An interview with Quinn Price, author of "Creating Safe Spaces: A Complete Guide to Child-Safe Organizations"

I: Quinn, your book opens with a sobering statement: "Every day, organizations proudly declare their commitment to child safety... but talk is cheap, and children pay the price when that talk doesn't translate into action." That's a harsh assessment of organizations serving children.

Quinn Price: This was a hard book to write. It needs to be harsh because the stakes are that high. I've worked with dozens of organizations as a management consultant, and I've seen this pattern repeatedly: leaders who genuinely care about children but are catastrophically incompetent at protecting them. They have policies that look impressive on paper but fail spectacularly when tested by real predators using actual tactics.

The brutal truth is that most organizations operate under what I call "dangerous incompetence"—they believe their good intentions and basic common sense are sufficient shields against predators who have spent years studying exactly how to exploit institutional blind spots.

I: You write from personal experience. Can you share what motivated this book?

Quinn Price: The worst night of my life was spent trying to process that my five-year-old daughter had been abused. We had evidence, law enforcement had the ball, and I was left wondering how it happened and how it would impact her for the rest of her life.

The failures were partly family dynamics and partly the religious organization we trusted. Had I possessed the insights I share in this book and been the assertive advocate we teach parents to be, I could have protected my child. Knowledge is power, and the stakes are high.

But here's what really drives me: this wasn't a failure of caring or commitment. The people involved genuinely wanted to protect children. It was a failure of competence; not knowing the difference between policies that work and policies that perform, between training that builds skills and training that checks boxes.

I: You identify 8 key areas where organizations consistently fail. What's the most dangerous gap you see?

Quinn Price: Many but the screening illusion is an obvious gap. Organizations treat background checks like magic talismans—run the check, get the clear result, assume safety. This creates dangerous overconfidence because most predators have clean records when they first gain access to children.

I detail cases where predators passed background checks because organizations only checked local records, missing convictions in neighboring states. Or they accepted references from previous employers who provided positive recommendations just to move problematic individuals along rather than deal with the liability of honest assessments.

Real screening requires six layers: comprehensive background investigation, professional history excavation, psychological assessment, digital footprint investigation, community character investigation, and ongoing monitoring. Most organizations do maybe one and a half layers and think they're protected.

I: Your chapter on "training theater" is particularly critical of current approaches. What's wrong with how organizations train staff?

Quinn Price: Most training makes adults feel informed while providing no practical skills for recognizing or responding to predatory behavior. They watch a video about appropriate boundaries, take a quiz with obvious answers, and sign a certificate. Then they encounter subtle grooming behaviors in real life and have no idea how to respond.

I include a case study of a school district where trained staff witnessed concerning behaviors for months—special attention to certain students, boundary violations, isolation opportunities—but didn't know whether to act because the training focused on obvious scenarios rather than the subtle patterns predators actually use.

Effective training builds specific competencies: recognizing grooming behaviors, responding to concerning situations, reporting like a professional, and being an effective two-deep leadership partner. It requires scenario practice, competency assessment, and ongoing skill development.

I: You emphasize "two-deep leadership" as the strongest defense. Why is this so critical?

Quinn Price: Two-deep leadership eliminates the fundamental requirement for child abuse: private access. Predators need isolation to groom children, normalize inappropriate behavior, and commit abuse without witnesses. Remove the isolation, and you remove the opportunity.

But here's the key: it only works when implemented without loopholes. I document cases where organizations had "two-adult rules" that only applied during official programming, ignoring setup time, cleanup, transportation, and counseling—exactly when abuse occurred.

True two-deep leadership means two unrelated adults present during ALL interactions with children, with specific protocols for unavoidable exceptions. It's not paranoia; it's systematic transparency that protects everyone.

I: The digital safety chapter addresses threats many organizations haven't considered. How serious is this gap?

Quinn Price: Digital grooming has become the primary gateway to physical abuse. While administrators debate Facebook policies, predators have moved to encrypted messaging apps, gaming platforms with voice chat, and social media features that disappear after viewing.

I share a case where a youth pastor followed all digital communication policies while building inappropriate relationships with teenagers through platforms the policies never mentioned. He used the organization's professional Instagram account to build trust, then migrated conversations to Snapchat for private grooming.

Organizations need comprehensive digital policies that address all platforms, require organizational oversight of adult-child communication, and include parent access to all communications involving their children.

I: Your strongest criticism is reserved for how organizations respond to incidents. What are they getting wrong?

Quinn Price: Organizations consistently prioritize reputation over child safety when allegations arise. They conduct amateur investigations that interfere with professional law enforcement, they keep accused individuals in contact with children during "internal review," and they focus on damage control rather than victim support.

I experienced this personally when my daughter's case was reported to law enforcement. Church leaders asked why I "allowed" this to be reported to police rather than letting the church handle it. They wanted their law firm to be the first call to manage legal and reputational harm. Victims came second.

The 24-hour action plan I provide requires immediate external reporting, immediate removal from child contact, professional support for victims, and full cooperation with investigations. No internal investigation, no reputation management, no institutional protection over child welfare.

I: What would you say to organizational leaders who claim these measures are too expensive or complicated?

Quinn Price: The cost of comprehensive protection is always less than the cost of a single abuse incident. Legal fees, insurance increases, reputation damage, and victim compensation typically exceed $100,000-500,000 per case in the United States. Enhanced screening and training that prevents even one incident pays for itself many times over.

But honestly, if an organization's first response to child protection requirements is cost concerns, that tells you everything about their priorities. The children in their care deserve leaders who understand that their safety isn't negotiable.

I: Your book includes extensive resources for parents to evaluate and advocate for better protection. Why focus on parent advocacy?

Quinn Price: Parents are their children's first and most important protectors. No organization will ever care about your child's safety as much as you do. But caring isn't enough—you need specific skills to investigate organizations, recognize red flags, and advocate effectively for improvements.

I provide 50 critical questions every parent must ask, a safety scorecard to rate organizations on a 1-100 scale, and escalation strategies from friendly inquiry to formal complaints. Parents who understand what genuine protection looks like can drive organizational improvement through informed advocacy.

I: What's your message to readers who feel overwhelmed by the scope of change needed?

Quinn Price: Start where you are, with what you have, but start now. The children in your care can't wait for perfect conditions or unlimited resources. They need protection that works within the constraints you actually face.

I provide a 12-month transformation plan that phases implementation strategically—emergency patches in month one, system building in months 2-6, and culture embedding in months 7-12. You don't have to do everything at once, but you do have to start.

The ultimate goal isn't just responding to problems when they arise—it's preventing them by creating pressure for excellence that makes harmful situations less likely to occur.

I: Any final thoughts for organizational leaders reading this?

Quinn Price: The time for hoping children are safe is over. The time for knowing they're safe begins now. Good intentions brought you this far, but evidence-based action will take you the rest of the way.

The children depending on your organization deserve nothing less than your absolute competence in protecting them. This book shows you exactly how to build that competence systematically, strategically, and sustainably.

Your protection legacy starts with choosing excellence over adequacy, transparency over privacy, and child safety over adult convenience. The children in your care are counting on that choice.

About "Creating Safe Spaces: A Complete Guide to Child-Safe Organizations"

Available now from Change Capability Press, this comprehensive guide transforms good intentions into effective protection through evidence-based policies, practical implementation strategies, and systematic advocacy tools. The book serves organizational leaders, board members, staff, volunteers, and parents committed to creating environments where children can thrive without fear.

For more information, visit: www.quinnprice.com