An Administrator's Guide to California Private School Law

Chapter 3 – Hiring

2. S CHOOLS M UST F INGERPRINT A LL A PPLICANTS W HO A RE B EING C ONSIDERED F OR A P OSITION W HICH R EQUIRES C ONTACT W ITH M INOR S TUDENTS Schools must require every applicant who the school is seriously considering for a position which requires contact with minor students to submit two sets of fingerprints. 187 The school must then submit the applicant’s fingerprints to the DOJ to obtain criminal record summary information from the DOJ and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. 188 The DOJ will determine whether the applicant has been arrested or convicted of any crime and will provide this information to the school no more than 15 working days after receiving the fingerprints. 189 The DOJ will not provide a school with information regarding criminal proceedings that did not result in a conviction but will provide information on arrests pending adjudication. 190 If the DOJ notifies a school that it cannot ascertain the required information about a person, the school may not employ that person until the DOJ ascertains that information. 191 3. S CHOOLS A RE E NTITLED T O R ECORDS O F C ONVICTIONS A ND A RRESTS P ENDING A DJUDICATION F OR A PPLICANTS F OR P OSITIONS W ITH S UPERVISORY O R D ISCIPLINARY P OWER O VER M INORS Penal Code section 11105.3 provides that a school may request from the DOJ records of convictions and/or arrests pending adjudication for specified offenses (including sex offenses against minors, theft, robbery, burglary, or any felony) with regard to an applicant for employment or volunteer position in which the applicant would have supervisory or disciplinary power over a minor or any person under his or her care. The DOJ should not charge for providing this information to non-profit schools. 192 4. N OTIFICATION O F S UBSEQUENT A RRESTS After an applicant’s fingerprints are submitted, a school may enter into a contract with the DOJ to receive notification of any subsequent arrests of the applicant. 193 However, any school that submits an applicant’s fingerprints to the DOJ for the purpose of establishing a record in order to receive notification of subsequent arrests must immediately notify the department if the school does not subsequently employ the applicant. 194 Similarly, a school must immediately notify the department when an employee’s employment is terminated. 195 Upon request from a school, the DOJ will terminate subsequent arrest notification on any applicant or employee . 196 If a private school receives notification of a subsequent arrest for a person unknown to the school, or for a person no longer employed by the school, for whom subsequent arrest notification service was established, the school should immediately return the subsequent arrest notification to the DOJ, and inform the DOJ that the school is no longer interested in the applicant or former employee. 197 Under these circumstances, the school should not record or otherwise retain any information received as a result of the subsequent arrest notice. 198

An Administrator’s Guide to California Private School Law ©2019 Liebert Cassidy Whitmore 70