Criminal Background Checks - Human Resources Policy and Procedures

The Davis Technical College (College) strives to create an environment where all persons may safely learn, work, and visit. This policy shall regulate the employment of individuals whose criminal background demonstrates an unreasonable risk to the College environment. This policy establishes a requirement for criminal background checks on final job applicants, current employees, and volunteers at the College and provides guidance for adjudicating such matters.

1. Utah Code Annotated, Section 53E-6-401 State System of Public Education, Background Checks
2. Utah Code Annotated, Section 53G-11-4 Background Checks
3. Utah Code Annotated, Section 53H-3-402 Criminal Background Checks of Prospective and Existing Employees of Higher Education Institutions
4. Utah System of Higher Education Policy and Procedure R-847 Criminal Background Checks
5. Utah System of Higher Education Policy and Procedure R-165 Concurrent Enrollment
6. Davis Technical College Disciplinary Sanctions of Personnel Policy

1. Background Check – a commercial or governmental process of searching public records to determine whether an individual has been convicted of criminal conduct anywhere in the United States of America within no less than the last seven years.
2. Diminished Capacity Adult – a person who lacks decision making capacity which requires: (1) possession of a set of values and goals; (2) the ability to communicate and to understand information; and (3) the ability to reason and to deliberate about one's choices.
3. Employee – any individual who receives compensation for work or services from funds controlled by the College or an individual who has received and accepted a legitimate offer of employment from an appropriate hiring authority – typically Human Resources personnel.
4. Minor – a person younger than 21 years of age as established by Utah Code Section 53H-3-402.
5. Reasonable Cause – May exist with respect to a position or an employee. As to a position, reasonable cause exists such that a periodic criminal background check for any employee holding a security sensitive position is warranted. As to an individual, reasonable cause exists where the known facts and circumstances about a particular employee are sufficient to warrant, by a person of reasonable prudence, that the employee poses an unreasonable risk to persons or property and/or that a history or report of a crime will be found.
6. Security-sensitive Positions – positions whose duties require, provide for, or encompass the potential to incur human, financial or property loss or other harm to the College and its constituents. A security-sensitive position includes at least one of the following elements:
   1. access to and significant contact with minors, or to diminished capacity adults.
   2. relationships with students where exceptional trust and responsibility are involved, such as instructors, counselors, and health care providers.
   3. responsibility for providing direct medical care, treatment, or counseling and/or access to pharmaceuticals, toxins, hazardous or controlled substances.
   4. direct access to laboratory materials and other property that have the potential of being diverted from their proper use either for financial gain or for harmful, dangerous, or illegal purposes.
   5. decision making authority for committing College funds or financial resources through contracts and commitments and/or direct access to or responsibility for handling cash, checks, credit/debit cards or cash equivalents, College property, disbursements, or receipts.
   6. access to building master control and key systems.
   7. access to confidential information or sensitive personal information such as employment, health, donor, financial and other records, including data that could facilitate identity theft.
   8. access to and responsibility for the maintenance, upgrading, and repair of the College’s computer networks and/or information technology systems.
   9. Besides College-wide designations of security sensitive positions, individual departments may be subject to additional restrictions, requirements, laws or regulations.
7. Significant Contact – an employee position involves significant contact with persons under the age of 21 if there is a reasonable expectation that in the course of the normal, routine responsibilities of the position, the employee and a person under the age of 21 would interact on a one-on-one basis. For example, instructors with office consultations, mentors, counselors, test center employees, and advisors could all reasonably expect to interact one-on-one with students as a normal, routine part of their work and hence would have "significant contact" with one or more persons under the age of 21 during the course of their employment.

1. Administration of Background Investigation – The Human Resources department shall be responsible for administering applicant criminal background checks on volunteers and employees.
   1. The College shall establish and maintain a contract with a qualified federal, state, or local agency or reputable subcontracted firm that provides criminal background checks. The agency/firm must be able to perform federal/nationwide criminal background checks on an individual for at least the last seven years.
2. Required Background Checks – Employees of the College must submit to a criminal background check as a condition of employment.
   1. Background Checks for Volunteers and Independent Contractors – All volunteers or contracted trainers who serve in any capacity which involves significant, unsupervised contact with minors, must submit to a criminal background check.
3. Processing of Background Investigations – Background investigations shall be completed prior to an employee assuming any duties with the College. In the rare case that it is necessary for the employee to assume their duties immediately, the offer of employment shall note that a criminal background check is in process and that the offer and continued employment shall be contingent on the result of that check. Such circumstances require the approval of the cognizant Vice President or President.
4. Background Checks for Existing Employees/Frequency – The College participates in the RapBack program with the Utah Bureau of Criminal Investigations, which provides continual notification of criminal history. Anytime an employee’s criminal history is updated, the College will be notified of the new information.
   1. In the case of an incident in which an employee or volunteer is arrested or charged with an offense which causes concern for the safety and well-being of students, or concern for the protection of College property, or concern for the public image and reputation of the College, they are required to notify their immediate supervisor or the Associate Vice President of Human Resources (or Lead HR Generalist/cognizant Vice President if unavailable) within 48 hours. The employee is expected to continue working scheduled hours unless directed otherwise or in legal custody. Until the charge has been disposed of, the employee or volunteer may be suspended from having any contact with students and/or property or placed on administrative leave or suspension until the case is resolved. If a pending charge results in a conviction, disciplinary action, including continued suspension and/or termination, may result. See Disciplinary Sanctions of Personnel Policy.
5. Background Check for Former Employees – A background check is not necessary for individuals who were previously employed by the College and remain in the Rapback program.

Applicants – Applicants who have received and accepted a legitimate offer of employment from an appropriate hiring authority may be requested to self-disclose their criminal history involving felonies or misdemeanors. Expunged records or juvenile delinquency records are not required to be disclosed.

1. Fingerprint Background Check – An applicant or employee subject to a criminal background check under this section will be required to be fingerprinted and consent to a fingerprint background check by the Utah Bureau of Criminal Identification, the Federal Bureau of Investigation or another government or commercial entity.
   1. Written Release of Information – The College shall obtain a written and signed release of information form from individuals to conduct a criminal history background check and any other consumer report which may reasonably be required for the position.
2. Protection of Privacy – Information obtained from criminal background self-reports and criminal background checks will be handled to protect the privacy of the employee.
3. Payment of Costs – The College shall pay the costs for fingerprinting and processing background history checks, of applicants, employees, and volunteers.
4. Consumer-Reporting Agency Criminal History Background Check – The College may determine to use a consumer-reporting agency to conduct a criminal history background check instead of or in addition to the Utah Bureau of Criminal Investigations. A consumer-reporting agency may also be utilized to conduct required financial/credit history checks as referenced in 5.7.
   1. Minimum Requirements – At a minimum, the consumer-reporting agency must conduct an investigation to verify the applicant or employee's social security number and search the individual's criminal background nationwide in the individual's counties of residence for the last seven years.
5. Criminal Background Check (CBC) Adjudication –
   1. If a background check reveals a criminal background, which may or may not have been disclosed by the applicant or employee, Human Resources personnel (“HR”) initiates a consultative process to evaluate and adjudicate the CBC results, in accordance with this policy and the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
   2. An initial review of CBC results is conducted by HR to identify any felony or misdemeanor convictions. If the CBC results contain no convictions, with the exception of minor motor vehicle related violations, HR will clear the individual for hire to (or continuation in) the position and notify the hiring authority. In the event a CBC report includes felony or misdemeanor convictions which were not self-disclosed by the individual, the individual will generally not be cleared for hire due to falsification.
   3. In the event there is a discrepancy between what the individual self-disclosed and what was reported on the CBC, HR may confer with the individual and/or the hiring authority as appropriate before adjudicating the CBC. In the event that a serious misdemeanor(s) or a felony conviction(s) is/are reported, and a consensus has not been reached in the initial conference with the hiring authority, HR will form an ad hoc risk evaluation committee comprised of the College’s legal counsel, the cognizant Vice President/President, and Security personnel. HR will consult with this committee to perform an assessment of the overall risk posed to persons and property and to evaluate employment eligibility. The committee may determine that additional documentation is necessary to inform the decision. Legal counsel’s input will be strongly considered by the committee. The risk assessment will include:
      • the number of crimes committed,
      • the severity or violent nature of those crimes,
      • the length of time since they were committed,
      • the likelihood of recidivism,
      • the involvement of students or minors in the offense,
      • the security sensitivity of the position sought by the applicant or held by the existing employee, and
      • other factors that may be relevant.
6. Opportunity To Respond – Before an individual is denied employment or an employee is subjected to an adverse employment action based on information obtained in the criminal background report, the applicant or employee shall receive a notice of the reasons for denial or the adverse action, a written description of their rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, and shall have an opportunity to respond to the reasons and any information received as a result of the criminal background check. If an applicant disagrees with the accuracy of any information in the report and notifies the human resources office of the College within three (3) business days of their receipt of the report, the College shall provide a reasonable opportunity to address the information contained in the report.
7. Financial/Credit Check – If an applicant is applying for, or an employee holds, a security sensitive position with access to sensitive personal information or financial responsibilities over the funds of the College or others, the vice president supervising that area may require an additional financial/credit check to be performed.
8. Credential Checks – If the position requires a credential such as a degree, certification, or license, the College may obtain a copy of the applicant's degree transcripts or license documentation. In the event a credential check does not confirm the claimed credential the individual may not be cleared for hire due to falsification.