Following the arrest of a middle school teacher last year on child molestation charges, the local school district has implemented stricter screening policies for volunteers.
By Melonie Magruder / Special to The Malibu Times
In response to parental concern about the safety of their children in the aftermath of the arrest of a teacher for molestation at Santa Monica’s Lincoln Middle School, the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District board has instituted a policy for criminal background checks for district volunteers.
Previously, there had been no policy on this issue, though teachers and district employees are all subject to full background checks and testing for tuberculosis.
The SMMUSD Ad Hoc Policy Committee, comprised primarily of parents of students within the district, was formed following the arrest of Thomas Arthur Beltran, an ESL teacher at Lincoln who was accused earlier this year of molesting five female students of the school.
In a meeting with the SMMSUD board, the committee recommended a policy for district volunteers, including parent volunteers, modeled after the Burbank Unified School District. SMMUSD Assistant Superintendent Mike Matthews announced that the district would adopt the recommendation immediately.
“The school district does fingerprints and a thorough background check through the Department of Justice on all employees,” Matthews said. “Now, parent and other volunteers will be subject to scrutiny as well.”
The policy divides volunteers into two categories.
Level 1 volunteers work under constant supervision of a certified employee during and after school hours in classrooms, on campus or in special school programs. Examples of this type of volunteer include lunch assistant, playground supervisor or library/classroom assistant.
To become a Level 1 volunteer applicants must be tested for tuberculosis every four years, be checked against the Megan’s Law Web site (a California Department of Justice site that lists registered sex offenders) and be approved by the school.
Level 2 volunteers are those who may occasionally be unsupervised with students, such as chaperones on overnight trips, and now require heightened scrutiny.
In addition to the same checks performed on Level 1 volunteers, Level 2 volunteers will be fingerprinted by the district, with digital fingerprint scans being sent to the justice department for criminal background checks. Any current Level 2 volunteers must be fingerprinted no later than Dec. 12.
“We’ve instituted lots of changes in terms of district policy to address parents’ concerns,” Matthews said. “We’ve updated reporting protocols and enhanced programs to prevent child abuse and sexual harassment. This scrutiny of school volunteers is a third policy we are implementing to keep our children safe.”
Anyone who has been convicted of crimes involving drugs or sexual abuse is prohibited from working for the district in any capacity.
Beltran had worked at Lincoln for more than 20 years and, until last May, had no indication of complaints in his personnel file.
However, he had been investigated in 2006 for an incident that was reported to the school principal; but current administrators were unaware of any report. School board and district officials said there was “a breakdown in communication.”
Prosecutors at that time declined to file charges, saying they lacked sufficient evidence.
Following Beltran’s arrest last May, outraged parents inundated the district board with demands for change and policies were revised on prevention of abuse and reporting responsibilities.
Beltran’s case was scheduled for a status hearing last month, but Deputy District Attorney Robin Katzenstein said the case was taken off the calendar.
“There is now a preliminary hearing scheduled for Dec. 22,” Katzenstein said. “Beltran (who currently faces 23 felony counts involving eight alleged victims) has pleaded not guilty and we are trying to reschedule a status hearing prior to that. This means there would be a plea bargain.”
The California Assembly is now considering a bill that would require background checks for school volunteers statewide. AB 1593 was written in response to a case in the Central Coast district, where a registered sex offender was caught volunteering at a local preschool. A vigilant parent recognized the man on the Megans’ Law Web site and notified authorities.
Meanwhile, proactive parents are keeping the pressure on local school districts.
Michael Chwe, a parent volunteer and member of the ad hoc committee who met with the school board, wrote, “As a parent in the district, I am grateful for this policy, which codifies practices already in place in several SMMUSD schools and brings the district up to par with many other districts and volunteer organizations such as AYSO, which have for years required criminal background checks for its volunteers.”