Background Checks for Volunteers?

The possibility that library volunteers might be required to undergo background checks has enmeshed the 2005 Gale/LJ Library of the Year in controversy. At northwest Arkansas's Fayetteville PL (FPL), ten volunteers have resigned after learning that the library may create a public safety policy that would include background checks for all volunteers. The ten represent a small fraction of the library's volunteer force, which mostly hovers around 160 but sometimes reaches 400.

Volunteers resistant to background checks have been vocal, complaining in letters to Executive Director Louise Schaper and board members that the idea is offensive and smacks of an abuse of power, as noted in the Northwest Arkansas Times. Also, last summer, the library had the Fayetteville Police Department conduct background checks on employees without their knowledge, which Schaper called “a mistake.”

The plan regarding volunteers was not in response to any past criminal or suspicious activity by a volunteer, Schaper told LJ. “Our goal is to avoid a negative experience,” she said. Without a codified safety policy at FPL, staffers have been researching policies at libraries and nonprofit organizations in the region, finding that many screen employees and volunteers. At the Denton PL in nearby Texas, city law requires library volunteers to submit to a background check. Its volunteer application includes an authorization form for vetting by law enforcement.

“We haven't finished collecting data,” said Schaper. “Given all that we've learned, I think libraries without a screening process are at risk.” The library will present the Board of Trustees with a policy recommendation on December 17.