Background Check Policy

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New teachers and volunteers: what to do

1. You will receive an email invitation from Checkr, our screening provider.

2. Follow the link. Checkr presents the disclosure and authorization for you to sign, then asks for your name, date of birth, Social Security Number, and address history.

3. Checkr completes the check, usually within a few business days. MRS confirms when you are cleared to begin.

Do not send this information to MRS by email or on paper. MRS never collects, views, or stores Social Security Numbers. MRS pays the full cost; there is no fee to you.

Who is screened

Anyone in a role involving contact with students: teachers and instructors (paid or unpaid, including contractors), recurring classroom assistants and volunteers, and volunteers at programs or events where the role involves interaction with students.  Declining to authorize a check means the role cannot be filled.

MRS is a nonprofit educational program, not a licensed childcare provider. We screen voluntarily as a matter of school policy.

What the check covers

Checkr, Inc., a consumer reporting agency. The package includes an SSN trace and address history, national criminal database and sex offender registry searches, a global watchlist search, and county and state court searches in the jurisdictions found in address history. We chose nationwide coverage because a Wisconsin-only search would not meaningfully screen most of our applicants.

Your rights

This process is governed by the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act. You get a free copy of your report through Checkr and may dispute anything inaccurate directly with Checkr at no cost. If MRS is considering declining you because of the report, you first receive a pre-adverse action notice with a copy of the report and a summary of your rights, and at least seven days to respond before any final decision.

How decisions are made

A record does not automatically disqualify anyone. Under Wisconsin law, a role may be declined only where the circumstances of the offense are substantially related to its duties. The screener weighs the nature and seriousness of the offense, time elapsed and conduct since, its relationship to the specific duties, and any context the applicant provides. Offenses involving children, sexual offenses, and violent offenses are considered substantially related to any role with student contact.

Timing

Before starting a covered role, again if circumstances change (arrest, charge, or conviction), and at least every four years thereafter. Notify MRS promptly of a relevant change while serving.

Confidentiality

The Administrative Director is the sole screener, with one board officer as backup who acts only in her absence or when she is the subject. No one else has access. Reports are viewed inside Checkr under named accounts with multi-factor authentication, never downloaded, printed, emailed, or filed elsewhere. The Board receives only the outcome, recorded as cleared or referred for review, never report contents.

MRS retains only the eligibility decision and its date, plus any adverse action correspondence, for the duration of service and three years afterward. Disclosure and authorization records stay in Checkr.

Questions: info@madisonrussianschool.org