CMSM Safeguarding Workshop 2023| Bethany Center in Lutz, FL
Workshop: October 23-26
Retreat: October 26-27
The Evolution of Safeguarding Ministry
Join us for the 19th annual Safeguarding Workshop as we continue to understand the evolution of safeguarding ministry and how it impacts our religious communities.
This year we will continue to address the core competencies in caring for young and vulnerable persons but will also carry forward the conversation started at CMSM’s Pre-Assembly on adult misconduct. The Workshop will feature plenaries, breakouts, panels, and the opportunity to network and discuss with other leaders of religious communities and safeguarding personnel.
Join us to pray, learn, build new skills, and support each other in this ministry that continues to be challenging. We look forward to welcoming you and learning from your experience in safeguarding ministry!
Lodging & Travel
Lodging
- The Bethany Center in Lutz, FL, has limited lodging. All rooms are single occupancy, with a queen bed, linens, and private bath. If you are interested in staying at the retreat center, register early to ensure you get a room.
- There also are several nearby hotels once the Center is full. If you are not staying at Bethany Center, choose “Commuter” when registering.
- The Residence Inn Tampa Suncoast Parkway at NorthPointe Village offers a special rate for individuals who are attending Bethany Center events
- There is no lodging available at the Bethany Center on Sunday, October 22. If you are arriving early, you will need to make alternate plans.
Airport
- The nearest airport is Tampa International Airport.
- The Bethany Center is a short drive away by rental car or Uber.
Online Workshop
For those who cannot travel to Lutz, we are offering a limited virtual workshop:
- The same plenary sessions as the in-person workshop
- A reduced number of breakout sessions
- No role-playing scenarios or retreat
Cancellation policy
Refunds will be given for cancellations made by September 29, 2023, less a $100 non-refundable cancellation fee. No refunds will be available after that time.
We look forward to seeing you. If you have questions, please contact Greta David, Director of Communications, at gdavid@cmsm.org or (240) 394-1851.
Schedule
12pm-5pm – Arrival at the Bethany Center
5:00 pm: Introduction & announcements
5:15 pm: Evening Prayer
5:30 pm: Welcome
6:00 pm: Dinner
7:00 pm: Reception
9:00 am: Morning Prayer
9:15 am: Welcome & Announcements
9:30 am: CMSM Introduction
10:00 am: Praesidium I – Accreditation and Reaccreditation – Aaron Lundberg
10:45 am: Break
11:15 am: Mass
12:00 pm: Lunch
1:00 pm: Praesidium II – Standards Review
1:30 pm: Toward a New Safeguarding Understanding – Nikki Hittle
2:30 pm: Break
3:00 pm: Survivor Witness
3:45 pm: Small Group Discussion
4:30 pm: Wrap-up
4:45 pm: Evening Prayer
5:00 pm: Break
6:00 pm: Dinner
7:00 pm: Reception
7:00 pm: Major Superior Discussion
The second day of the Workshop will feature diverse skills-building breakout sessions. Topics include:
- Victim/Survivor Assistance Coordinators – Kristin Austin
- Allegation Notification and Investigation (Minor and Adult) – Mike Riley
- Canonical Process – Susan Mulheron
- Safeguarding Prevention – Nikki Hittle
- New Frontiers in Review Boards – Tom Artz
- Monitoring and Supervision Across the Safeguarding Spectrum – David Shellenberger
- New Frontiers in Safeguarding Policy and Procedure – Teresa Pitt Green
- Adult Boundaries – Paul Ashton
Schedule:
8:00 am – Breakfast
8:45 am: Morning Prayer
9:00 am – Announcements/Schedule Review
9:15 am – Breakout Session 1
- Survivor Assistance Coordinator
- Canonical Process
- Review Boards
- Policy and Procedure
10:30 am – Break
10:45 am – Breakout Session 2
- Survivor Assistance Coordinator (New Frontiers)
- Canonical Process
- Monitoring and Supervision
- Allegation Notification and Investigation
12:00 pm – Lunch
1:00 pm – Breakout Session 3
- Allegation Notification and Investigation
- Adult Boundaries
- Safeguarding Prevention
- Monitoring and Supervision (Hybrid)
2:15 pm – Break
2:30 pm – Breakout Session 4
- Review Boards
- Policy and Procedure
- Safeguarding Prevention
- Adult Boundaries (Hybrid)
3:45 pm – Wrap-up
4:15 pm – Break
4:45 pm – Evening Prayer & Mass
The options for each breakout session will be announced soon.
Speakers
Tom Artz, PhD
Society of the Divine Word, Director of Child Protection
Thomas Artz served in the provincial office for the Society of the Divine Word Chicago Province for 17 years. He retired in 2020 but continues as the Director of Child Protection. He has served on six Review Boards, attended 13 CMSM Safeguarding workshops and other training programs. He has made presentations on Review Boards at the 2020 and 2021 CMSM workshops. He served on the Praesidium committee that revised the accreditation standards in 2020. He is married and has two teenage sons.
Tom Artz, PhD
Society of the Divine Word
Paul Ashton, Psy.D., D.Min.
Dr. Ashton presents workshops, courses, retreats and training seminars in Catholic dioceses across the country and internationally. His professional ministry enfolds adult education and praxis, and has included several teaching, counseling and administrative positions in schools and parishes. He also serves as a consultant to diocesan Bishops and religious community superiors.
His work in the area of child sexual abuse prevention and healing includes training facilitators, developing and implementing curricula and retreat programs, counseling, and support group facilitation development through the VIRTUS programs for over eighteen years. He is the author of numerous articles and educational support materials, a chapter on vulnerable persons in Towards Healing and Renewal published by Editions Dehoniane Bologna, and a book entitled Etched in Hope through ACTA Publications of Chicago.
He works with victims/survivors/thrivers of sexual abuse in the area of recovery and healing. In addition, he works with priests/religious offenders whose ministry is restricted and living a life of prayer and penance.
Paul is the founder of OPEN HEARTS HIV/AIDS Ministry and has supervised support and bereavement groups for over 25 years. Dr. Ashton holds a B.A. in religious studies; an M.A. in clinical pastoral counseling; a D.Min. in counseling and marriage and family therapy and a Psy.D. in psychology. He lives and has a private practice in Boston and West Palm Beach.
Paul Ashton, PsyD, DMin
Kristin Austin, LCSW-C, CCTP
Society of Jesus, Secretary of Safeguarding
Kristin Austin has worked for the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) since 2008, where she serves as Secretary of Safeguarding after previously serving as both Regional Operations Manager and Victim/Survivor Assistance Coordinator. After attending Saint Joseph’s University for undergrad, she volunteered for a year in Tacoma, WA and later earned a Master’s degree from the University of Maryland. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who previously worked in Employee Assistance (EAP) and provided individual therapy. She enjoys volunteering at her son’s school, though it is much different from her former ministry volunteering at a hospice and in prison. Kristin is also a Certified Clinical Trauma Professional and currently serves as Victim/Survivor Assistance Coordinator for seven different member institutes of CMSM.
Kristin Austin, LCSW-C, CCTP
Society of Jesus
Deacon Steven DeMartino
Conference of Major Superiors of Men, Director of Safeguarding Initiatives
Deacon Steven is the Director of Priest Wellness for the Archdiocese of New York and the Director of Safeguarding initiatives for the Conference of Major Superiors of Men. In addition, he is active in Parish ministry, consultation to leadership teams of Religious Institutes, Seminary teaching, and retreat work. Deacon Steven’s training centers on behavioral health and governance leadership.
Deacon Steven DeMartino
Conference of Major Superiors of Men
Fr. Frank Donio, SAC, D.Min.
Conference of Major Superiors of Men, Executive Director
Fr. Frank Donio, SAC, D.Min. is the Executive Director of the Conference of Major Superiors of Men and a member of the Society of the Catholic Apostolate (Pallottine Fathers and Brothers). He is also the Founding Director of the Catholic Apostolate Center. Fr. Frank is former Provincial Rector of the Immaculate Conception Province of the Society of the Catholic Apostolate. Fr. Frank writes and presents on evangelization, co-responsibility and collaboration in ministry and apostolate, pastoral planning, Church leadership and management, and Catholic and Pallottine spirituality. He holds a Doctor of Ministry in Adult Spiritual Formation from The Catholic University of America (CUA), as well as a Bachelor of Arts in History (summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa) and a Master of Arts in Church History from CUA. He also holds a Master of Divinity from Washington Theological Union and a Master of Science in Church Management from Villanova University School of Business.
Fr. Frank Donio, SAC, DMin
Conference of Major Superiors of Men
Teresa Pitt Green
St. Edmund’s Retreat
Teresa Pitt Green is an international speaker, writer, and advocate for trauma-informed pastoral care, which integrates faith with other recovery programs for abuse, trauma, and self-destructive behaviors. She is now living in residence on Enders Island, offering spiritual direction and both private and group retreat and spiritual formation programs.
Teresa Pitt Green
St. Edmund’s Retreat
Jeff Henrich
Guest House
Jeff Henrich is the President and Chief Executive Officer at Guest House, an inpatient residential treatment center catering to Catholic clergy and religious individuals. With over three decades of comprehensive clinical practice experience, Jeff has demonstrated exceptional leadership skills in various capacities, particularly in grant-funded programs for chronic relapsing alcoholics. Before assuming his current role, he served as the Executive Director of the Guest House Men’s program, showcasing his dedication and commitment to the organization’s mission. Jeff earned an economics degree from Macalester College and a master’s in counseling from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota. He is a licensed advanced alcohol and drug counselor.
Jeff Henrich
Guest House
Nikki Hittle, MSW
Legionaries of Christ
Nikki Hittle is the Director of Safe Environment for the Legionaries of Christ North American Territory since November 2020. Ms. Hittle is developing a new model for safeguarding focused on prevention and priest wellness while further enhancing the healing options and outreach pathways for victims of clergy abuse.
In December 2022, Ms. Hittle was awarded the distinguished Praesidium Guardian Certification after completing an intensive workshop, educational modules, and impact project. Under her leadership, the Legionaries of Christ North American Territory received the Praesidium Accreditation in May 2023 after evidencing full implementation of all the Praesidium Safety Standards.
Nikki Hittle was born in Columbus, Georgia. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education in 2000 from the University of Montana with certification in teaching grades Kindergarten-8th, a Master of Social Work (MSW) in 2008 from Eastern Washington University with certification in school social work, and educational leadership training and principal certification with Washington State University in 2012. As an educator and social worker for 20 years, she has worked in diverse communities teaching at the elementary and middle school levels, as a social worker in high schools, and as a principal at the elementary school level.
Nikki transferred her gifts and expertise to the non-profit sector focusing on developing trainings in trauma informed/sensitive practices and visionary leadership for building collaborative and positive communities providing safe environments for all…kids and adults alike.
Nikki Hittle, MSW
Legionaries of Christ
Fr. Thomas Hoar, SSE
Society of St. Edmund
Father Tom Hoar, SSE, entered the Society of St. Edmund in 1971 and was ordained to the priesthood in 1978. He holds a PhD in Humanities Salve Regina University and a PhD in Student Development and Higher Education Administration from Michigan State University. Father Tom has been a trustee of his alma mater, St. Michael’s College, and in 2015 became a member of the Board of Advisors for the Collegiate Recovery Program at Texas Tech University. Father Tom came to St. Edmund’s Retreat in Mystic, CT, in 1993 and continues to reside here. He has been President since 2002 and in his time here has established the Sacred Art Institute and the St. Maximillian Kolbe Recovery Residence. Father Tom is also Chaplain of the US Naval Submarine Base in Groton, CT.
Fr. Dorsey originally graduated from Christian Brothers College in Memphis with a degree in accounting. After joining Glenmary he studied at Catholic University in Washington, D.C. and received a master of arts degree in theology. He did further graduate studies and received a licentiate in sacred theology from the Gregorian University in Rome, Italy.
Fr. Thomas Hoar, SSE
St. Edmund’s Retreat
Aaron Lundberg, MSW
Praesidium, President and CEO
Aaron Lundberg works with leadership of large-scale human service organizations across the United States to develop, implement, and monitor abuse prevention policies and training programs. He supervises Praesidium’s team of account managers and has trained thousands of direct care workers, supervisors, administrators, and parents in preventing the sexual abuse of children and vulnerable adults. With a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Texas Tech University and a master’s degree in social work from The University of Texas at Arlington, Lundberg has conducted extensive research in the etiology, scope, and prevention of abuse in residential treatment centers.
Aaron Lundberg, MSW
Praesidium
Susan Mulheron, JCD
Chancellor for Canonical Affairs, Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis
Susan Mulheron holds a doctoral degree in canon law from the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome, where she wrote her doctoral thesis on the canonical issues related to sexual misconduct by clergy, with a focus on the abuse of minors in the Church. She is also a proud alumna of the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC (licentiate in canon law), and the University of St. Thomas in Saint Paul, MN (master’s degree in theology). Susan is the Chancellor for Canonical Affairs for the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, an office she has held for the past decade. As Chancellor,
Susan offers general canonical counsel to the Archbishop, Archdiocesan offices, clergy, and parishes and schools. Susan has given several seminar and panel presentations at national, regional, and online events related to canonical processes regarding clergy misconduct and sexual abuse in the Church.
Susan Mulheron, JCD
Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis
Deacon Bernie Nojadera, LCSW
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Secretariat for Child and Youth Protection, Executive Director
Dcn. Bernie Nojadera has served in the Secretariat for Child and Youth Protection since 2011. Formerly, he served as Director of the Office for the Protection of Children and Vulnerable Adults with the Diocese of San Jose, California, from 2002-2011. He has a bachelor of arts degree from St. Joseph College, Mountain View, California; a master of social work degree specializing in health and mental health services from San Jose State University; and a master of arts in theology from St. Patrick’s Seminary and University, Menlo Park, California. He has been a member of the San Jose Police Department’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, the County of Santa Clara Interfaith Clergy Task Force on the Prevention of Elder Abuse, and the County of Santa Clara Task Force on Suicide Prevention. He enjoys offering national/international workshops/training on safe environment/victim accompaniment, safeguarding, HRO (high reliability organization) principles, and topics on leadership and communication. He is married and has two adult children.
Deacon Bernie Nojadera, LCSW
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
Michael Riley, MSW, MBA, LPC
MHR Advising
Riley began working with children who had experienced physical and sexual abuse in 1992 as a chaplain in a residential treatment center run by Catholic Charities of Fort Worth. This experience led him to abandon theological studies to first pursue pastoral counseling and ultimately to receive a master’s in social work from Boston University. He practiced social work in the juvenile justice system as well as in psychiatric facilities for several years before returning to Catholic Charities in 2001 as Director of the St. Joseph’s Trust – a public health initiative in conjunction with the Diocese of Fort Worth. In 2007, he began working with Praesidium, the leader in sexual abuse prevention where he conducted training, led investigations, and managed site visits with religious and social service agencies all around the world. He maintains a private therapy practice where he sees children and families impacted by physical and sexual abuse, neglect, violence, poverty, and substance use. He specialize in working with children who have experienced abuse as well as with perpetrators of physical and sexual abuse.
In addition to being a licensed professional counselor and a licensed private investigator, he has a master’s in business administration from the University of Texas Arlington and has taught social work practice and policy at the university level.
Michael Riley, MSW, MBA, LPC
MHR Advising
David Shellenberger, RN, BSN
Saint John Vianney Center
David Shellenberger, RN, BSN, serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Saint John Vianney Center. In this role, he works to increase awareness of the Center’s prevention and educational services, as well as its assessment and behavioral health treatment programs.
David served as Chief Operating Officer at SJVC since 2014 and has worked at the center since 2008. Previously, he was the Chief Nursing Officer responsible for all clinical practice and medical care performed by the nursing department. Past positions also included Infection Control and Patient Safety Officer and Director of the Complex Extended Stay Program. David helped develop the weight management and wellness program at the Saint John Vianney Center which assists residents with weight loss and healthy living through diet, education, treatment, and emotional and spiritual support. David also provides workshops for SJVC as part of our outreach services. Topics include Stress Management, Health, Wellness and Weight Management.
He has over 15 years of administrative experience in various health care settings including Beaumont at Bryn Mawr in Bryn Mawr, PA, and HCR Manor Care in Pottstown, PA.
David received his BSN from York College of Pennsylvania and maintains his RN license through the State of Pennsylvania.
David Shellenberger, RN, BSN
Saint John Vianney Center
Fr. John Zagarella, O. Praem.
John C. Zagarella, O. Praem. was born August 28, 1958 and was raised in South Philadelphia. He graduated from Epiphany of Our Lord Elementary School in 1972, and then went to Bishop Neumann High School, where he was educated by Norbertine priests and brothers. Fr. John graduated from Villanova University, May 1981 with a BA in English and Communication Arts, and minors in Philosophy and Religious Studies. He entered the Norbertine Community of Daylesford Abbey in August,1978. After graduating from the Dominican House of Studies, Washington D.C. with a Masters of Divinity (MDiv) in May 1986, he was ordained a Norbertine priest, June 21, 1986. In addition, he graduated from Immaculata College in May 1993 with an MA in Counseling
Psychology. Father John went on to teach at both Saint John Neumann High School (Philadelphia, PA) and Archmere Academy (Claymont, DE), and later served as both Principal and President of Neumann and Headmaster at Archmere. After serving as Abbey Manager and Development Director at Daylesford Abbey, Father John served as Parochial Vicar of Saint Norbert Parish, Paoli, PA and Pastor of Saint Gabriel Parish in the Grays Ferry section of South Philadelphia. From 2014 – 2022, he ministered at Archmere Academy where Fr. John served as Director of Guidance and also was a teacher of Norbertine Spirituality. Since June 2020 to present, Fr. John has served as Prior of Daylesford Canonry. He was recently elected to the Board of Trustees of Saint
Norbert College, De Pere, WI. He resides with his Norbertine brothers at Daylesford Abbey, Paoli, PA. His interests
Fr. John Zagarella, O. Praem.
Daylesford Abbey
Sponsors
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