Compliance Resources

OPCY is here to assist parishes and schools in their efforts to fulfill the child protection policies of the Archdiocese of Chicago as well as those of the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People.

Office for Safe Environment:

Mayra Flores, BA
Safe Environment Coordinator
312.534.5238
[email protected]

Dina Garcia
Virtus Specialist
312.534.5206
[email protected]

Maricela Gonzalez
Senior Compliance Officer/Office Manager
312.534.5388
[email protected]

Victoria Lara
Compliance Officer
312.534.3852
[email protected]

Office for the Protection of Children & Youth

Safe Environment Compliance Guidelines Chart,
July 2023

Compliance period: July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2024

Click here to view the PDF.
(Español | Polski)

Role	CBC	FP	CANTS 689	PGC & KPA, VAT or HT	MRT & CANTS 22/A	ASB
Clergy: Priests and deacons	✓		✓	✓	✓	✓
Candidates for ordination (seminarians and diaconate formation)	✓		✓	✓	✓	✓
All employees of Pastoral Center, parishes and agencies	✓		(✓)*	✓		✓
School employees (certified & non-certified)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
DREs/CREs, catechists, SPRED volunteers with minors, youth ministers, coaches, scout leaders	✓		✓	✓	✓	✓
School volunteers and all parish volunteers who serve with children and/or youth	✓		✓	✓	✓	✓
Ministers to vulnerable adults (SPRED volunteers, ministers of care, hospital visitors, etc.)	✓		(✓)*	✓ (VAT)		✓
Non-archdiocese employee/volunteer/contractor + and student teachers				✓		✓
Minor employees				✓ (HT)

+ Parish/School must have contract through Legal Services for third-party vendors

ALL CLERGY, EMPLOYEES AND VOLUNTEERS MUST CREATE THEIR VIRTUS ACCOUNT AT VIRTUS ONLINE

Name-based criminal background check run by S2Verify through Virtus online as part of the Virtus registration process. Rechecked every three years through Virtus. (Policy 603.2)

Fingerprints submitted through Accurate Biometrics for the Archdiocese of Chicago. School employees may not
begin work until valid fingerprint receipt has been returned to the school. Schools have the necessary forms.

Yearly check of the central registry of Department of Children and Family Services.
* Required only once for employees who do not work with children. (Policy 603.5)

VIRTUS’s Protecting God’s Children training session. Register and complete within five days of beginning work or volunteering (Policy 603.3)

VIRTUS’s Keeping the Promise Alive three-year recertification program done online through Virtus system. Completed within five days of assigning. (Policy 603.7)

VIRTUS’s Vulnerable Adult Training online training for those who minister solely to vulnerable adults. Replaces PGC.

Age-appropriate training for minors who are employees.

Mandated Reporter Training from State of IL training website. Re-certified every three years, including re-signing the Acknowledgment Form (CANTS 22 or CANTS 22A for clergy). Certificates and signed forms are to be kept on file. (Policy 603.6 and 603.7)

English CANTS 22 Form
Spanish CANTS 22 Form

Eng CANTS 22A (Clergy)
Spanish CANTS 22A (Clergy)

Archdiocesan Standards of Behavior for Church Personnel Working with Minors and Vulnerable Adults (formerly Code of Conduct). Read and signed at time of hire and re-acknowledged yearly through VIRTUS system (Policy 603.4)

Every student in every grade in schools and religious education programs are to be offered training annually on sexual abuse prevention. (Policy 603.7)

Those under the age of 18 are unable to meet safe environment compliance requirements; therefore, they may not be in a supervisory role or in charge of minors. However, if they are employed, minors must create a Virtus account at virtusonline.org to be assigned appropriate training.

Safe Environment compliance is a condition of employment and volunteer service and must be met prior to start date. All compliance recordkeeping is to be verified and tracked within the Virtus System Database and reported in the Annual OPCY Audit.

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