April 7, 2004 Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Michael J. Bemi, 630-725-0986


LISLE, ILLINOIS - The National Catholic Risk Retention Group, Inc. (National Catholic), is pleased to announce that it has secured an agreement with THE AGOS GROUP, LLC (AGOS), a national risk management and risk control company, to manage the day-to-day operations of its VIRTUS® program and Protecting God's Children® program. With 79 Catholic archdioceses and dioceses, and a risk pooling trust among its users, the Protecting God's Children program is, arguably, the most widely used program in the country for preventing child sexual abuse, with services available to nearly 40 million Catholics in the United States.

"We are happy with the current direction of our VIRTUS program," said Michael J. Bemi, president and chief executive officer of National Catholic. "AGOS has been our long-standing partner in the development and implementation of the VIRTUS program, and we are confident that, along with National Catholic, AGOS is equally committed to providing quality risk management and risk control programs to the Catholic Church."

As a part of the transfer of the day-to-day operations of the VIRTUS program, National Catholic has named Patricia L. Neal, the chief financial officer for AGOS, as the new director of the VIRTUS program. Neal has served as coordinator of the program since its official "launch" in 2002. In her capacity as director, Neal manages client relationships, and helps Catholic dioceses implement the programs in order to fulfill the "safe environment" mandates established by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

While AGOS, as an organization, ultimately answers to National Catholic member dioceses in the operations of the VIRTUS programs, Neal works directly with the National Catholic Services management team, under the direction of Bemi, to focus on implementation of programs, development of new programs, and the pricing of all programs and services.

"This is genuinely rewarding work," said Neal. "It's an opportunity to support like-minded people all across the country as we work together to prevent child sexual abuse." In her capacity as director, Neal replaces Jack S. McCalmon, former president of AGOS and director of VIRTUS programs and services, and a current consultant to National Catholic. McCalmon has transitioned into a senior consulting role on the project, and is also pursuing other business interests. (read more)

In addition to the transfer of management of the programs, two new programs are being announced under the umbrella of the Protecting God's Children program. They are Protecting God's Children for Parents, a training program that specifically addresses the sex abuse prevention issues faced by parents and guardians, and Touching Safety™, a children's training program developed for Catholic schools and religious education programs to offer as a support to Catholic parents. Both programs are being introduced this month, and a new bullying prevention program will be available to Catholic schools in the fall.

The VIRTUS training programs, including the Protecting God's Children programs, are comprehensive and multi-dimensional—incorporating proven best practice standards for the prevention of child sexual abuse by clergy, staff, volunteers, and others who interact with children within the church environment. The training programs incorporate training for local facilitators, facilitator-led training for all parishes and religious organizations, awareness videos, and regularly scheduled continuing education and training for those who interact most closely with children. The continuing education and training is provided via VIRTUS Online™, a state-of-the-art web-based training platform.

"The VIRTUS Online system provides best practice resources 24 hours a day, seven days a week," said Bemi. "The system provides a comprehensive menu of functions for churches, religious organizations, and facilities from one convenient web-based location. Through these functions, we can help church organizations prevent wrongdoing, manage risk, and improve service to the community through education, training, and best practices."

According to Bemi, the regularly scheduled online bulletins and web-based training courses reinforce the knowledge points made during the Protecting God's Children awareness sessions. Moreover, every training program is tracked so the diocese or religious organization knows who has and has not trained. Plus, most of the online training bulletins and modules are interactive, allowing trainees to access a trainer or expert.

The VIRTUS programs were conceived, developed, and financed by National Catholic. National Catholic was licensed in 1987, and commenced operations June 30, 1988. National Catholic is 100 percent owned by, and exclusively devoted to, the needs of the Catholic Church.

VIRTUS is the brand name that identifies best practices programs designed to help prevent wrongdoing and promote "rightdoing" within religious organizations. The VIRTUS programs empower organizations and people to better control risk and improve the lives of all those who interact with the Church.