All dioceses throughout the United States must provide age-appropriate Safe Environment training for children and youth in parish catechetical programs and Catholic schools. The lessons teach students about appropriate and inappropriate boundaries and behaviors by peers, adults, and family members, the students' right to remove themselves from uncomfortable situations, and the importance of informing a parent or trusted adult when something is not right.
Parish catechetical programs teach the Circles of Care lessons to students in grades pre-K through 12.
Catholic schools in the Diocese use the Safe Environment education program, Child Lures Prevention: Think First and Stay Safe, for grades pre-K through 6. For Grades 7 - 12, the junior/senior high school faculty collaborate with professionals in their community who present on Safe Environment topics such as sexting, Internet safety, personal boundaries, and healthy relationships.
Over 14,000 children and youth in our parish catechetical programs and our Catholic Schools receive age-appropriate Safe Environment training each year.
Promulgation letter from Bishop Lucia for 2020 - 2021