Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Background Checks Possible

State Representative

Percy Malone

Legislators may soon consider proposed laws to expand criminal background checks for school personnel who routinely come into contact with children.

The General Assembly in 1995 approved legislation requiring criminal background checks, including fingerprinting, for first-time applicants for teaching licenses. A new proposal has been developed for consideraton by the next General Assembly to require backbround checks for in-service teachers when they renew their licenses or when they transfer their employment from one school district to another in Arkansas.

The background checks also would apply to all certified personnel. Separate legislation has been drafted to extend the backround checks as well to all non-certified personnel, such as school bus drivers, cafeteria workers and janitors.

Another part of the background-check proposal would be to add 14 crimes to the list of 14 existing crimes that, if discovered in a teacher's backgound, would be grounds for revocation or denial of a teaching license. Current law provides due process to those affected by the restrictions.

In addition, the proposal would establish strong penalties for school administrators who knowingly fail to investigate allegations of criminal misconduct by a school district employee involving a student. School districts also could face sanctions for failing to report to the State Board of Education cases in which teaches plead guilty, nolo contendre or are found guilty of certain criminal offenses.

Arkansas is one of at least four states requiring background checks for school personnel. According to news report, the state of Georgia has a law requiring background checks for all certified and support personnel when they are hired and again if they move to another school district. Superintendents can lose their licenses if they know knowledge of alleged criminal offenses by teachers and so not report them immediately to the state.

The state of Utah has had a background check law since 1991. It requires checks for first-time applicants, teachers moving in from out of state, student teachers and any teachers who allow a license to expire for more than six months.

Florida's 1984 background check law applies to all teachers entering the profession and in 1988 was expanded to include support personnel.

According to the Arkansas department of Education, more than 500 criminal background checks have been conducted since July 1, 1996, for first-time applicants for teaching licenses. No check has resulted in licensure denial.

Once an applicant passes a state-level background check, he or she receives a provisional certificate while an FBI check is conducted. While final action on some FBI checks are pending, final reports on more than 400 applicants has yet to produce a denial for a teaching license.