Consent to a name-based Criminal Background Check (which is repeated every 5 years);
  • Read the Diocese of Joliet Pastoral Policy Regarding Sexual Abuse of Minors (Revised 2023) and the Diocese of Joliet Standards of Behavior for Those Working with Minors (Revised 2023);
  • Digitally sign an Acknowledgment Form.

All clergy, seminarians, diaconal candidates, religious and employees must complete a fingerprint based Criminal Background Check at the time of hire and then after five years, a name-based criminal background (which is repeated every five years). To obtain a Fingerprint Applicant Form to take with you to an Accurate Biometrics location for fingerprinting, please contact the Safe Environment Coordinator or Principal at the parish/school where you will be employed. For a listing of Accurate Biometrics locations nearest you, visit: https://accuratebiometrics.com/results-by-zip

There are additional requirements for those volunteers whose secondary roles are:

  • Volunteer: Coach;
  • Volunteer: School Board Member;
  • Volunteer: Religious Education or Youth Ministry

The additional requirements to be completed by volunteers serving in these roles include the following (which you will be prompted to do when you create your Virtus account and indicate one of the secondary roles above):

  • Attending an online Mandatory Reporter Training offered by the State of Illinois (every three years);
  • Submitting the Mandated Reporter Training Certificate of Completion to the parish Safe Environment Coordinator after completing the training (every three years);
  • Submitting a CANTS-22 Mandated Reporter Acknowledgment Form to the parish Safe Environment Coordinator;
  • Submitting an Adult Application to the coordinator of your particular ministry (i.e., Parochial School, Religious Education, Youth Ministry, Parish)

*Please See the Additional Resources Section below for links to the CANTS-22 and Adult Application Forms.

To access the Compliance Chart which outlines the exact diocesan requirements for each employee and volunteer role, please download the following:

Compliance Requirements.Revised January 2024
Download

Having Problems with Your Existing VIRTUS Account?

In order to determine your compliance status, please log in to your VIRTUS online account and click on the Home Tab. A red or pink box will indicate a requirement that needs your attention or updating. Click on that box to complete the requirements and get back into full compliance.

Please visit VIRTUS’s Helpdesk Support / FAQs to assist with VIRTUS account related information, which includes the following:

  • User Names & Passwords / Trouble with entering existing accounts
  • Inactive / Suspended accounts
  • I moved / Need to transfer my account
  • Updating my existing account

Reporting Sexual Abuse

Anyone with reason to believe that a child has been abused or is being abused should report their suspicions to civil authorities. Please call 1-800-25ABUSE (1-800-252-2873) or the local police.

For instructions as to how to make a report to the Diocese of Joliet, please click here.

The Diocese of Joliet Victim Assistance Coordinator is available to help victims/survivors of child sexual abuse by a cleric, employee or volunteer of the Catholic Church. The Victim Assistance Coordinator will report to Bishop Hicks and coordinate efforts of pastoral support and outreach to assist in the healing process. The Victim Assistance Coordinator can also assist in making a report to civil authorities.  Contact the Diocese of Joliet Victim Assistance Coordinator, Lori Chassee at 1-815-263-6467.

Additional Resources

  • For more information on the Protecting God’s Children program in the Joliet Diocese, please click here.
  • To access the Adult Application Form, Minor Application Form or CANTS-22 Form, as well as other resources, please click here.
  • For practical advice as to how parents can prevent child sexual abuse, please click here and scroll down to the Resources section.
  • To contact the St. James Safe Environment Coordinator, email Lisa Gilligan.