Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown

Prospective Employee Background Check

All prospective employees of the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown Elementary Schools must complete / provide results of the following background checks:

Youth Protection

The prospective employee must register and complete an on-line course in youth protection. The prospective employee must go to the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown website at www.dioceseaj.org and then select the Youth Protection tab, following the directions thereafter. Once the prospective employee has successfully completed the Youth Protection Course and the documentation of such completion has been sent by the prospective employee to the Diocese, the Diocese will so advise the Principal.

Fingerprint Check (Act 114)

The prospective employee must register for a fingerprint check by going to www.pa.cogentid.com and printing a copy of the completed registration form. The icon for PA Department of Education must be chosen. The prospective employee must follow the directions to register online. The website also contains the sites and times available for fingerprint checks. After being fingerprinted, the prospective employee must provide a copy of the registration form and results containing the Registration ID to the Diocese (Education Office) and the Diocese will subsequently advise the Principal of the results. If a prospective employee has a fingerprint check that is less than 1 year old, the results of that check may be used. If prior results are more than 1 year old, a new check must be done as described above.

PA Child Abuse Clearance (Act 151)

The prospective employee must complete and submit the Pennsylvania Child Abuse Clearance Form directly to the Department of Public Welfare. The form is CY 113 and can be found at www.dhs.state.pa.us and going to the “Find a Form” tab. Prospective employees may also submit for this clearance online at https://www.compass.state.pa.us/CWIS. The results of the check will be submitted to the prospective employee who in turn must provide the original copy of these results to the Diocese (Education Office).

PA Criminal History Check (Act 34)

The prospective employee must complete a criminal background check by registering at https://epatch.state.pa.us and submitting the original copy of the results to the Diocese (Education Office).

Mandated Reporting Education (Act 126)

The prospective employee must complete a workshop in Mandated Reporting offered by Appalachia Intermediate Unit 08. To obtain a schedule for the workshops and to register, the prospective employee can go to www.iu08.org and under the tab “Workshops and Training”, select Act 126 Mandated Reporting. The prospective employee can then register for a workshop by selecting a date from the schedule. After completing the workshop, the prospective employee must provide a copy of the certification of completion to the Diocese (Education Office).

Arrest / Conviction Report and Certification (Act 24)

The prospective employee must complete the Arrest / Conviction Report and Certification Form (PDE6004) required under Act 24 of 2011. The form can be found at www.pde.state.pa.us, selecting the Forms & Documents tab and entering “PDE-6004” under the Document Search section. By completing and signing this form, the prospective employees obligates himself or herself to, if hired, report within 72 hours any arrest or conviction of a reportable offense to the Diocese (Education Office).

School Employment History Checks (Act 2014-168)

The prospective employee must provide information regarding prior employment history. The prospective employee must supply a list that includes his / her current employer as well as his / her prior employers that (a) were school entities, or (b) were jobs at which the applicant had direct contact with children. The prospective employee must complete the Sexual Misconduct / Abuse Disclosure Release and provide a copy of this release to all employers noted in (a) or (b) above. The disclosure release requests the following information from each prior employer:

While employed by your company, was this individual the subject of an abuse or sexual misconduct investigation by any employer, licensing agency, law enforcement agency or child protective services, unless the investigation resulted in a finding that the allegation was false.

While employed by your company, was this individual ever disciplined, discharged, non-renewed, asked to resign from employment or has ever resigned from or otherwise separated from any employment while allegations of any abuse or misconduct were pending or under investigation.

While employed by your company, was the professional license or certificate of this individual ever suspended or revoked due to allegations of abuse or sexual misconduct.

Continued Employment

Clearances

All employees of Diocesan Elementary Schools who continue employment are required to provide updated clearances every 36 months. The procedure is the same for obtaining each clearance. The updated clearance date must be within 36 months of the previous clearance date. If any of the updated clearances are not provided by the 36-month expiration, the employee may not return to work until the clearance is provided. The following clearances must be updated:

FBI Fingerprinting (Act 114)
PA Child Abuse (Act 151)
PA Criminal History (Act 34)

The Diocese (Education Office) will notify employees via letter / email approximately six (6) months prior to the expiration date of current clearances to ensure their awareness that updated clearances will be due. Employees will be provided a deadline that may not be exactly 36 months from their initial clearance date, as notifications will be grouped together based on the month of expiration.

Mandated Reporter (Act 126)

After taking the initial training, all employees are required to maintain Mandated Reporter Training hours. Each employee must take three (3) hours of training every five (5) years to maintain up-to-date information and requirements.