The Northern Illinois Conference is proud of its partnership with local churches in ministry to children, youth and vulnerable adults, as we have provided tools for training and background checks for many years.

With transitions in staffing, we have been investigating ways of making volunteer training and background checks more timely and flexible for our churches. We are moving to a direct access procedure for background checks with our partner, Trusted Employees. Churches will be given direct access to your own secure online account to order background checks for your employees and volunteers.

The Northern Illinois Conference remains the parent organization, which ensures low cost for the local church. This is a valuable tool for churches to use but is not required/mandated by the conference

Those ready to begin can contact our account managers for instructions on how to proceed.

You will be given:

• direct access to Trusted Employees website
• a unique login
• the ability to setup your personal account and assign users
• the option to add or modify packages
• instructions on how to pay online for the services provided

Please feel free to contact Account Management directly with any questions or concerns regarding your new account or about products, services and/or training: 952-259-3011 – accountmanagement@trustedemployees.com.

The Northern Illinois Conference remains the parent organization which ensures low cost for the local church and no setup or monthly fees. To find the discounted pricing visit: www.umcnic.org/safesanctuaries.

While background checks are essential, we also urge you to continue to offer training for your volunteers. One way to do this is through Safe Gatherings, another partner in the work of creating safe space for our children, youth and vulnerable adults.

Safe Gatherings Training

Safe Gatherings is an online abuse prevention program that screens and educates staff and volunteers to help prevent abuse of children, youth, and vulnerable adults in group settings. When employees and volunteers are trained to identify potential abusers, recognize the signs of abuse, and know how to handle reporting, they are better equipped to prevent abuse.

This spring we will also expand our ability to provide a safe sanctuary trainer to your church. Watch for further updates on the conference website and in the eNews.

The Safe Gatherings program may be accessed through the Safe Sanctuaries page at www.umcnic.org/safesanctuaries.

If you have questions contact: Linda Lowery, Safe Sanctuaries Task Force Chair by email at: llowery@umc-cornerstone.org