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By Michael Childs
Beginning this semester, UGA students seeking admission to teacher education status are required to undergo a criminal background check.
The background check, which includes fingerprinting and a check of national and state criminal databases, is conducted by the UGA Police Department. Each student must pay a
$10 fee for the processing.
Teacher education is the formal status that enables students to enroll in specific professional education courses, including but not limited to student teaching.
“We’re doing it for two reasons,” says Don Schneider, interim associate dean of the College of Education. “First, some school systems are now beginning to require such checks as a pre-condition for placing UGA students in their schools. And second, to protect the university from liability should the college place a student with a criminal record in a field setting without running a background check.”
School systems in Cobb, Houston and Jackson counties are among those requiring background checks of student teachers.
“Houston requires it, but they won’t do the check themselves. So we currently are not placing anyone in that county,” says Schneider. “Jackson County handles it themselves. They just ask our student teachers to go to the sheriff’s office for a check.”
Any record of felony convictions or other serious crimes--especially those involving drugs, sex or violence--may result in a decision to withhold recommendation for placement in a school or clinical setting involving children or youth. This might prevent a student from completing the program of study.
Students will be advised of this requirement at the orientation session, in general literature about teacher education requirements, and at the initial advising session. Students will be advised to discuss with a senior administrator any problematic areas in their background.
Background checks for students currently in teacher education will begin spring semester 2000.
Prospective teachers are already subject to a background check when they apply for certification from the Professional Practices and Standards Commission. The application asks if an applicant has ever been arrested or convicted, but does not require a full-scale check with fingerprinting. An additional background check is required when a new teacher is employed by a school system.
Other teacher-education schools in the state requiring such a background check include Valdosta State, Georgia State and Mercer universities.
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