Quality In Action webinar series hosted by Mentoring Partnership of Minnesota. August 4, 2010, 12-1:30pm CST. Going Beyond the Background Check: Incorporating SAFE Practices in Volunteer Programs Features Sarah Kremer of Friends For Youth.
Quality In Action #7: Going Beyond Background Check
1. Quality in Action Going Beyond the Background Check: Incorporating SAFE Practices in Volunteer Programs August 4, 2010 Mentoring Partnership of Minnesota
2. Webinar Logistics Asking Questions & Sharing Comments During the Webinar “Raise your hand” & MPM Organizers will unmute you Or, type questions (and comments) in the question/answer section and submit; we will respond directly to you or possibly share your question with all attendees When unmuted, please monitor your background noise April Riordan, Director of Training and Community Partnerships 2 2 2
3. Webinar Presenter Sarah Kremer, Program Director of Friends for Youth’s Mentoring Institute 3 3 3
31. Why do we have to talk about this? “ A percentage of predators will target child-service groups because they provide access to samples of highly vulnerable children and often there are opportunities for isolated access. Many of these children have already been molested, making them more vulnerable to the predator.” Dr. Perry Sirota
32. Why do we have to talk about this? Extremely uncomfortable topic Generates anxiety and fear Potential danger for youth Liabilities for organization
44. 50% using background checks look in only one state or do not use national database
45. 50% report screening has identified inappropriate candidatesApril 2008, Who’s Lending a Hand? A National Survey of Nonprofit Volunteer Screening Practices
52. 82% report screening has identified inappropriate candidatesJanuary 2009, Going Beyond the Background Check: The Status of Volunteer Screening in San Mateo County Youth-Serving Organizations
53. Priorities First priority: keep children in programs SAFE Supporting volunteers is important, serving youth is ultimate and primary goal
54. Case Study Oprah's Conversation with Child Molesters, parts 1 - 3 Winter 2010 http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Oprahs-Conversation-with-Child-Molesters The Secret Life of Child Molesters Summer 2002 http://www.oprah.com/tows/pastshows/tows_2002/tows_past_20020426.jhtml
86. Perpetrators Who makes up your volunteer pool? Could you imagine any of your current volunteers as potential child molesters?
87. Part Two Screening Strategies: Tools Informed Intuition Teamwork/Supervision/Staff Training
88. Screening Strategy This training should not be viewed as the rendering of legal advice and programs are strongly encouraged to consult their legal counsel prior to implementing the recommendations from this workshop
89.
90. No limitations on what information you can ask from volunteers but may be limitations on who can view information and how stored
91. Every candidate must go through same process, regardless of who referred themPrinciples
92.
93. After candidate is accepted and introduced to mentee, relationship must continue to be monitoredPrinciples
127. Informed Intuition “I have investigated hundreds of child predator cases involving thousands of victims. In the case of every single victim, there was a woman -- mother, agency staff, teacher -- who looked back and said, “I thought something wasn’t right. I had a funny feeling about him.” Detective Steven McEwan, SJPD Child Exploitation Unit
128. The most critical factor in determining whether or not candidate is accepted into your program is using INFORMED INTUITION
129. Intuition Gut feelings, intuition, hunch, unconscious intelligence: judgment appears quickly in consciousness not fully aware of underlying reasons strong enough to act upon Has its own rationale Simple rules of thumb/heuristics Evolved (through extended practice) capacities of brain Gigerenzer, 2007
160. Check for completion, gaps in profile, timely submission, content, and signatureSAFE: Sample Volunteer Written Application Written Application
161. Case Study “According to a source close to Devlin’s family, no one noticed any red flags: ‘Other than that you had a 41-year-old guy who never dated or aspired to a career and who is quiet, it was a normal situation.’” People, 02/19/07
162. Case Study “…But according to retired FBI behavior analyst Kenneth Lanning, those leading double lives, especially sex offenders, can become quite adept at compartmentalizing their behavior. ‘The person may look normal: have a job, work hard, go to church,’ says Lanning. ‘The indicators are things the average person is not trained to recognize.’” People, 02/19/07
163.
164. Assess both verbal and non-verbal communicationSAFE: Sample Volunteer Interview Interview
180. Applied/was not accepted or “didn’t like” other local youth-serving programsProblematic Background Indicators
181.
182. Even though applicants knew background check would be performed, over 50% of those with criminal record indicated that they did NOT have oneSafetyNET Pilot Program Manual http://www.mentoring.org/safetynet
183.
184. “…large number of missed records and false positives generated… when analyzing… background checks in the state of Florida… the database missed 11.7% of the criminal records it should have identified. Even worse - of the more than 10,000 criminal records found, 5.5% of them were falsely attributed to those who were not convicted of a crime.”National Association of Professional Background Screeners, www.napbs.com
190. Law Enforcement If convicted sex offender applies to volunteer, can report California State Violations 290.95(a)Pc(misd) Any 290 registrant shall disclose status as registrant upon application to any employment or volunteer assignment with children 290.95(b)Pc(misd) Any 290 registrant convicted of crime involving minor shall not be employed or volunteer around children in unaccompanied setting
193. “Information also is provided to designated social welfare agencies to help screen applicants for licensing or employment in child care facilities and foster homes, and to aid in background checks for other possible child placements, and adoptions. Dissemination of Index information is restricted and controlled by Penal Code.”
195. Remember that fingerprinting is just tool to identify individuals who have actually been caught, but it does not guarantee safety of youth in program
206. Ask “Would you feel comfortable placing your child in care of this applicant?”SAFE: Sample Volunteer Mentor Reference Check Employment & Personal Character References
211. In California, visit http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/calawquery?codesection=veh
212. Proof of insurance confirms applicant has current coverage on automobileDMV Record and Insurance
213.
214. Screens for men and women who have beliefs about rights of adults to have sexual contact with children and teens - will not protect children from other adults/older children who may be sexually inappropriate and will not protect organization from these sexually inappropriate adults/older children)
257. because your volunteers meet with youth in closely-supervised environment
258. because you have good feeling about your volunteers
259.
260. The Starfish Story A man was jogging down the beach after a major storm had just come through the area. He was dismayed by the large amount of starfish that the storm had washed up on the beach. He thought that there was nothing he could do because of the immense numbers. As he continued down the beach, he saw an old man throw something into the water. As he got closer, he saw the old man walk a little farther down the beach, bend over, pick up a starfish, and throw it back into the water. As the jogger approached, the old man stopped again, bent over, picked up another starfish, and was about to throw it into the water. The jogger stopped him and asked, “Why are you doing that? There are thousands of starfish on the beach. You can’t possibly make a difference.” The old man looked at the starfish, threw it back into the water, then replied, “I made a difference to that one, didn’t I?” Adapted from The Star Thrower” by Loren Eiseley
261. Webinar Special Order SAFE online at www.mentoringinstitute.org and use promo code SAFEMENTOR to receive 20% off!
262.
263. 10:00 – 11:15 am PDThttp://www.friendsforyouth.org/Webinars.html
264.
265. Trainings for program staff, mentors, and mentees
266.
267. Thank You! Next Quality in Action webinar is September 1, 2010; 12:00 – 1:00 pm CDT Across Ages Mentoring ProgramFeatured panelist, Andrea Taylor., Ph.D. Dr. Taylor is the keynote presenter for the 2010 Minnesota Mentoring Conference. . 102
Editor's Notes
Starts promptly at 12 noon.
Slides available on Slideshare.Resources/web sites available at end of slides.