Dear Parents/Guardians of CYO Participants

February 4, 2008

Page 1

Dear Parents/Guardians of CYO participants,

The purpose of this letter is to inform you of the Grievance policy administered by ourAthletic Ministry. While the athletic Ministry strives to ensure that our program is run in adherence to our established mission of healthy competition, sportsmanship and responsibility to the community while giving witness to their Catholic faith we realize that disputes and disagreements may arise that require settlement. The Grievance Process is in place to handle these situations in an orderly and documented manner.

Process Roles:

Grievant: The person or persons who initiate the Grievance.

Respondent: Person or persons whose actions the Grievant alleges are contrary to St. Elizabeth Athletic Ministry mission, by-laws, guidelines, or code of conduct.

Grievance Administrator: Individual appointed by the Athletic Ministry who serves at the pleasure of the Athletic Ministry.

Grievance Board: Group of three individuals appointed by the Athletic Ministry who serve at the pleasure of the Athletic Ministry

Step One grievance forms are available in the Parish Office. They can also be downloaded from our web site stelizabethparish.org from the Youth Ministry link.

Any additional questions on this process may be directed to Joe Arena. All Grievances must begin at Step 1.

The process contains the four steps listed below:

Step 1: An attempt to come to a resolution by a direct negotiated settlement between the two parties and a Grievance Administrator from the Athletic Ministry. If resolution cannot be made the process moves to Step 2. A step one grievance must be filed within 30 days of the event that has caused the grievance to be filed. A meeting will be scheduled within 7 days of filing.

Step 2: A Grievance Board Hearing shall be invoked by the Grievance Administrator assigned during Step 1. The administrator shall provide the Board with all relevant information gathered in Step 1. The board shall meet with the Grievant and Responder, and a ruling will be made within 7 days of the hearing.

Step 3: If the Grievant or Respondent, is not satisfied with the ruling of the Board, then they have the right to appeal their decision to the Youth Ministry Coordinator. This appeal must be made in writing within 3 days of the Board’s ruling. If no appeal is made within that time frame, the Grievance will be closed. If a step 3 Grievance is filed, the Youth Ministry Coordinator will render a ruling within 7 days.

Step 4: If the Grievant or Respondent is not satisfied with the ruling of the Youth Ministry Coordinator, then they have the right to appeal that decision within 3 days. In this step the Pastor shall be provided with all relevant information form the previous steps . While he may choose to do so, it is not mandatory for the Pastor to meet with either party. The pastor shall render his decision within 7 days of notification from the Youth Ministry Coordinator. The Pastor’s ruling shall be final, and the grievance will be officially considered as resolved.

Sincerely,

St. Elizabeth Athletic Ministry (SEAM)