NEW JERSEY
Catholic Star Herald
From the Office of Child and Youth Protection
The children of South Jersey have always been and will always be among the primary concerns of the Diocese of Camden. Throughout our Catholic schools, religious education programs, and various diocesan and parish ministries, we remain committed and vigilant to protecting the children and youth that we serve.
Through the years, the diocese has actively engaged and improved our policies and procedures regarding the safety of all children. Efforts in this area were further strengthened by the publication of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People in 2002.
Using the charter as a guideline, the Diocese of Camden has been active in ensuring the safest possible environment for those entrusted to its care. Criminal history background checks based on the fingerprints of all those who have regular contact with children, child abuse prevention (CAP) training to both alert children to be watchful of potential abuse and adults to be on the lookout for it, and a Memorandum of Understanding with the New Jersey Attorney General to facilitate the immediate reporting of any abuse, are among the steps that have been taken to protect the young and the vulnerable.
Rod J. Herrera, a licensed clinical social worker and the director of the Office of Child and Youth Protection, has headed this office since it was established in 2004. “The protection of children is a group effort. It is not just this office, but parish safe environment coordinators, youth ministers, school principals and others, all working together with the guidance of this office to ensure the children entrusted to our care are safe,” he said.
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