Executive Director: Deacon Bernie Nojadera has served in the Secretariat of Child and Youth Protection since 2011. Formerly, he served as Director of the Office for the Protection of Children and Vulnerable Adults with the Diocese of San Jose, California, from 2002-2011. He has a Bachelor of Arts degree from St. Joseph College, Mountain View, California; a Master of Social Work degree specializing in health and mental health services from San Jose State University; and a Master of Arts in theology from St. Patrick’s Seminary and University, Menlo Park, California. He has been a member of the San Jose Police Department’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, the County of Santa Clara Interfaith Clergy Task Force on the Prevention of Elder Abuse, and the County of Santa Clara Task Force on Suicide Prevention. He enjoys offering national and international workshops/training on safe environment/victim accompaniment, safeguarding, HRO (high reliability organization) principles, and topics on leadership and communication. He is married and has two adult children.
Associate Director: Molly Fara joined USCCB staff in September 2020 after serving 8 years as the first Director of Child and Youth Protection for the Diocese of Joliet in Illinois. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Dayton, Ohio with a major in psychology and minor in criminal justice. Molly earned a Master's degree in social work from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is recognized as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and has a Professional Educator License with School Social Work Endorsement. Prior work experience includes psychiatric hospital, in-patient/out-patient substance abuse treatment, residential treatment center for emotionally disturbed youth, adult protective services and employee assistance programs. She has been married for over 25 years and has four adult children.
Coordinator of Communications and Resources: Silvina Cerezo joined the Secretariat of Child and Youth Protection in May of 2023. She began working for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in 2018, in the Department of Migration and Refugee Services as a Program Associate and later was promoted to the Secretariat of Divine Worship as a Multicultural Specialist. A native of Argentina, where she studied Latin, Spanish literature, and linguistics among other subjects, she lived in Dublin, Ireland for several years where she deepened her knowledge of English. After arriving in the United States, Silvina completed a Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies at The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC and continued her education as a non-degree student at the Dominican House of Studies, also in Washington, DC. She has been married for fifteen years.
Executive Assistant: Casey Brusnahan joined the Secretariat of Child and Youth Protection in May 2024. Previously, she worked as an Administrative Assistant in the Secretariat of Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations, a position she held for six years. Prior to coming to the USCCB, she worked in the political media industry. Ms. Brusnahan received her Master of Arts in Theological Studies from Christendom College in 2021, and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Christopher Newport University in 2015. She is currently pursuing her Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Divine Mercy University. A native of Alexandria, Virginia, she enjoys spending time with her family, cooking, exercising, and reading historical fiction novels in her spare time.
