A prerequisite for the culture of cura personalis to which each of our schools aspire is a safe and healthy environment for all its members. It comes as no surprise that A Living Tradition lists such an environment as one of ten key identifiers of Jesuit schools worldwide. Each school is charged with ensuring its staff is trained in best practices around professional boundaries, mandatory reporting, and awareness of the dark reality of abuse.

Yet it is critical not to let the legal and technical overcome the moral and aspirational when it comes to creating a safe environment for all. At McQuaid Jesuit, we begin with a comprehensive education for our students on healthy relationships, beginning in middle school and partnering with a number of local organizations, such as Bivona Child Advocacy, that bring expertise and sensitivity to the topic. We offer parent education as well, recognizing that they are their children’s first and most important teachers. And next month we will partner with I Have The Right To, a national organization focused on fostering a culture of respect and safety in school settings, to welcome high school students and educators from around the area to the first ever McQuaid Jesuit Summit on Healthy Relationships and Consent, a next step in ensuring our students’ future environments are safe and healthy, too.