• GBQ: Criminal Records Check

    Policy

    The Board shall request from the Superintendent of the Bureau of Criminal Identification (BCI) and Investigation and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) criminal record checks of candidates under final consideration for employment or appointment in the District. If the candidates are responsible for the care, custody or control of students.

    The Board may employ persons responsible for the care, custody or control of students on the condition that the candidate submit to and pass a BCI criminal record check in accordance with the Ohio Revised Code. Applicants are given a separate written statement informing them that the Board may use a criminal record check as part of the initial hiring process and at various times during the employment career and that a satisfactory criminal record check is a precondition for employment with the District. This notice must be on a separate document, which only contains this notice. The applicant has written authorization to obtain criminal record checks must be obtained prior to obtaining a criminal record check from any consumer-reporting agency or the BCI. However, information obtainable through public records, such as a criminal court docket, does not require written authorization. Once a District employee has given, authorization for criminal records checks to be conducted throughout their employment, further authorizations are not required, but the disclosure and notice provisions still apply. Applicants may be charged a fee for the costs incurred in obtaining a criminal record check, but such fee shall not exceed the fee paid by the Board to the BCI. Any person conditionally hired who fails to pass a BCI or FBI criminal records check shall be released from employment.

    Prior to taking an adverse action against an applicant or employee (such as declining to employ, reassigning an employee, denying a promotion, suspension, nonrenewal or termination) based in whole or in part on a criminal record check, the applicant or employee will be given a written pre-adverse action disclosure statement which will include a copy of the criminal record check and the Federal Trade Commission’s notice entitled “A Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.”

    After the District takes an adverse action, the applicant or employee will be given a written adverse action notice which includes the name, address and telephone number of BCI, a statement that BCI did not make the decision to take the adverse action and cannot give specific reasons for it, the individual’s right to dispute the accuracy or completeness of any information furnished by BCI and the individual’s right to an additional free criminal record check from BCI upon request within 60 days. Any person conditionally hired who fails to pass a BCI criminal background check shall be released from employment.

    Employees in positions that do not require a license issued by the Ohio Department of Education (ODE), and do not operate vehicles used for pupil transportation, shall undergo a criminal record check every five years.

    Employees operating vehicles used for pupil transportation shall undergo a criminal record check every six years.

    Employees in positions that require a license issued by the Ohio Department of Education shall undergo a criminal background check every five years pursuant to state law and ODE licensure renewal requirements.

    An applicant for employment may provide a certified copy of a BCI and FBI criminal background check to the District in compliance with the Ohio Revised Code. The District may accept this background check in place of its own background check if the date of acceptance by the District is within one year after the date of issuance by the BCI.

    For bus driving applicants, a BCI, county or local law enforcement agency records check is required. For currently employed bus drivers, a new report is required every six years.

    Any and all information obtained by the Board or persons under this policy is confidential and shall not be released or disseminated. Any applicant not hired because of information received from the record check shall be assured that all records pertaining to such information are destroyed.

    Volunteers

    All school volunteers are subject to at least a low-level security clearance upon registration as a school volunteer. Depending upon the type of volunteer work being performed, a volunteer may be subject to a BCI or FBI criminal records check. The District notifies current and prospective volunteers who have or will have unsupervised access to students on a regular basis that such a criminal records check may be conducted at any time.

    Contractors

    Criminal records checks are required for contractors who meet the following four criteria: (1) the contractor is an employee of a private company under contract with the District to provide “essential school services”; (2) the contractor works in a position involving routine interaction with a child or regular responsibility for the care, custody or control of a child; (3) the contractor is not licensed by the Ohio Department of Education and (4) the contractor is not a bus driver

    History

    • Adopted: June 28, 2001
    • Amended: June 23, 2020

    Legal References