Providence City Councilor Wants to Remove Background Check Requirement for Certain School Volunteers
Friday, October 07, 2022
Providence City Councilor John Goncalves is sponsoring a City Council resolution requesting that Providence Public schools remove the requirement of conducting national BCI checks for college students.
His proposal to remove the requirement is just for out-of-state college students.
Goncalves said that volunteers from Brown, RISD and Johnson and Wales University, and others should be exempt. He is not specific as to what colleges are included.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTAccording to Goncalves, who represents the First Ward (Fox Point, East Side), the requirement by Providence Schools that non-Rhode Island residents get national background checks is "time-consuming and expensive.”
Sexual Crimes Increasing at Schools
This is at a time when there is a dramatic increase in sex crime in schools.
According to data from the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights, as reported by the National Association of Teachers, there were 14,938 incidents of sexual violence in K–12 schools in 2017 – 2018. That was a 55% increase in incidents over the 2015-16 period.
And, another report found, “Of children in 8th through 11th grade, about 3.5 million students (nearly 7%) surveyed reported having had physical sexual contact from an adult (most often a teacher or coach). The type of physical contact ranged from unwanted touching of their body, all the way up to sexual intercourse."
And, according to U.S. Department of Education data filed by Brown University under the requirements of the Clery Act, the institution reported 32 rapes on campus in 2018 and 2019. The vast majority of those alleged rapes were conducted by Brown students.
Despite the growing trends, Goncalves believes national background checks are unnecessary.
Many Jobs Require BCI
But according to the Rhode Island Attorney General’s office, the cost of the background check is $35. Schools are not the only category that requires background checks.
Nursing home workers, firefighters, and daycare workers are just some of the industries that require BCIs.
There are more than 25 professions that are required to seek BCIs.
The resolution is co-sponsored by Councilor Nirva LaFortune - she was a Democratic candidate for mayor of Providence, but lost in the primary.
Resolution Regarding the Providence Public Schools District's New Community Partnership Policy.
WHEREAS, The Providence Public School District (PPSD) is the largest in Rhode Island and has been severely impacted by the national teacher shortage; and
WHEREAS, PPSD had 162 unfilled teaching jobs at the beginning of the current school year and 101 classrooms without a permanent, full-time certified teacher; and
WHEREAS, As a result, community partners such as local universities constitute fundamental resources to help fill the gap by offering volunteers who provide support services for the students; and
WHEREAS, Each year, Brown University alone provides over 420 volunteers to Providence Public Schools, serving over 5000 students.; and
WHEREAS, PPSD has recently adopted a new Community Partnership Policy that would require either local or national Criminal Background Checks for non-paid school personnel; and
WHEREAS, While background checks are critical to ensure the students’ safety, this new policy would dramatically reduce volunteer capacity in our schools as it would require non-Rhode Island residents to get national background checks which are time-consuming and expensive; and
WHEREAS, Hundreds of volunteers from universities, including Brown, RISD, JWU, etc. will lose the opportunity to volunteer in our schools which are already dealing with a teacher shortage; and
WHEREAS, It is imperative to facilitate the application process for volunteers and to provide students with all the resources they need to succeed academically.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Providence City Council hereby requests that PPSD and the Providence School Board remove the national BCI requisite for university students.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Providence City Council is hereby suggesting PPSD, the Providence School Board, and the Attorney General’s Office collaborate their efforts in order to find alternatives to the national BCI requisite for university students as the process is long and costly.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That upon passage, copies of this resolution be transmitted to the Mayor of Providence, PPSD, and the Providence School Board.
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