Covered Volunteer means any unpaid person who is engaged in or involved in any Archdiocesan institution or parish activity, and who is entrusted with the care or supervision of children or vulnerable adults; or has access or regular contact with children or vulnerable adults.
If duties are assigned to any volunteer that include the care or supervision of children or vulnerable adults or otherwise involve access or regular contact with children or vulnerable adults, the volunteer is then classified as a Covered Volunteer and fingerprinting, background screening and training are required.
Not all volunteers need to be screened for a criminal history. Those volunteers that do not have access or regular contact with children or vulnerable adults and those volunteers who are not entrusted with the care or supervision of children or vulnerable adults need not be screened for a criminal history.
Some examples of volunteers who do not need to be screened for a criminal history are:
Volunteer Parish Roles Not Requiring Fingerprinting (VIRTUS Training is Optional)
- Sacristan duties, unless accessible to altar servers who are minors
- Altar dressers; persons responsible for washing and maintaining altar linens
- Lectors, unless also serving in other roles, such as ushering
- Adult choir member, unless practicing and/or performing with minors (children's choir)
- Cantor
- Extraordinary Minister of Eucharist (if at Masses only). All those serving in hospitals and the homebound must comply.
- Bereavement Group Leader
- Parish Council members; Finance Council members
- Ladies' Guild, Council of Catholic Women, Bible Study Groups, Ministry groups that do not have unsupervised or regular contact with children and/or vulnerable adults
- Men's and Women's adult organizations that do not have unsupervised or regular contact with children and/or vulnerable adults
Volunteer or Vendor School Roles Not Requiring Screening: (if accompanied by an Employee or Covered Volunteer at all times)
- Presenter at meeting or event
- Career Day type events (participant or person staffing a booth)
- Repair person
It is anticipated that the above-listed volunteers' duties will not involve the supervision or care of children or vulnerable adults and will not involve regular contact with children or vulnerable adults.
Documents
Volunteer Pledge to Promote Safe Environment
