Federal Law (FCRA)
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) establishes the federal minimum requirements for employment background checks, including disclosure and authorization requirements, consumer rights, and the adverse action process. Many states impose additional requirements that employers must also follow.
Read FCRA OverviewAdditional Compliance Requirements
Beyond the FCRA, several sources determine the requirements for a compliant education screening program.
State Education Law
Education codes require fingerprint checks for school employees and define which offenses disqualify a person.
Certification Boards
State boards license educators, investigate misconduct, and report disciplinary actions to a national clearinghouse.
Federal Funding Terms
Federally funded education programs carry screening and recordkeeping requirements written into the award.
District Policy
Local boards set requirements for contractors, volunteers, and coaches that state law may not reach.
Recommended Screening Components
Background check components depend on access to students, whether that access is supervised, and the credential the role requires.
| Position |  SSN Trace |
 Address History |
 Form I-9 |
 Live Scan |
 County Criminal |
 National Criminal Database |
 Sex Offender |
 Credential Verification |
 Education Verification |
 Employment History |
 MVR |
 Drug Testing |
 Credit Reports |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Teacher | |||||||||||||
| Substitute Teacher | |||||||||||||
| Paraprofessional / Aide | |||||||||||||
| Coach / Athletics Staff | |||||||||||||
| Bus Driver | |||||||||||||
| Support Staff | |||||||||||||
| Contractor and Vendor Staff | |||||||||||||
| School Volunteer | |||||||||||||
| Principal / Administrator |
Fingerprint checks and certification verification are required by state education law for most positions with student access, and the covered roles are defined by each state. Bus drivers add federal commercial driver requirements. Form I-9 is required for employees.
Determined by district policy, funding terms, and insurers. Contractors and volunteers are not employees, so no Form I-9 is completed for them, and what else applies is set by district policy rather than by employment law.
Notes on This Package
State law defines who is covered and what disqualifies them. Education codes name the positions requiring fingerprint checks and list offenses that bar a person from working in a school. Some of those bars are permanent and some are time-limited, and the lists differ enough between states that a person eligible in one may not be eligible in another. Check the State Laws Overview for the states where you hire.
Certification is verified separately from the criminal search. A teaching certificate is confirmed through the state board, which also publishes disciplinary actions taken against educators. That record covers conduct findings that never became criminal charges, so it answers a different question than a criminal search does.
Adults in the building are not all employees. Transportation providers, food service companies, custodial contractors, tutoring vendors, and volunteers all reach students. Each is screened by whoever engages them, under terms the district sets rather than under employment law. A district applying a standard to staff and not to contractors leaves the larger group unscreened.
Higher education runs on a different model. Colleges are not covered by the K-12 education code, so screening follows institutional policy. Faculty hiring emphasizes credential and publication verification, while campus police, childcare centers, and youth programs carry requirements closer to the K-12 pattern.
Certification and Misconduct Records
The records most relevant to student safety are held by education agencies rather than by courts.
Certification status
State boards issue educator certificates and publish current status, including whether a certificate is active, expired, suspended, or revoked. Verification is direct through the issuing state, and an educator holding certificates in several states has a separate record in each.
Disciplinary findings
Boards investigate misconduct allegations and issue findings that can suspend or revoke a certificate. These are administrative actions, so a finding can exist with no criminal charge behind it. States report these actions to a national clearinghouse that other state agencies use when reviewing an applicant certified elsewhere.
Resignation during investigation
An educator who resigns while an allegation is pending may leave with no finding entered and no criminal record. Many states now require districts to report such separations and prohibit agreements that suppress them. A criminal search will not surface any of this, which is why certification and employment verification carry weight here.
Beyond General Education
Requirements differ by setting and by who operates the program.
| Early Childhood | Licensed childcare and preschool programs are covered by child care licensing rules, which require fingerprint checks and child abuse registry searches for staff and often for household members at home-based sites. |
| Higher Education | Screening follows institutional policy rather than the education code. Campus safety obligations, research compliance, and clinical placements each add their own requirements. |
| Private and Charter Schools | Coverage under state education law varies, and accreditation bodies or authorizers commonly set requirements that fill the gap. Religious schools may be treated differently under state law. |
| Youth Programs | After-school programs, camps, and tutoring services operate on school property without district employment. See Nonprofit. |
Screening Considerations
Statutory Disqualifiers
Education codes list offenses that bar employment, some permanently and some for a defined period. The list is set by statute, so an offense on it removes the discretion a district would otherwise have.
Certification Verification
Certificates are confirmed through the issuing state board, which also publishes disciplinary actions. An educator certified in more than one state has a separate record in each.
Misconduct Reporting
States report certification actions to a national clearinghouse used by other state agencies. Many states also require districts to report separations occurring during a pending investigation.
Contractors and Vendors
Transportation, food service, custodial, and tutoring vendors reach students without being district employees. The district sets the standard in the contract and the vendor screens its own workers.
Volunteers
Volunteer screening is set by district policy and usually scaled to whether contact is supervised. A background report on a volunteer carries the same disclosure, authorization, and adverse action obligations as a report on an applicant.
Student Transportation
School bus drivers hold a commercial license with passenger and school bus endorsements and are covered by the federal drug and alcohol testing program. See Transportation.
Substitute Pools
Substitutes move between buildings and districts and are sometimes engaged through a staffing agency. Where the agency is the employer, the screening obligations follow that relationship.
Ongoing Requirements
Certificates renew on a schedule, and some states subscribe to arrest notification for current employees. Reports obtained during employment need disclosure and authorization covering that period.
Common Questions
Are fingerprint checks required?
State education law requires them for most positions with student access. Which roles are covered is defined by each state.
What offenses disqualify a person?
Education codes list them, and some bars are permanent while others expire. The lists differ enough that eligibility can change from one state to another.
Does a certificate confirm a clean record?
It confirms current standing with the board, including any published discipline. It is verified separately from a criminal search and answers a different question.
Do volunteers get screened?
District policy decides, usually scaled to whether contact is supervised. Where a background report is ordered, the FCRA obligations apply.
Who screens school contractors?
The contractor, as their employer. The district sets the standard in the contract and collects certification that the checks were run.
Do colleges follow the same rules?
No. The K-12 education code does not cover them, so screening follows institutional policy. Childcare and youth programs on campus are the common exception.
What is the misconduct clearinghouse?
A national system where states report certification actions taken against educators. State agencies check it when reviewing an applicant certified elsewhere.
Are current employees rechecked?
Certificates renew on a schedule, and some states receive arrest notifications on current school employees. Periodic rechecks are set by state law or district policy.
Related Positions
For the package that applies to a specific role rather than the industry as a whole:
Public school districts also operate under the rules covered in Government, where civil service and public sector fair chance rules apply.
Worth Knowing
Misconduct Findings Are Not Criminal Records
State boards can suspend or revoke a certificate over conduct that was never charged as a crime. Those findings are held by education agencies and reported to a national clearinghouse. None of it appears on a criminal search.