Now that school is in full swing that means time for after school activities. These activities include sports, clubs and the arts like music and theatre. These extracurricular activities usually involve volunteer parent assistance. And anytime you have adults spending time with an at-risk population like children there should be a thorough background check. Every school utilizing volunteers should take all the necessary steps to ensure the safety of their children. Having a thorough vetting process that includes criminal history checks, reference checks and the proper verifications is essential to securing the safety of the students.
Shorter days and longer nights can only mean one thing: Back to school. The rites of fall have children across the country begrudgingly returning the daily cadence of public or private education.
And with the return to school many students will return to afterschool activities, such as clubs or sports, and many of these activities will require the assistance of volunteers.
A best practice for schools requiring volunteers to assist in afterschool activities is a thorough vetting process, one that includes a criminal background check.
At-risk populations, such as children or the elderly, are vulnerable to victimization. Schools using volunteers that interact with children must take steps to ensure their safety.
And the reasons are clear.
In Yadkinville, NC a school volunteer was arrested for alleged malicious behavior.
From JournalNow.com (Oct 02, 18):
A Starmount High School volunteer coach was arrested after being charged with sex offenses involving a student… journalnow.com/news/crime/volunteer-coach-at-yadkin-county-high-school-charged-with-sex/article_9f219f44-9ca9-59f3-8615-4743311e0cc6.html
Things are no different on the west coast.
From theCalifornian.com (Sep 20, 18):
In Salinas California a youth football coach faces “charges of gunning down a man in Chinatown two years ago.” thecalifornian.com/story/news/2018/09/20/salinas-coach-murder-arrest-what-we-know-now/1362358002/
A potential conviction of murder would certainly preclude an individual from serving as a volunteer but in some areas of the country certain convictions would not lead to a failed background check or rejection from a volunteer role.
In New Hampshire…”A former Winnacunnet High School assistant football coach facing burglary charges was a convicted felon when hired by the school in 2017, but officials say the conviction would not necessarily have prevented him from working in education.” seacoastonline.com/news/20181005/ex-whs-football-coach-had-prior-felony-convictions
The requirements and legalities of a volunteer background check can vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. A best practice is to work with a well-qualified third party background screening agency.
In some cases some parents have begun to question the policy of background screening volunteers.
From an opinion piece in the Idaho Mountain Express; mtexpress.com (Oct 11, 18):
As a mother of two children in the Blaine County School District, I have been made aware of a new practice involving parent volunteer screening.
The screening that is now required before a parent can volunteer in the classroom or with the school children involves, among other things, fingerprinting and a background check. While I appreciate that the district is making every effort to ensure our students’ safety, I can’t help but be concerned about how this practice might marginalize and discourage some parents from our valley’s already vulnerable immigrant population from volunteering. https://www.mtexpress.com/opinion/letters_to_editor/school-district-should-revisit-volunteer-background-checks/article_3d196f6c-cc0d-11e8-a694-d333add8d6cf.html
A solid and thorough background check can work as a barrier to potential predators from working around children as a volunteer. Despite potential pushback, a best practice remains that all volunteers should be background checked by a well-qualified third-party background screening agency. Schools using a legally compliant and robust background screening program can thwart malfeasant individuals from gaining access to vulnerable students and give peace of mind to parents.
To read more about why all schools in the USA should mandate thorough background screening of all volunteers and why they should utilize a professional background screening company to conduct such background checks read recent CriminalBackgroundRecords.com press release: Back to School; Back to Background Screening Volunteers