Senate committee hears bill to codify background checks for student mentors; motion fails for lack of votes

Senator Jim Dotson (District 34) presented legislation that would allow school districts to create optional student‑mentor programs and require mentors to undergo specified background checks before participating in schools.

Dotson told the Senate Education Committee the bill was developed with the Department of Education and sets out explicit screening steps — statewide and national criminal records checks, child maltreatment central registry checks and other vetting — to prevent individuals with concerning histories from serving as mentors. He described the change as codifying a process many districts already follow and said the department suggested the language.

Committee members asked whether volunteers and mentors already receive checks under current law. Dotson said much of the background checking is already allowed or practiced, but this bill would create a codified, uniform process. Department of Education staff were invited to answer questions but no additional department representative provided new requirements during the hearing.

The committee moved to vote on the bill. After an initial voice vote showed insufficient support in the room, the committee conducted a roll call. The chair declared the panel did not have the votes to pass the bill out of committee that day.

What the bill would do: require pre‑placement criminal and child‑maltreatment registry checks for mentors and set a statutory screening pathway for optional district mentor programs. What it would not do: make mentor programs mandatory; the sponsor said participation would remain optional for districts.

Speakers quoted in this article are those who spoke on the record in committee.