BC News

Information about comptroller's audit of background checks for school district employees in New York

February 12, 2009

The Office of the New York State Comptroller released an audit on Thursday, Feb. 10 calling on the New York State Department of Education to improve its system for overseeing the required background checks for new school district employees. According to the audit, delays in the background check system led to 469 background checks for school district employees statewide that were not completed during the 2 1/2-year audit period (March 2006-August 2008).

This backlog resulted in 30 schools across New York employing individuals with a criminal history, including one employee hired during this period by Bethlehem Central, according to the audit. Although the individual hired by the district with such a background is not named in the report, Superintendent Michael Tebbano was informed by the Comptroller's Office that this persons record was not of a nature that would have prevented their hire by the district.

Additionally, none of the hires in question in the audit were permanent teachers, according to a Times-Union article about the audit.

The Safe Schools Against Violence in Education (SAVE) Act, which became effective in July 2000, requires applicants for teaching and most other positions in New York’s public schools to be checked for criminal histories. The State Education Department oversees background checks for schools outside New York City.

Dr. Tebbano said that the district fingerprints successful job candidates early in the process and immediately takes the appropriate steps when a problem comes to its attention.

The audit indicates that the State Education Department successfully processed more than 99 percent of the more than 105,000 background record requests during the audit period. According to the New York State Education Department's official response in the audit report, the department has strengthened its oversight of background checks.

"There is nothing more important than the safety of our students and staff," Dr. Tebbano said. "We are pleased that the Comptroller's Office has brought this issue to light and equally encouraged that the State Education Department reports that it has already strengthened its monitoring and oversight in this area."

"As a district, we will work to gain an understanding of the specifics of this situation to ensure that we are doing everything possible to continue to maintain the integrity of our hiring process," the superintendent continued. "Yet, it is important to keep in mind that this is one individual whose record, according to the Comptroller's Office, would not have precluded their employment in the district."

 

 

 

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