By: Gregg Dowty,
District 7780 Protection Officer
With the new Rotary Year, now is a good time for all clubs to revisit and review the District 7780 Protection Policy. As Rotarians we are committed to creating and maintaining the safest possible environment for all participants in Rotary activities. We also have a duty of care to protected persons we serve and with whom we interact. It is incumbent upon us to establish a culture of respect and conduct ourselves in a manner consistent with the 4-Way Test.
- Every three years, each club must adopt the District Protection Policy or an approved club protection policy and that adoption is on file with the district, and recorded in club records.
- Appoint a Club Protection Officer charged with ensuring adherence to the policy.
- Conduct awareness training for the whole club on the policy at least every three years, and inform the district on the date this training occurred.
- Make new Rotarians aware of the policy.
- Ensure that any Rotarians working directly with youth under the age of 21 in an unsupervised situation or acting as chaperones for youth activities or other protected persons undergo a background check every five years. Records of the background checks are maintained by the Club Protection Officer, and subject to review by the District Protection officer.
The District 7780 Protection Policy may be found on the District website. Also available on the website is an October 2020 video which may be used for training as well as links to additional documents referenced in the policy.
Please feel free to contact me if you need information or would like to schedule a visit to your club. I have had the pleasure of presenting at a number of clubs throughout the district and I am willing to travel or meet via Zoom.
Thanks, and have a great Rotary year.
Gdowty60@gmail.com 484-357-4124