Over the past 6 months, Casa Chirilagua has risen to the challenge to take our child protection policy to the next level. Our staff and board invested many hours to develop and roll out our expanded and improved Child Protection Policy coupled with tracking systems to ensure its proper implementation.
Our Child Protection Policy employs three pillars:
1) Promote Awareness for All – We have required training for all parents, staff, volunteers and student participants in Casa Chirilagua. We believe opening the lines of communication and having conversations about forms of abuse will make the whole community a safer place for children.
2) Conduct Due Diligence, Choose Integrity – Through relationships, applications, background checks and references, we have implemented policies and procedures to vet our volunteers. We have outlined mandatory “best practices” for all volunteer interaction with children. While these policies are one layer of protection, they are only effective if our volunteers and staff are people of integrity who follow those expectations.
3) Pray for Protection – We know background checks do not catch all offenders. We must rely on the Lord through prayer to protect our children and bring discernment for prevention and intervention.
Over the next few months, we will be working to implement these policies and procedures and follow higher standards to make Casa Chirilagua and our community an even safer place. We thank our volunteers and community for supporting and engaging in this process. Please pray for our organization and community as we strive to make it a safer place for all. If you have any questions about our new policies, please contact us at info@casachirilagua.org.
Blessings,
Dawnielle
