Mosaic Conference continues to process and respond to the allegations of misconduct at Dock Academy in Lansdale, PA. For background, please read our initial response.
Dock Mennonite Academy is a valued part of Mosaic Conference as a place where faith has been shaped for generations within our community. Our Conference offices are located on the Dock campus, and we value the connection with Dock as a Conference Related Ministry, in a mutual relationship of support and accountability. We continue to be in regular communication with the Dock Academy administration and board to offer resources, counsel, and prayer.
Conference staff recognize the complexity of the last two weeks for so many in our community and extend our concern and prayers to Dock students, parents, alum, staff, and board members. We have worked with Dock Academy and Penn Foundation to arrange for pastoral presence and trauma counselors on campus this week and have planned an equipping event for youth leaders on how to identify red flags and empower children and youth to speak up in situations of abuse or misconduct. Additionally, we welcome anyone to join Mosaic’s weekly prayer gathering (Wednesdays at 12pm ET, via Zoom) to offer or receive prayer.
The Conference intends to wait for the completion of both the criminal investigation and the civil rights/Title IX investigation of Dock Academy before pursuing any internal review processes and will continue to provide updates for the constituent community.
In the meantime, Mosaic Conference has partnered with Dove’s Nest to provide resources for individuals, youth groups, and congregations on preventing and responding to situations of abuse or boundary-violation.
- The NOTICE handout (pg 16) from the Circle of Grace curriculum identifies key behaviors to look for when boundaries are violated. (Dove’s Nest)
- This short video on sexual abuse is from the perspective of a teen boy. It states that boys can be victims of abuse too and that “sexual abuse has nothing to do with sexual orientation.” (Amaze.org)
- These age-appropriate guides provide suggestions for talking to children about sexual abuse. (Committee for Children)
- Books are a helpful way to introduce the topic of body safety and abuse prevention, especially with younger kids. This list of books from Dove’s Nest is a helpful resource.
- This tip sheet is for talking to children and teens about maintaining healthy boundaries. (Stop it Now)
- This article gives questions that parents can ask their children who might have had contact with offenders. Open-ended questions might include:
- What kind of things would you do with him (or her)?
- Tell me more about that.
- Did he (or she) play with you like other teachers or do something different?
- Additional resources are posted on Mosaic Conference’s Church Safety page. Individual congregations can also contact Dove’s Nest for policy reviews, Zoom or in-person trainings for adult volunteers, and general consultation.