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LexisNexis; Nonprofit Audit Delivers Industry Leading Background Screening Insights, Trends And Best
LexisNexis Risk Solutions released its 2012 Nonprofit Screening Review, The Power of Positive Information, a comprehensive analysis of volunteer and employee background checks conducted by LexisNexis for nonprofit organizations between 2007 and 2011.
The study reveals a compelling story of how background screening continues to help nonprofits manage risk and protect those they serve.
The analysis found that for five consecutive years hit rates for criminal background checks have dropped from seven percent in 2007 to 5.3 percent in 2011, which means that fewer background criminal searches have resulted in matching criminal records.
The analysis also includes nonprofit screening statistics, trends and best practices, and program recommendations.
"LexisNexis understands the risk challenges faced by nonprofits, and our goal is to help them promote a safe, secure environment, and help them do it more efficiently by using fewer financial and administrative resources," said Lee Rivas, senior vice president and general manager, Screening, LexisNexis.
"The results of the study demonstrate that our background screening programs are working for nonprofit organizations and underscore the importance of continued screening vigilance at nonprofits since nearly one-fourth of the records included in the audit were for serious offenses."
"As an organization that serves children, background screening is absolutely critical to Boys & Girls Clubs. The benchmarking metrics and best practices within the LexisNexis 2012 Nonprofit Screening Review help us to strengthen our safety efforts, resulting in reduced risk," said Les Nichols, Vice President, Club Safety & Design, Boys & Girls Clubs of America.
"We mandate screening for all volunteers and employees who work directly with children to maximize their protection and safety, our highest priority."
Of the more than 5.4 million background checks conducted by nonprofits from 2007 to 2011, 22 percent of the criminal hits revealed serious offenses including drug-related, sex-related, murder, kidnapping or were registered sex offenders.
More specifically, the 479,000 individuals with criminal convictions included:
- 91,607 drug-related offenses, including possession and distribution;
- 10,438 sex-related offenses;
- 1,178 murder offenses;
- 1,021 registered sex offenders; and
- 603 kidnapping offenses.
The study also shares best practices and program recommendations to help organizations maximize program strength and operating efficiencies.
Key concepts explored include:
- Program centralization: developing a standard screening policy that is automated across all branch locations to boost program efficiency and effectiveness.
- Volunteer rescreening: an initiative that keeps organizations updated about evolving risk.
- Expanding minimum screening requirements: supplement a national criminal database search with a county-level search to enhance program strength.
To learn about these nonprofit trends, best practices, recommendations and much more, you can access and read the full review at http://www.lexisnexis.com/nonprofit.
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