Berkeley County, SC Passes Policy Requiring Background Checks on Volunteers

The Berkeley County School Board just approved a new policy Tuesday night mandating that school volunteers now have to undergo a State Law Enforcement Division background check. This policy applies to volunteers who mentor students, tutor one-on-one, or attend overnight functions with students.

Keith Kornahrens, a volunteer who reads with the students at Berkeley Intermediate School, states, “I think it’s a great idea. They’re predators everywhere, and children are the subject of those predators. I don’t mind submitting myself to a background check, and it makes me feel good to know that others do the same, that we’re protecting our kids from predators”.

Mike Shaw, the assistant principal at Berkeley Intermediate School, says it is a necessary step and adds, “We have approximately 75 to a 100 volunteers come in on a regular basis. We have to make sure. There is no le way for a problem to happen or for a student to have something to happen to them on school ground.”

Now that the policy is in effect, the district intends to have orientations, which will allow schools to become familiar with it. They are also planning to amend the volunteer application form to include information regarding the background check.