Urbana School District Uses Own Equipment for Background Checks
In-House Fingerprinting Saves Time and Money
The Urbana School District has streamlined its background check process by acquiring an electronic fingerprinting machine. All new hires and school volunteers submit to a background check, where they are fingerprinted, and those prints are sent to the state crime lab and the FBI. A new volunteer or hire may not work with children until the background check is complete.
Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources Gayle Jeffries says this streamlined background check has several advantages. "We can access the information directly from the state and from the FBI much quicker. We're able to get that person in (to the school) a lot sooner," Jeffries says.
Previously, the Urbana School District partnered with the Champaign School District in the background checks, but it created a long backlog of candidates waiting for clearance. Jeffries says the process is streamlined. "I'm talking weeks faster. We should be able to get the information within three to five days," Jeffries explains.
The in-house background check process will also save the school district money. Jeffries says even with acquiring the fingerprinting machine and hiring a part-time staffer to coordinate the background checks, District 116 will save between $20,000 and $30,000 annually if this procedure is done in-house. "It is much cheaper to do it ourselves," Jeffries comments.
New hires or new volunteers will have to make an appointment to come to the Urbana School District #116 Central Office at 205 North Race Street. The candidate will fill out background check information and submit electronic fingerprints.
District 116 fingerprints hundreds of new hires and new volunteers each year. Jeffries says, "I think that it will be an annual savings (in time and expense) for the district."