Clearance Law
Recently, Act 18 of 2020 was signed by the governor. This act amended the Child Protective Services Law (CPS Law) to, among other things, added a new Section 6387, entitled “Pandemic of 2020,” providing emergency relief to those individuals required to obtain FBI background check recertification under Section 6344.4 of the CPS Law, including school employees. Act 18 provides an extension of time until December 31, 2020, to obtain the FBI recertification. There is NO extension for the child abuse and PA criminal history. If you are choosing to delay updating the FBI clearance through the extension period, you will need to complete the district’s FBI affidavit and complete a new Act 24 form by the original FBI expiration date. These are attached below.
Service Code : 1KG6XN
Volunteers must obtain the following certifications:
- Report of criminal history from the Pennsylvania State Police (PSP); and
- Child Abuse History certification from the Department of Human Services (Child Abuse).
- A fingerprint based federal criminal history (Federal Bureau of Investigation) submitted through the Pennsylvania State Police or its authorized agent IS REQUIRED IF THE VOLUNTEER IS CHAPERONING A FIELD TRIP.
If the volunteer has been a resident of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for the entirety of the previous 10 years AND WILL ONLY BE WORKING WITH STUDENTS IN DIRECT SUPERVISION OF AN EMPLOYEE OF THE DISTRICT, they may sign the volunteer affidavit in lieu of fingerprints .
Act 126 requires professional development for all school entities in four specific areas:
The recognition and reporting of child abuse, the Pennsylvania Educator Misconduct Act and the maintenance of professional relationships with students. All employees of a school district who have direct contact with children must be trained. This training shall be a minimum of three hours and cover all required topics.
The intent of the training requirement is to protect the children of Pennsylvania by ensuring that all those working with them understand how to recognize and report suspected child abuse.
You can access free online training by going to the Pennsylvania Child Welfare Resource Center.
Or contact 717-795-9048
Register for the Mandated and Permissive Reporting in Pennsylvania Online Training
Instructions:
- Go to www.reportabusepa.pitt.edu
- Click the "Registration" link at the top of the page.
- Please make sure to complete all fields accurately. Please refer to the frequently asked questions (FAQ) section after you login.
- This course is approved for 3 continuing education credits and has been approved by the PA Department of Human Services and Department of State to meet mandated reporting (Act 31) license requirements. All other licensing-related questions should be referred to your respective Board(s).
Upon completion of the course you will be prompted to print out the Mandated Reporter Training Certificate.
Please send a copy of the certificate to the Human Resources office within 30 days of your hire date or re certification date.