Background Check Policy

TRINITY BACKGROUND CHECK POLICY

Trinity School places high value on providing a safe and secure environment for its students. One of the ways we strive to ensure this safety and security is by conducting background checks on all employees and all others who come into direct contact with Trinity students.

I. Background Checks for New Hires

All candidates offered a position at Trinity School must have a background check performed. The candidate should be informed that the offer to be employed is contingent on a successful background check. Due to the possibility of obtaining information received from a background check that may cause prejudice in a hiring decision (e.g., age of the applicant), no background check may be done on a candidate unless and until a position has first been offered.

II. Background Checks for Trinity Employees

All Trinity employees will have background checks at least every three years. The Business Office will keep an electronic copy of the employee’s most recent background check and a spreadsheet of current employees with the year of the most recent background check. The list of employees who will have a background check in a particular year will be a confidential document.

III. Background Checks for Coaches

All coaches are to have background checks performed on a yearly basis. This also includes unpaid and volunteer coaches.

IV. Background Checks for Substitute Teachers and Tutors

Substitute teachers are employees of Trinity School.  As employees, the subs will have an initial background check and will join the three-year rotation for employees as stated in section II above.

Tutors are neither employees nor contractors of Trinity School but may be allowed to work with Trinity students on campus. Tutors should show the Trinity Business Office that they have had successful background checks performed within the last 2 years or authorize a background check to be done by Trinity School’s screening company. The cost of the background check is the responsibility of the tutor.

V. Background Checks for Volunteers, Chaperones, and Drivers

Whether a background check is necessary for a volunteer will be determined by the possibility of unsupervised time with Trinity students. For example, a volunteer with the Robotics team who will be the only adult supervising the students on a school night or a weekend would be asked to have a background check done; a volunteer who helps with the Hot Lunch program will not. A Trinity employee needing advice on a particular situation may enlist the help of the Business Office in determining whether a check needs to be done.

A parent or volunteer who agrees to chaperone students on an overnight event will be asked to have a background check done. A driving record check will be performed as well. A parent or volunteer who is a chaperone on a day trip or field trip will not have to have a background check, but will need to have a motor vehicle report completed if they are driving Trinity students.

A driver with more than two moving violations in the seven-year period checked will not be allowed to drive Trinity students. 

Note: Social Security number and date of birth are now required by Trinity's screening company to obtain a driving record check.

VI. Background Checks for Summer Camp Workers

All summer camp workers who are not current Trinity employees must have a background check done before their camp begins. If a summer camp worker has documentation of a successful background check within the spring or summer of the same year, it will be accepted by Trinity School.

VII. Background Checks for Contractors Working on Campus

Whether a background check is necessary for a contractor will be determined by the contact time with Trinity students. Contractors may provide documentation of a recent background check in lieu of having a new one done by Trinity’s screening company.