Safe Gatherings is an online abuse prevention program that screens and trains congregational 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.

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How It Works

Upon successful completion of the Safe Gatherings application, background and reference checks, and online training program, each applicant will receive documentation of approval valid for three years and will have continued access to the online training program for one year.

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The price per applicant for the program customized for the Northeastern Iowa Synod is $47 for staff and $37 for volunteers, due to different levels of background checks. The price includes processing of two electronic references, a national background check, county background checks (for all US counties of residence on record for the past 7 years for staff and current county of residence for volunteers), sex offender registry check, and the 2-hour online abuse prevention and boundary awareness training. 

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Get Started

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Congregations in the Northeastern Iowa Synod are already set up within the Safe Gatherings system; however, each congregation must complete a one-time setup process with Safe Gatherings before the first person from your congregation registers for the training.  Contact the Safe Gatherings team at 888-241-8258 to complete this process. After that, your applicants will be able to follow the links below to begin their Safe Gatherings approval process.

Contact the Safe Gatherings team at contact@SafeGatherings.com or call 888-241-8258 with questions or for additional information.  

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 When applicants begin the application process, they will need to select:

• Language Preference (English or Spanish)

• Type of Organization (Church or Faith Based Organization)

• Denomination (Lutheran)

• State where their church is located
  In the next field, they will begin typing any part of your organization name, (ex: Good Shepherd), and a list will appear in a dropdown menu from which they will select the organization name where they are seeking approval to serve.

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Individuals can login to their account at any time to check the status of their application.

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Each church will have access to an administrative dashboard within Safe Gatherings that allows you to monitor who from the church is currently approved for service.

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After you complete your registration, LOG IN HERE.