A chaperone is a volunteer who accompanies students on school-sponsored single day field trips and/or trips involving an overnight stay.
"Direct contact with children" - Possibility of care, supervision, guidance or control of children by a volunteer and/or routine interaction with children.
"Routine interaction" - Regular and repeated contact that is integral to a person's volunteer responsibilities.
Final determination of a volunteer’s status is the responsibility of the principal or assistant principal.
Chaperones shall be required, in advance of their first overnight trip and/or single day field trip during a school year, to obtain and submit to the building principal for approval:
**Chaperones are excused from obtaining the Act 114 (FBI Criminal Background) clearance if the individual has been a resident of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
during the entirety of the previous 10-year period AND submits an
affidavit attesting that they have not perpetrated or been convicted of any offense that would preclude their employment by the School District under Act 34 (Criminal History), Act 114 (FBI Criminal Background), or Act 151 (Child Abuse) or Section 6344(C) of the Child Protective Services Law.
Once the required clearances are on file with the School District, the chaperone will be required, on an annual basis, to sign
PDE 6004 Arrest/Conviction Report and Certification Form that they have not perpetrated or been convicted of any offense that would preclude their employment by the School District under Act 34 (Criminal History) or Act 151 (Child Abuse).
Chaperones will be required to renew their Act 34 Criminal History Report, Act 151 (Child Abuse) Clearance Statement and Act 114 (FBI Criminal Background) clearance in the event of a break in continuous service
Chaperones whose reports and clearances are more than five (5) years old as of August 31, 2015, must obtain and provide new reports and clearances in order to continue as volunteers/chaperones thereafter. Program volunteers whose reports and clearances will become five-years old must obtain and provide new reports and clearances before the five-year anniversary date(s) of those reports or clearances in order to continue as volunteers.
Chaperones are required to renew their clearances every 5 years or sooner if there is a break in continuous service.
Prior to performing services for the School District, chaperones who are in direct contact with children for more than 10 hours per week are required to undergo a tuberculosis examination not more than three months before volunteering in accordance with regulations of the Pennsylvania Department of Health and to furnish such report to the School District. As long as the volunteer maintains continuous service within the District, this exam does not need to be repeated. However, any break in service would require a new tuberculosis test.
Each volunteer shall affirm in writing that he or she has been provided with a copy of, has read, understands, and agrees to comply with Shaler Area School Board Policy 916.1.