Multiple searches recommended in school background checks

Schools have to be careful about the people they let inside their buildings, and sometimes that desire to protect students needs to be balanced against a respect for the school community. Requiring background checks of volunteers will necessarily alienate parents who are undocumented or those who have criminal records, but for nonviolent crimes or incidents from many years prior that wouldn’t necessarily make them a danger to current students. Administrators must use judgment to consider extenuating circumstances while protecting the children in their care.

 

The point about screening volunteers beyond those who work with students, however, is also a good one. Schools now collect a wealth of data that can be lucrative if stolen, and knowing whether a willing volunteer has been charged with white collar crime before offering to work in the office is important.