Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Hiring And Vetting topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board to embed social‑media and reference reviews into hiring rule, vote to send change to first reading
Summary
School board members agreed to add language to hiring rule 5‑33 to formalize social‑media and reference reviews for finalist candidates and to change discretionary language from “may” to “shall.” The change will be brought back for first reading at the next board meeting.
The school board agreed to embed new language into hiring rule 5‑33 that would formalize social‑media and reference reviews for finalist candidates and make the district’s review requirement mandatory rather than optional. The board directed staff to place the revised policy on the next meeting agenda for first reading.
Board members said the proposed wording combines concepts from an initial submission by Adam with legal edits drafted by Taylor and that the intention is to fold that text into the district’s existing hiring procedures. The board emphasized the change from “the district may conduct” to “the district shall conduct” in order to ensure consistent application across finalist candidates for the same position.
Board members and staff discussed how the reviews interact with background checks and drug testing. Staff explained that reference checks and a social‑media review are normally performed before a finalist interview, while criminal background checks and federally required fingerprinting for licensed teachers can take longer. Staff said district practice is to complete all required testing and background checks before a newly hired employee begins work even if a contract offer is presented at the time of interview.
The discussion clarified that: reference checks are performed for finalists before final interviews; social‑media checks are already used in procedure but are not currently written into policy; teacher licensing includes FBI fingerprint-based checks that may remove some risk for licensed teachers; support‑staff hires do not have the same automatic license protections; and some components (for example, drug‑test results for THC) are handled under existing testing rules. Board members also raised legal cautions about using CCAP (a case‑tracking tool) in hiring decisions because it can show open cases that are not convictions.
Board members said the revised language will be added to the hiring tasks in policy 5‑33 and submitted for a first reading at the next board meeting. The board did not record a formal roll‑call vote in the discussion transcript; participants described the outcome as acceptance of Taylor’s version with the required wording change.
The board indicated staff will update the district’s reference‑check form to reflect the new requirement so interview teams and finalists understand that reference and social‑media reviews are part of the finalist evaluation process.
