Volunteers
2023-2024 Volunteer Applications
Volunteer Board Policy
Board Policy
Community Relations BP 1240
Volunteer Assistance
The Governing Board recognizes that volunteer assistance in schools can enrich the educational program, increase supervision of students, and contribute to school safety while strengthening the schools' relationships with the community. The Board encourages parents/guardians and other members of the community to share their time, knowledge, and abilities with students.
The Superintendent or designee shall develop and implement a plan for recruiting, screening, and placing volunteers, including strategies for reaching underrepresented groups of parents/guardians and community members. He/she may also recruit community members to serve as mentors to students and/or make appropriate referrals to community organizations.
The Board prohibits harassment of any volunteer on the basis of race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, sexual orientation, or military and veteran status.
As appropriate, the Superintendent or designee shall provide volunteers with information about school goals, programs, and practices and an orientation or other training related to their specific responsibilities. Employees who supervise volunteers shall ensure that volunteers are assigned meaningful responsibilities that utilize their skills and expertise and maximize their contribution to the educational program.
Volunteer work shall be limited to those projects that do not replace the normal duties of classified staff. The Board nevertheless encourages volunteers to work on short-term projects to the extent that they enhance the classroom or school, and comply with employee negotiated agreements.
The Superintendent or designee shall establish procedures for determining the qualification, if any, required by law and administrative regulations for the types of duties they will perform.
Volunteers shall act in accordance with district policies, regulations, and school rules. The Superintendent or designee shall be responsible for investigating and resolving complaints regarding volunteers.
The Board encourages principals to develop a means for recognizing the contributions of each school's volunteers.
The Superintendent or designee shall periodically report to the Board regarding the district's volunteer assistance program.
Qualifications
The Superintendent or designee shall establish procedures for determining whether volunteers possess the qualifications, if any, required by law and administrative regulation for the types of duties they will perform.
Prior to assuming a volunteer position to work with students in a district-sponsored student activity program, a volunteer shall obtain both a Department of Justice and Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal background check through the district, and a clear tuberculosis test.
A volunteer who possesses a current Activity Supervisor Clearance Certificate from the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, issued prior to July 9, 2010, shall have satisfied district requirements for the criminal background check.
Administrative Regulation
Community Relations AR 1240
Volunteer Assistance
Definitions
Volunteers may supervise students during lunch, breakfast, or other nutritional periods or may serve as non-teaching aides under the immediate supervision and direction of certificated personnel to perform non-instructional work which assists certificated personnel in the performance of teaching and administrative responsibilities. (Education Code 35021, 44814, 44815)
Volunteers may work on short-term facilities projects pursuant to Board policy and the section below entitled "Volunteer Facilities Projects."
In no case is a lone volunteer allowed to work one-on-one with a single student without an employee present. Volunteers are also encouraged not to bring non students to the site during volunteer hours.
Facilities project volunteers may work on short-term facilities projects pursuant to Governing Board policy and this regulation.
Qualification of Volunteers
Tuberculosis Testing
All volunteers except full-time enrolled K-12 students of HUSD shall submit evidence, at least once every four years, that they are free from active tuberculosis pursuant to Education Code 49406. (Education Code 45106, 45347, 45349, 49406)
All volunteers, including those working in child care and development programs shall be tested for tuberculosis within 60 days before or within seven days after the volunteer service begins. Staff shall also maintain annual follow up reports indicating that the volunteer is free from tuberculosis. (5 CCR 18168)
Volunteers providing supervision or instruction of students pursuant to Education Code 45349 shall give evidence of basic skills proficiency. (Education Code 45344.5, 45349)
Fingerprinting
All volunteers who supervise, direct, or coach "student activity programs” must obtain an Activity Supervisor Clearance Certificate (ASCC) from the Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC). Candidates for the certificate must complete the fingerprint process and meet the character and professional fitness requirements of the CTC by submitting to state and federal criminal record checks (AB1025). In lieu of of the ASCC, volunteers must have a clear background check from the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) (AB 346).
Volunteer supervisors for breakfast, lunch, or other nutritional periods pursuant to Education Code (EC) §§44814 and 44815 and non-teaching volunteer s assistants under the immediate supervision and direction of certificated personnel of the district pursuant to EC §35021 are exempt from the ASCC requirement but are still subject to district fingerprint requirements as stipulated below.
"Student activity programs" include, but are not limited to, scholastic programs, interscholastic programs, and extracurricular activities sponsored by the district or a school booster club, such as cheer team, drill team, dance team, and marching band. This requirement shall also apply to volunteer supervisors for breakfast, lunch, or other nutritional periods and to volunteer non-teaching aides under the immediate supervision and direction of certificated personnel pursuant to Education Code 35021, including parents/guardians volunteering in a classroom or on a field trip or community members providing non-instructional services. (Education Code 49024)
The Superintendent or designee will require all volunteers to disclose their status as a registered sex offender and/or provide the district with sufficient information in order to allow verification of this status on the Department of Justice's Megan's Law web site.
Before authorizing any person to serve as a volunteer, a fingerprint background check with the DOJ/FBI, will be conducted by the Human Resources Department.
All volunteers in child care and development programs shall be fingerprinted for criminal record clearance. (Health and Safety Code 1596.871).
Volunteers accompanying students in field trips or overnight trips must be fingerprinted.
Under no circumstances, shall any non-fingerprinted volunteer have unsupervised access to students.
Volunteer Application Procedure
- The school will provide each prospective volunteer with a volunteer application packet that is to be completed by the volunteer and submitted to the principal or his or her designee of the school site where the person requests to volunteer.
- The application packets will consist of an application form, supplemental questionnaire, and volunteer commitments/ policies form.
- Tuberculosis test results shall be provided to the school by the prospective volunteer. A TB Risk Assessment Questionnaire may be submitted in lieu of a skin test or chest x-ray.
- Completed applications will be reviewed by the principal or his or her designee. If the volunteer meets the applicable requirements for volunteer service in the District, the principal or his or her designee will provide the prospective volunteer with an authorization form and ask them to contact the Human Resources Department for fingerprinting.
- Fingerprint results will be forwarded by the Department of Justice to the District’s Human Resources Department. Tuberculosis test results should be provided to the Human Resources Department by the prospective volunteer. The Human Resources Department shall notify the principal or his or her designee whether the prospective volunteer meets all of the requirements for volunteer service in the District.
- The principal or designee will notify the prospective volunteer when they are approved to volunteer. No person shall be permitted to serve as a volunteer in the District until they are approved to provide volunteer service.
- All volunteers, including parents, will be required to sign in and sign out in the visitor/volunteer book, located in the main office at each school site. Teachers and staff shall refer any person who did not sign in the visitor/volunteer book back to the office.
- The Principal shall review the District's volunteer policy at the first staff meeting of the new school year.
Community volunteers shall provide a completed application and tuberculosis results to the Office of the Superintendent. Once approved, the prospective volunteer will be referred to Human Resources for fingerprinting.
Volunteers shall act in accordance with district policies, regulations and school rules. The District is under no obligation to accept, place, or continue the services of any volunteer. Site Administration may ask any volunteer who violates school rules, Board Policies or Administrative regulations to leave the campus. The Superintendent or designee shall be responsible for investigating and resolving complaints regarding volunteers. Parents will be informed by the site administration of their rights to appeal the decision using the Uniform Complaint process.
Revised: October 9, 2013