BP 1240 — Volunteer Assistance
Section: 1000 - Community Relations
Status: Active
Adopted: 2017-03-14
Policy text
VOLUNTEER ASSISTANCE
The Governing Board recognizes that volunteer assistance in schools can enrich the educational program and strengthen the schools’ relationships with the community. The Board encourages parents/guardians and other members of the community to share their time, knowledge, and abilities with students.
The Superintendent or designee shall develop and implement a plan for recruiting, screening, and placing volunteers, including strategies for reaching underrepresented groups of parents/guardians and community members. He/she may also recruit community members to serve as mentors to students and/or make appropriate referrals to community organizations.
The Board prohibits harassment of any volunteer on the basis of race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, sexual orientation, or military and veteran status.
As appropriate, the Superintendent or designee shall provide volunteers with information about school goals, programs, and practices and an orientation or other training related to their specific responsibilities. Employees who supervise volunteers shall ensure that volunteers are assigned meaningful responsibilities that utilize their skills and expertise and maximize their contribution to the educational program.
Volunteer work shall be limited to those projects that do not replace the normal duties of classified staff. The Board nevertheless encourages volunteers to work on short-term projects to the extent that they enhance the classroom or school and comply with employee negotiated agreements.
The Superintendent or designee shall establish procedures for determining whether volunteers possess the qualifications, if any, required by law and administrative regulation for the types of duties they will perform.
Volunteers shall act in accordance with district policies, regulations, and school rules. The Superintendent or designee shall be responsible for investigating and resolving complaints regarding volunteers.
The Board encourages principals to develop a means for recognizing the contributions of each school’s volunteers.
The Superintendent or designee shall periodically report to the Board regarding the district’s volunteer assistance program.
Workers’ Compensation Insurance
The Board desires to provide a safe environment for volunteers and minimize the district’s exposure to liability.
Upon the adoption of a resolution by the Board, volunteers shall be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits for any injury sustained while engaged in the performance of service for the district.
Legal
EDUCATION CODE
8482-8484.6 After School Education and Safety program
8484.7-8484.9 21st Century Community Learning Center program
35021.1 Automated records check
35021.3 Registry of volunteers for before/after school programs
45125 Fingerprinting requirements
45125.01 Interagency agreements for criminal record information
45340-45349 Instructional aides
49024 Activity Supervisor Clearance Certificate
49406 Examination for tuberculosis
GOVERNMENT CODE
3543.5 Prohibited interference with employees’ rights
12940 Prohibited discrimination and harassment
HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE
1596.871 Fingerprints of individuals in contact with child day care facility clients
LABOR CODE
1720.4 Public works; exclusion of volunteers from prevailing wage law
3352 Workers’ compensation; definitions-,3352.,Employee%2C%E2%80%9D%20excludes%20the%20following%3A&text=This%20exclusion%20is%20operative%20only,arising%20out%20of%2C%20the%20employment.)
3364.5 Authority to provide workers’ compensation insurance for volunteers
PENAL CODE
290 Registration of sex offenders
290.4 Information re: sex offenders
290.95 Disclosure by person required to register as sex offender
626.81 Sex offender; permission to volunteer at school
CALIFORNIA CODE OF REGULATIONS