School Volunteer Sentenced to Prison for Sexual Assault

In Newark, New Jersey, Glenn Harp was sentenced to 15 years in prison for sexually assaulting a 7-year old girl in the elementary school where she attended and at his apartment.

The assaults took place between September 2007 and January 2008. They were uncovered when the little girl reported them to her grandmother.

During the course of the investigation, authorities learned that Harp had a prior offense and a proper background check was not conducted before placing him in the elementary school's after-school program. His prior offense was "Endanger Welfare of a Child" which he was found guilty of in 2000.

Harp will serve 15 years in prison and is required to serve 85% of his term before coming eligible for parole. He will also be required to register as a sex offender and will serve parole for the rest of his life. The family of the victim intends to sue Grove Street Elementary and the community group which runs the after-school program.

An inexpensive, quick background could have been done by this school and therefore would have saved this child from the harm that befell her. The prosecutor in the case was quoted as saying, "This case represents a stark reminder to organizations who hire volunteers to supervise children that the proper screening of candidates should always be done."

School Volunteer Convicted of Child Abuse

Penny West served as a volunteer every day at an elementary school in Tucson, Arizona, despite being found guilty of child abuse under circumstances likely to cause death in early August

Tucson Unified School District volunteers are not subjected to fingerprinting or background checks. Rather, they must disclose their criminal histories, and then the decision whether or not to allow a person with a criminal history to volunteer is left up to the principal of the school.

West and her husband, Randall West, will be sentenced on September 22nd. Both face prison time. The jury found that West acted with criminal negligence when she did not seek medical attention for the 16-month old foster child in her care. Pathologists determined that the little girl, Emily, died of blunt-force trauma to her head. West claims that Emily fell backward and hit her head, which the defense doctors said was plausible. The state's doctors contended the injury was a result of being severely shaken or that Emily was struck with something in the head.

The principal of the school where West volunteered, Chad Knippen, agreed to be a character witness on behalf of Penny West, but was never actually called to do so at the trial. He explained that West has been helping the school for years with filing, copying and putting bulletin boards together. She did not work directly with the students.

Tight budgets are a large reason why schools utilize volunteers to assist them with many tasks. However, if schools become more reliant on volunteers, they also need to rely on background checks to protect children.

Volunteer Coach with Criminal Record Arrested Again

Antwan Burnell, a former player and volunteer for the North Charleston High School basketball team in South Carolina, was arrested this past weekend for driving under the influence and drug possession.

Because the school system implemented a new policy requiring background checks on volunteers, even without this arrest Burnell would have been banned from volunteering based on his multiple previous drug charges and the prison time he served for crack-cocaine possession.

Burnell played on the basketball team and helped them to a state championship in 1997. However, after graduation, he was arrested multiple times for drug possession and had a charge of aggravated assault. During the 2006-2007 school year, Burnell worked as a volunteer statistician for the basketball team.

School officials have stated that Burnell will not be allowed near the students at the high school and his previous record would have prevented him from coming back as a volunteer as they have begun the background check process.

Volunteer Screening a Violation of Civil Rights?

As schools begin to expand their background checks for volunteers, more people are complaining about the checks, citing that their civil rights are being violated.

Robert Smith, a parent of a kindergarten student at West University Elementary School in Houston, Texas, was surprised to learn that he was required to undergo a criminal background check in order to attend his son's field day. He agreed to the background check under protest stating, "There go more of our civil rights." School officials later told him that he could have attended without a criminal background check, but he would have been required to stay behind a fence in a restricted area.

West University Elementary is also going to require criminal background checks for any parents wishing to join their children for an end of the school year celebration. The principal of the school, John Threet, has said the checks are important because not everyone in attendance can be monitored by teachers and staff.

West University Elementary is one of the schools found who is remarkably strict about running background checks, but more and more schools are adopting a policy of screening all of their volunteers. Opponents have stated that schools will lose prospective volunteers because of background checks and submitting to the checks is a violation of civil rights.

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Bill in Minnesota Would Require Background Checks for School Volunteers

A bill in Minnesota is currently on its way to the Governor of the state. The bill would require criminal background checks for certain volunteers working in schools. Some school districts are fighting this change.

Opponents of the bill have cited costs as one of their reasons for not conducting background checks, saying the school districts would not be able to afford them. Opponents also state that criminal background checks would scare potential volunteers away who may have had DWI convictions. The concern is that schools will lose needed volunteers.

Some school districts, however, are in support of the bill and feel that background checks are especially important on sports activity volunteers. They say not all criminal offenses would disqualify a person from volunteering, but the districts need to have correct information to make informed decisions.

The bill passed the Senate unanimously and passed in the House with 112-15. It is now awaiting the signature of Governor Tim Pawlenty who has expressed his support of the bill.

The requirement would include background checks on all coaches and adults who assist with extracurricular activities in schools, either employees or volunteers. It would not apply to volunteers who read to children in classrooms or who help out with other classroom activities.