Reference and Background Checks
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No. 3106
Rev.: 0
Policies and Procedures
Date: June 18, 2007
Subject: Reference and Background Checks
1. Purpose .................................................................................................................... 1
2. Policy ........................................................................................................................ 2
2.1. Minimum Reference and Background Checks ................................................. 2
2.2. Additional Requirements .................................................................................. 2
2.3. Completion of Reference and Background Checks .......................................... 4
2.4. Notification of Applicants for Employment ........................................................ 5
2.5. Use of Reference and Background Check Information ..................................... 5
2.6. Current Employees ........................................................................................... 6
2.7. Maintaining Information .................................................................................... 7
3. Responsibilities ......................................................................................................... 7
4. Procedures ............................................................................................................... 7
5. Definitions ................................................................................................................. 7
6. References ............................................................................................................... 7
7. Review Periodicity and Responsibility ...................................................................... 7
8. Effective Date and Approval ..................................................................................... 7
9. Review and Revision History .................................................................................... 8
Appendix A: Required Pre-Employment Reference and Background Checks
1. Purpose
This policy establishes requirements for conducting reference and background
checks on prospective new employees of Tidewater Community College as well as,
in selected cases, on existing employees of the college. The policy complies with the
policy of the Virginia Community College System (VCCS Policy Manual section
3.3.4) and of the Virginia Department of Human Resource Management (2.10 –
Hiring)
Except as noted below under ―Current Employees,‖ all new employees (full-time and
adjunct teaching faculty, administrative/ professional faculty, classified staff, and
wage employees) and current Tidewater Community College employees who are
hired into or transfer to classified, administrative/professional, or teaching faculty
positions on or after July 1, 2007 are covered by this policy. Work-study student
positions are not subject to the provisions of this policy. Employees rehired within 18
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months of their last assignment are not required to undergo a background check if a
check appropriate to the new position had been completed previously—in such
cases, reference checks relative to the period of broken service will be conducted.
2. Policy
In order to protect college interests, institutional resources, and the welfare of its
students, employees, and the public, it is TCC’s policy to conduct reference and
background checks as delineated below on candidates selected for employment by
the college. The specific purposes of this policy are to:
a. promote a safe environment and protect the welfare of students, employees,
and visitors to TCC’s campuses and other facilities;
b. protect organizational assets including people, property and information;
c. verify the identity and credentials of applicants;
d. perform due diligence in ensuring that a candidate’s background and
suitability for employment by TCC are evaluated appropriately; and
e. enable TCC to make prudent hiring decisions based upon comprehensive
job-related information.
2.1. Minimum Reference and Background Checks. As a minimum, the following
reference and background checks will be conducted on all candidates selected
for employment by TCC:
a. a reference from the current (or most recent) supervisor for a candidate
with work experience.
b. references from two former immediate supervisors if a reference from the
current or most recent supervisor is not feasible;
c. references from professional colleagues to verify the candidate’s skills,
past performance, and potential and suitability for employment—including
the supervisory references, at least three references should be obtained;
d. verification of the candidate’s Social Security number;
e. Virginia criminal history and sexual offender registry check—expanded as
delineated below in the event that the candidate has lived or worked
outside of Virginia;
f. verification of academic credentials and professional licensure, as
appropriate for the position.
2.2. Additional Requirements. Some candidates will require additional background
investigations based upon their personal history as well as the nature or
importance of the position to the college and community (see Appendix A).
Reasons for additional checks include, but are not limited to, positions that
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handle significant financial transactions, sensitive positions, executive
positions, and other positions afforded a degree of special trust and confidence.
Such checks may include the following:
a. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) checks. The following types of
positions require a check of the FBI database, including fingerprinting of
the individual:
1. Sensitive Positions. In accordance with the Code of Virginia (§ 2.2-
1201.1) and Department of Human Resource Management policy,
positions that are directly responsible for the health, safety, and
welfare of the general populace or protection of critical infrastructures
will be designated ―sensitive positions.‖ Candidates for employment in
such positions are required to have a Virginia criminal history and FBI
database check conducted through the Department of State Police.
The supervising member of the President’s Executive Staff is
responsible for identifying sensitive positions under his/her purview.
2. Other Positions. In accordance with the Code of Virginia (§ 19.2-
392.02), a candidate for or an employee in a position that requires
unsupervised access to children, the disabled, and elderly individuals
may be referred to the Department of State Police for a national
criminal background check through the FBI database. The supervising
member of the President’s Executive Staff is responsible for identifying
positions that would require such unsupervised access under his/her
purview.
b. Work or Residence Outside Virginia. Candidates who have resided or
worked in a state other than Virginia will undergo criminal history and
sexual offender registry checks on the national level or in the states where
they worked and resided, as appropriate. Such checks will be undertaken
in addition to Virginia criminal history checks.
c. Motor Vehicle History. A motor vehicle record check will be conducted on
any candidate for employment in a position that involves operating a motor
vehicle or heavy equipment—as delineated in the Employee Work Profile
or Position Description—or that requires a valid driver’s or commercial
driver’s license. The motor vehicle records of such employees will be
checked annually to ensure that the employee maintains a satisfactory
driving record. The supervising member of the President’s Executive Staff
is responsible for identifying positions under his/her purview that will
require a motor vehicle history check.
d. Credit Check. A credit check will be conducted on a candidate for
employment in a position that meets one or more of the following criteria:
1. access to material levels of cash or negotiable securities;
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2. responsibility or authority for the execution, approval, or commitment of
financial resources or transactions;
3. responsibility for creating, collecting, or accounting for material levels
of accounts receivable;
4. significant inventory control responsibilities, including the receipt and
release of inventory;
5. privileged access to, or responsibility for management/maintenance of
the payroll or purchasing systems;
6. privileged access to sensitive data or critical data processing systems;
7. unsupervised access to college, employee, or student property or
master key access to facilities;
8. access to pharmaceuticals or other controlled drugs.
The supervising member of the President’s Executive Staff is responsible
for identifying positions under his/her purview that will require a credit
check.
e. Medical/Physical Evaluation. A post-offer/pre-employment or return-to-
work physical examination may be required for a position that requires a
certain degree of physical exertion based upon the essential functions
delineated in the Employee Work Profile or Position Description or medical
qualification requirements applicable to the position. Such requirements
exist to ensure applicants can perform the essential functions of the job
with or without reasonable accommodation, or that they possess the
minimum abilities necessary for safe and efficient performance of the
duties that characterize the position. The supervising member of the
President’s Executive Staff is responsible for identifying positions under
his/her purview that will require a medical/physical evaluation.
f. Drug and Alcohol Testing: In accordance with the Code of Federal
Regulations, all drivers of vehicles requiring a Commercial Driver’s
License (CDL) are subject to pre-employment testing for controlled
substances (i.e., drugs). Additionally, such employees are subject to
reasonable suspicion, random, post-accident, and return-to-work testing
for the use of controlled substances and alcohol. The supervising member
of the President’s Executive Staff is responsible for identifying positions
under his/her purview that will require a drug and alcohol testing.
2.3. Completion of Reference and Background Checks. The appropriate
reference and background checks as delineated above should be completed
prior to making an offer of employment. But, in any event, the candidate’s first
day of work in the position must not be prior to the satisfactory completion of
appropriate checks.
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Any exception to this policy must have the joint approval of the Director of
Human Resources and the position’s supervising member of the President’s
Executive Staff. If an exception is made, the offer letter or Faculty Employment
Contract will state explicitly:
"This offer is conditional and will become final only upon receipt of
satisfactory results from the college’s verification of credentials and
other information required by law, regulation, and TCC and VCCS
policies, including the completion of a criminal history and other
background checks. In the event issues are raised in the
investigation report that may impact your appointment, this offer
and confirmation may be withdrawn.‖
2.4. Notification of Applicants for Employment. Applicants for employment with
TCC will be advised that satisfactory reference and background checks are a
condition of employment, and that the determination of either a job-related
conviction or falsified conviction information on the application form may result
in denial or forfeiture of college employment. All applicants will be required to
submit a completed Commonwealth of Virginia employment application or a
current résumé/curriculum vita as a part of the recruitment process. An
applicant who submits only a résumé or curriculum vitae must submit a
completed state employment application form prior to the time of interview.
2.5. Use of Reference and Background Check Information. The discovery of a
job-related conviction, falsified information on the state application form, or
other relevant information may result in denial of employment. However, a
previous conviction does not automatically disqualify an applicant from
consideration from employment with TCC. A decision to not hire or to rescind a
previous offer will be made jointly by the Director of Human Resources and the
supervising member of the President’s Executive Staff. In making such
decisions, the following factors regarding the information revealed through the
reference and background check process will be taken into consideration:
a. the job-relatedness of any conviction or other information, considering the
nature, recency, frequency, and severity of the incident as well as the age
of the individual at the time crime or other reported incident occurred;
b. the nature of the position for which selected;
c. the relationship that a conviction or other reported incident has to the
duties and responsibilities of the position;
d. whether the circumstances arose out of an employment situation;
e. whether the conviction related to harm to others, such as murder, rape,
assault, domestic violence, etc.;
f. the nature and scope of position’s fiduciary responsibilities;
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g. the nature and scope of the position’s student, public, or other
interpersonal contact;
h. the nature and scope of the position’s autonomy and discretionary
authority;
i. the sensitive nature of the data or records maintained by or to which the
position has access;
j. the potential opportunity presented by the position for the commission of
offenses;
k. the extent to which acceptable job performance requires the trust and
confidence of the college or public; and
l. other factors as deemed appropriate.
An applicant who fails to reveal a previous job-related conviction on the state
application form may be disqualified from employment in the position for which
applying or in any other position with TCC for falsification of an application. This
provision extends to the documentation that a candidate may be required to
complete in connection with the reference and background check process.
2.6. Current Employees. Current employees—regardless of whether they were
subject to this policy at the time of hire—must report to their immediate
supervisor and to the Director of Human Resources within five days:
a. any drug conviction they receive, whether they are felonies or
misdemeanors;
b. any conviction related to child molestation, indecency with a minor, or
other sexual offenses;
c. convictions for alcohol-related and serious motor vehicle violations,
including but not limited to DWI/DUI, reckless driving, evading arrest, hit-
and-run, and similar offenses if their duties involve operating college
heavy equipment or motor vehicles, life safety, or security; and
d. any conviction involving financial impropriety or similar matters for
employees who work in positions with fiduciary responsibilities.
TCC reserves the right to conduct a criminal background check when
circumstances are identified that warrant further investigation for job-related
convictions. Results of such background checks will normally not affect
opportunities for continued employment unless information is discovered
regarding prior or current convictions leading to a conclusion that the safety of
students, employees, or visitors to TCC may be compromised or that critical
college infrastructure or other resources may be jeopardized. In such
circumstances, the individual may be reassigned within the college or his/her
employment may be terminated.
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2.7. Maintaining Information. Any information derived from reference or
background checks shall be maintained in the strictest confidence possible.
Only personnel essential to the hiring process shall be informed and only on a
need-to-know basis. Once the hiring decision has been made, the report of the
criminal history check will be destroyed with only a brief note documenting its
outcome being retained in the recruitment file for the position. Information
resulting from reference and background checks retained in personnel files
shall be kept to a minimum, briefly identifying the nature of the checks
conducted and a general statement regarding the results thereof..
3. Responsibilities
The Vice President for Administration shall be responsible for developing and
maintaining procedures that are consistent with this policy and that comply with
applicable policies and procedures of the Virginia Community College System, the
Commonwealth of Virginia, and state and federal law.
4. Procedures
To be developed.
5. Definitions
No definitions are associated with this policy.
6. References
VCCS Policy Manual
Virginia DHRM Policy 2.10 Hiring
7. Review Periodicity and Responsibility
The Vice President for Administration shall review this policy annually on the
anniversary of its approval and, if necessary, recommend revisions.
8. Effective Date and Approval
This policy is effective upon its approval by the College President on June 18, 2007.
Policy Approved:
Deborah M. DiCroce
President
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9. Review and Revision History
This is the first version of this policy. The policy was re-formatted to be consistent
with the college’s format for policies and procedures in July 2009.
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APPENDIX A
TIDEWATER COMMUNITY COLLEGE
REQUIRED PRE-EMPLOYMENT
REFERENCE AND BACKGROUND CHECKS
Candidate/
Position Type
References
Virginia
Criminal
Sex
Offender
SSN
Credentials/
Licensure
1
Federal/
FBI
2
Other
States
Driving
Record
Credit
Physical/
Medical
Drug/
Alcohol
Virginia Resident
Non-Virginia
Resident
3
Financial and
Other Positions
4
Drive State
Vehicle/Operate
Heavy Equipment
CDL License
Sensitive Position
Unsupervised
Access to
Children,
Disabled, or
Elderly
Physical Demands
Notes:
1
If required by the position, such as academic credentials for faculty.
2
Includes fingerprinting.
3
Virginia and national sex offender registry check.
4
See policy for complete list of types of positions that require credit checks.