Introduction to version 2 of SRS The Safe Church Office received many comments about the difficulty of the SRS online system. In response, a simplified version, SRS 2, will go live on December 1, 2014. We’ve prepared the following information to let you know of the changes the new version will bring. After reviewing this document, please send an email to us to let us know of any questions you may still have. We will research and prepare answers in a FAQ that will be sent to you promptly. Should you have remaining questions after receiving the FAQ, you are invited to call into a GoToTraining Session, where you and other SRAs will be assured of a live person to speak with.

About SRS Version 2:

• Login and passcodes have not changed.

When you first log in, you will be on your Home Page, which looks a bit different. You no longer have to go to your profile from the menu drop down to make changes to your own contact information, you can edit your profile from here:

• Work in Process now gives you the ability to view the processes you are used to seeing - plus you can now choose to view by applicant name.

Screen shot of expanded view:

• People that are already past the interview approval step in SRS when SRSv2 goes live will continue as usual until their certification is complete. You will no longer have the ability to add a person to the old version of SRS after SRSv2 goes live. However, you will see both the old and new tracks in your Work in Process screen and have access to the processes already begun in the older version. After all certifications are complete in the old version, you will only see the

new tracks. If you have someone that you’ve entered, but the interview has not been completed, remove them from the old track and start them in the new version. Screen shot of new Applicant view from Work In Process:

• The two questions that deal with legal convictions are the most common reason to not certify a person, so those questions now appear in the interview step. You now have the ability to stop the process much earlier. You can also go back and enter notes for future reference after an interview has been completed.

• Version 2 has been simplified for the applicant, with more prompts, and their social security

numbers will only appear as asterisks - for added security. • Search People is where you will now look up your applicant’s name, determine if they are

already in the system, and view existing status of certifications for them. If you do not find them in Search People, you will have the opportunity to add a new person here.

• Training Sessions are similar to the older version, but with more options for searching. Please review the Trainer Section below for screen shots and direction.

• If a person has participated in a Training Only track within one year, you can now use that training in a full certification.

• Activity Reports are expanded.

• You will have the ability to review and/or download lists of people already certified in SRS or

trained prior to the online system. (Coming soon) • When you start someone in SRSv2, they will receive an email with a link to their application.

They will no longer need a user id or password. The application, release for background check, and signing up for a training can be completed in one sitting. Your applicants will no longer be required to go back online afterwards.

• Acknowledgements are now part of the trainers’ responsibility. The registration sheet they use

will now be a registration list that includes acknowledgements. The trainer will use the registration sheet to determine participants at the beginning of the training and ask trainees to sign out at the end of the session - after having read the acknowledgements and making it clear that the signature includes both participation in the session and acknowledgements. (See trainer’s section below for a sample.)

• You will receive an email each morning if any activity has occurred the previous day that requires action on your part. (is this coded yet? Do we have any samples?)

• You have the ability to upload supporting documents in each step. • SRSv2 gives you the ability to transfer certifications from your organization to another, giving

the destination organization the ability to see related details/documents.

• The Head of your Congregation/School/other Organization will now provide approval for each

SRA and Safe Church Coordinator. They will now have the ability to review details of certifications and activity reports without coming to your desk. (see their section below)

• As SRA, you are responsible for the online process of SRS. The Safe Church Coordinator should be the person responsible for reviewing all Safe Church Policies and insuring that the

organization is following policy. If you have a Safe Church Coordinator, we encourage you to work in tandem with that person. Detailed information about the changes to the SRS system are being sent to Rectors/Vicars, Heads of Schools and other organizations and to Safeguarding trainers. Safe Church Office personnel will be available for Q&A sessions, and will receive invitations to those sessions soon. We encourage you to look over the material and submit any questions by email prior to the Q&A sessions if possible. In addition, you can always call our office for any assistance you will need. We are preparing new Policy Manuals that should be complete and available online in January. You will receive word from us when they are available. Many thanks from the Safe Church Office Staff,

The Rev. Carol Petty cpetty@epicenter.org

Marty Brickley mbrickley@epicenter.org

Danielle Tatro dtatro@epicenter.org

Katherine Muhlenbruch kmuhlenbruch@epicenter.org

For Trainers Some things have changed, some will remain the same.

You will use a new URL: srs2.epicenter.org to login using your existing user id and passcode.

You will see your information along with a link to Training Sessions on the sidebar:

Within Training Sessions, you will have two options:

1) see scheduled trainings, or

2) create a new training session:

To create a new training, press the link (2 shown above) and select the type training you will conduct from the training types shown:

The page to set up the training looks the same as it did before:

One of the changes is for SGP-E. In SRSv2, anyone can sign up for a Safeguarding People training at any location.

After setting up the training, you can return to view other training sessions by using the button shown above.

Your training session will now appear as ‘not approved’:

When the safe church office approves the training you will see a check mark .

The way you search for trainings has changed. You have several options. Be sure to select the type of training and its status you are looking for. You can use any or none of the remaining options.

The options are:

1) Type

2) Status

3) Date(s) 4) Trainer name or creator 5) Location 6) Attendee 7) Time

Once approved by the Safe Church office, you can see details and/or edit a training:

An applicant will have to ability to add themselves to a training;, the SRA can add a person to a training; or you, as the trainer, can add them.

To add a person, select the training, click details beside the session and use the add a person to this training button shown below:

When you type a person’s name in, you will click on them and then their name will appear below the look up field. You can choose one or many.

Big Change: You may not use any old sign-in sheet forms.

An important change from the old system to the new is the sign in sheet no longer will be used. You will now download and print a sign out sheet that contains the acknowledgement sheet. This will enable to applicants/trainees to acknowledge without having to go back on line. BE SURE THEY ATTEND THE ENTIRE TRAINING AND THEN SIGN OUT. When you send the attendance sheet, you are assuring the Safe Church office that anyone who signed the sheet attended the training an understands that their signature means more than just attendance. To insure the people who show up are enrolled properly,

you will conduct a roll call prior to the training. You can use the sign-out sheet for the roll call, but obtain signatures at the end of the training.

Here’s a sample of the new sign-out sheet:

Remember, no other form will be accepted. If you use an old form, it will be returned to you by the Safe Church office and you will have to collect signatures of those you trained, because the acknowledgement will only be on the new form.

After all signatures are obtained, you or the SRA can upload the Sign-Out Sheet.

To do so, 1) find the training, 2) select details,

3), click upload Sign Out Sheet

1) Choose the Sign Out Sheet from the location you used to save it on your computer.

In this case, it has been saved on the desktop as a pdf. Select it by double clicking or by choosing Open at the bottom right hand corner of the screen.

You will know that the pdf has been selected, because it will show up here:

Press the Upload Sign-out Sheet button. You will get confirmation that the file has been uploaded successfully as shown below:

Detailed information about the changes to the SRS system are being sent to Rectors/Vicars, Heads of Schools and other organizations and to SRAs. Safe Church Office personnel will be available for Q&A sessions, and will receive invitations to those sessions soon. We encourage you to look over the material and submit any questions by email prior to the Q&A sessions if possible. In addition, you can always call our office for any assistance you will need. We are preparing new Policy Manuals that should be complete and available online in January. You will receive word from us when they are available. Many thanks from the Safe Church Office Staff,

The Rev. Carol Petty cpetty@epicenter.org

Marty Brickley mbrickley@epicenter.org

Danielle Tatro dtatro@epicenter.org

Katherine Muhlenbruch kmuhlenbruch@epicenter.org

SRS version 2 Introduction (for Rectors/Vicars, Heads of School or

other organizatios The Safe Church Office received many comments about the difficulty of the SRS online system. In response, a simplified version, SRS 2, will go live on December 1, 2014. As the head of your congregation, school, or other organization, you are responsible for the actions taken regarding Safeguarding by your SRA and your Safe Church Coordinator. To effectively do that, you will need to:

• take an active part in deciding who your SRA and Safe Church Coordinator will be. o Your SRA is responsible for the online process of SRS. o The Safe Church Coordinator should be the person responsible for reviewing all

Safe Church Policies and insuring that the organization is following policy. If you have a Safe Church Coordinator, we encourage you to have them work in tandem with your SRA.

o When you’ve decided who should fill these roles, and the people have agreed, you’ll complete a recommendation form for each and send it to the Safe Church office;

• insure that all aspects of Safeguarding are upheld; • insure that your organization is using the SRS system; • have the link to SRSv2 https://srs2.epicenter.org ; • your login and passcode - you can obtain by contacting your SRA or the Safe church

Office; • to know how to search SRSv2 for details about Safeguarding certifications in your

organization. (Search People, Certification details, Activity Reports, Trained Lists) To search for a person’s information in SRS log in to the system at https://srs2.epicenter.org Enter your userid and passcode

If you cannot remember your passcode, use the “Forgot” link. Search for a person by entering about 4 letters of the first and then 4 letters of the last name. Press Search

Search for Fred Farr by tying “Fred Farr” and pressing the Search button. The system will return anyone matching the criteria you entered. In this case, you can choose from Fred Farr or, Fredricka Farrar. Each names is a link. Press Fred Farr and his file will open.

In this case, you can see that Fred has begun the certification process.

Click on the magnifying glass icon beside a certification for access to all information entered for or by Fred. You can review at any time. If your SRA has requested your help, version 2 allows you to open the file of the person in question without having to go through your SRA. Upon review, if you know of a reason that the applicant should not proceed with the certification process, let your SRA know immediately. Your SRA will have the options shown below:

Your SRA has been trained by the Safe Church office to ask you for direction on any answer(s) to application questions, interview responses, and/or background check information that raise a concern. Your input is invaluable at this point. Your SRA can add notes/documents to the system for future reference. If you have asked an SRA to remove a person from the certification process, the SRA will add an objective note similar to, “Fred Farr was removed from the process after consultation with and instruction from The Rev. ___”. Detailed notes are not needed. Please know that all of the information in SRS is discoverable.

The SRSv2 system contains personal information, and as such, should be treated as a confidential place at all times. If you have logged into SRSv2, be sure to log out or lock your computer before leaving it. Any information entered into SRSv2 can be traced back to the computer used, so be sure that your people understand the confidentiality and NEVER share user ids or passwords. Detailed information about the changes to the SRS system are being sent to your SRA and to Safeguarding trainers. Safe Church Office personnel will be available for Q&A sessions, and will receive invitations to those sessions soon. We encourage you to have your SRA look over the material and submit any questions by email prior to the Q&A sessions if possible. In addition, you can always call our office for any assistance you will need. We are preparing new Policy Manuals that should be complete and available online in January. You will receive word from us when they are available. Note: If you are also filling the role of SRA and/or Trainer, you will receive additional information in a separate communication. Many thanks from the Safe Church Office Staff,

The Rev. Carol Petty cpetty@epicenter.org

Marty Brickley mbrickley@epicenter.org

Danielle Tatro dtatro@epicenter.org

Katherine Muhlenbruch kmuhlenbruch@epicenter.org