School board adopts VDSS acknowledgement form for bus applicants after debate on CPS checks
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Summary
Suffolk school board voted to adopt a VDSS central-registry acknowledgement to speed hiring of bus drivers but debated whether to wait for Department of Social Services (CPS) central‑registry results. The board heard staff explain the difference between fingerprint criminal checks and the CPS registry before approving the form.
The Suffolk City Public Schools Board on March 27 voted to adopt a VDSS (Virginia Department of Social Services) applicant acknowledgement form for bus-driver hires after a lengthy discussion about background‑check timing and student safety.
The board approved the waiver form in a motion by Vice Chair McGee, seconded by board member Jenkins, to allow staff to use the acknowledgement to expedite hiring while the state CPS central‑registry check is pending. The vote carried and the motion passed.
The discussion centered on two distinct checks staff already run: a fingerprint‑based criminal background check through the state police and a separate central‑registry check through social services for substantiated findings of child abuse or neglect. "We do two background checks," Dr. Jessica Avey, director of human resources, told the board. "One is from the state police... The other check is one that's conducted by social services for CPS... The form that is signed by our staff currently... is the one where they're signing that there is no allegations, no nothing that's been founded against them."
Several board members urged caution. "I am concerned... with cutting that time frame short and running the risk of putting our kids in a position that could jeopardize them," Board member Slingluff said, citing the possibility that a CPS finding may not appear in a criminal fingerprint check. Board member Breedingham and others echoed concerns about drivers being alone with students on buses and recommended waiting for CPS results in higher‑risk cases.
Attorney Waller told the board the law requires both checks but does not require the central‑registry check to be completed before hire. "If the person comes back with a finding from social services of abuse and neglect, they should not be hired," Waller said. He also clarified that code does not mandate the central‑registry result be received prior to an employment decision.
Board members weighing staffing shortages and service continuity noted the district is actively short on drivers. Vice Chair McGee, who moved the adoption, described the form as a mitigation measure while the full CPS result is pending and said the district will continue the standard fingerprint check that returns within about 24–48 hours. Dr. Avey and other staff said employees must answer application questions about CPS findings and that the central registry is searched by social services in Richmond.
The vote to adopt the VDSS acknowledgement form was moved by Vice Chair McGee and seconded by board member Jenkins; the motion passed in roll call. The board did not adopt a policy change at the meeting to require waiting for central‑registry results before hire.
Board members asked staff to keep monitoring the practice and to return if additional information suggests the district should alter its approach to bus‑driver hiring and student safety.
The board also held broader discussions during the meeting about background‑check procedures, legal responsibilities of mandated reporters, and the tradeoffs between rapid hiring and complete vetting in the midst of a driver shortage.
