The building administrator or his/her designee is responsible for administering and directing the school’s volunteer program.

 

A. GENERAL PRINCIPLES AND REQUIREMENTS

The District values the work of its volunteers. All volunteers shall adhere to the following requirements:

1. Participate in volunteer training when required.

2. Work within the guidelines established by the responsible administrator/staff member.

3. Supply supplemental and supportive service.

4. Work under the direction and supervision of teachers or other members of the school staff.

5. Perform tasks assigned by their supervisor and approved by the responsible administrator, excluding access to student records.

6. Maintain strict confidentiality with all school or classroom information to which they have  access while performing their volunteer activities.

7. Serve in an auxiliary capacity under the direction and supervision of professional school personnel. Volunteers do not have access to confidential files and records. Teachers, administrators, and volunteers shall be aware of all state and local policies, procedures, and laws relevant to volunteer responsibilities.

 

B. PROCEDURES FOR VOLUNTEERS

When beginning an assignment, a disclosure statement shall be collected on a separate card, reviewed and approved by the principal, and kept on file at each school for all Level I and Level II volunteers. Each time a volunteer enters the building, the following procedures will apply: 1. Report to the principal’s office or other designated location and sign-in and sign-out, noting name, date, time of day, and length of volunteer service and 2. Wear a nametag provided by the school.

 

C. VOLUNTEER TRAINING AND ORIENTATION

Training of volunteers shall include the following topics:

1. Clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities

2. Information about the school, its staff, educational programs, and activities

3. Rules, regulations, and day to day operations of the school

4. Sign-in procedures

5. Emergency procedures

6. Parking

7. Use of phones

8. Location of restrooms

9. Tobacco/Nicotine prohibition (See board policy # 905.4 – Tobacco/Nicotine Free Environment)

10. Specifics of their volunteer assignment

11. Start date

 

D. SCHOOL RESPONSIBILITIES FOR VOLUNTEERS

Each school Principal or designee will be responsible for the following:

1. Provide for or arrange for training sessions for its volunteers

2. Maintain a volunteer log

3. Maintain volunteer application forms and Disclosure Statements

4. Communicate regularly with volunteers

5. Thank and appreciate their volunteers

 

E.  VOLUNTEER DESIGNATIONS

The District utilizes many types of volunteers who work in varying capacities. The types or categories are described below.

1. Level I

Volunteers who provide direct services to students on a regular basis and may be asked to assume some direct supervision of a student or group of students.  Examples include, but are not limited to the following:  one-to-one or small group mentoring (i.e. mentors) or tutoring (i.e reading volunteers); chaperon for an overnight event or field trips, sports coaches/assistants of school-sponsored teams.

 

2. Level II

Volunteers who provide limited services to students on an occasional basis and who will not assume direct supervision of students OR volunteers who occasionally assist with clerical duties in classrooms or offices.  Examples include, but are not limited to the following:  clerical assistant, classroom helper, library assistant.

 

F. VISITOR DESIGNATIONS

Persons who are members of non-school organizations and groups that come to classrooms to present programs with teachers or other staff members present.  These visitors to the school are part of a one time entrance to the school and staff are present for the entire time they are in the building.  Examples include, but are not limited to the following:  outside resource speakers for classrooms or assemblies, Junior Achievement presenters, career exploration presenters, etc...

 

Procedures for visitors to the building are addressed in Board Policy 903.3.

 

 

Legal Reference:  Iowa Code, Chapter 22 (2003)
                                       Department of Education School Rules of Iowa, Chapter 11.4(5)

Approved: January 1997
Reviewed: February 1999, July 2009, March 2012, March 2015, March 2018, January 2022

 

Our school is a vital part of the community. Respecting one’s privacy and confidentiality is very important:

Each student with whom you work has the right to expect that nothing that happens to or about him or her will be repeated to anyone other than authorized school department employees, as designated by the administrators at your school. Even when discussing a student with those who are directly involved in a student’s education, such as a teacher, principal, or guidance counselor, you may not share otherwise confidential information with them unless it is relevant to the student’s educational growth, safety, or well-being.

You may not share information about a student even with others who are genuinely interested in the student’s welfare, such as social workers, scout leaders, clergy, or nurses/physicians (a grave medical emergency, in which confidential information may be necessary for a student’s care, is the only exception). Thus, you must refer all such questions to the school employees so authorized and indicated to you, typically the student’s teacher or principal. 

Parents, friends, or community members may, in good faith, ask you questions about a student’s problems or progress. Again, you must refer all such questions to the authorized school employees. You may not share information about a student, even with members of your own family or his/her family. 

 

Volunteer Liability and Indemnification 

A volunteer shall at all times indemnify and hold harmless Dunkerton Community Schools and its officers, agents and employees from any and all claims, damages and expenses arising out of injuries to persons or damage to property which resulted from any omissions or negligent acts of the volunteer.

I understand and agree that I will not disclose such confidential information except to school employees that have a need to know.

 

 

______________________________    ____________________________                ______
Signature                                                         Printed name                                                       Date

 

It is the policy of the Dunkerton Community School District to make every reasonable effort to provide a safe learning environment for students working with volunteers. Therefore, the District requires the following confidential information from volunteers who work directly with students or assist staff on a regular basis; supervise/chaperone students; or act as a primary authority figure. This statement must be completed and returned to the District office prior to beginning any volunteer experience. *Background checks are good for five years from date of completion.

 

Name:

(first)

(last)

Address:

City:

State:

Zip:

Day Phone:

Evening Phone:

Do you have any record of drug or alcohol arrests?	Yes                  No
Have you ever been convicted of a serious misdemeanor, aggravated misdemeanor, or a felony under Iowa law or any other state/country law?	Yes                  No
Have you ever been convicted, or had an administrative finding, of violating any law involving child abuse, sexual abuse, physical abuse, sexual harassment or exploitation, or any other crime related to children?	Yes                  No
Have you ever been the subject of or listed as the perpetrator in a founded child abuse report?	Yes                  No
Are you required to register as a sex offender with the Sex Offender Registry?	Yes                  No
Do you currently have charges pending or are there any ongoing investigations relating to any of the previous questions?	Yes                  No
Has your driver’s license ever been suspended or revoked?	Yes                  No

*A “Yes” answer to any of the questions listed above may require an interview with a district administrator.

 

 

Signature: _______________________________ Date: _____________________

 

I. Guidelines.

Individuals, including students, may have the right to distribute on school premises, at reasonable times and places, unofficial written material, petitions, buttons, badges or other insignia, except expression which:

1. is obscene to minors;
2. is libelous;
3. contains indecent, vulgar, profane or lewd language;
4. advertises any product or service not permitted to minors by law;
5. constitutes insulting or fighting words, the very expression of which injures or harasses other people (e.g., threats of violence, defamation of character or of a person's race, religion, gender, disability, age or ethnic origin);
6. presents a clear and present likelihood that, either because of its content or the manner of distribution, it will cause a material and substantial disruption of the proper and orderly operation and discipline of the school or school activities, will cause the commission of unlawful acts or the violation of lawful school regulations.

Distribution on school premises of material in categories (a) through (d) to any student is prohibited. Distribution on school premises of material in categories (e) and (f) to a substantial number of students is prohibited.

II. Procedures.

Anyone wishing to distribute unofficial written material must first submit for approval a copy of the material to the building principal at least twenty-four hours in advance of desired distribution time, together with the following information:

1. Name and phone number of the person submitting request and, if a student, the homeroom number;
2. Date(s) and time(s) of day of intended display or distribution;
3. Location where material will be displayed or distributed;
4. The grade(s) of students to whom the display or distribution is intended.

Within twenty-four hours of submission, the principal will render a decision whether the material violates the guidelines in subsection I or the time, place and manner restrictions in subsection III of this policy. In the event that permission to distribute the material is denied, the person submitting the request should be informed in writing of the reasons for the denial. Permission to distribute material does not imply approval of its contents by either the school, the administration, the board or the individual reviewing the material submitted.

If the person submitting the request does not receive a response within twenty-four hours of submission, the person will contact the building principal's office to verify that the lack of response was not due to an inability to locate the person. If the person has made this verification and there is no response to the request, the material may be distributed in accordance with the time, place and manner provisions in subsection III.

If the person is dissatisfied with the decision of the principal, the person may submit a written request for appeal to the superintendent. If the person does not receive a response within three school days of submitting the appeal, the person will contact the superintendent to verify that the lack of response is not due to an inability to locate the person. If the person has made this verification and there is no response to the appeal, the material may be distributed in accordance with the time, place and manner provisions in subsection III.

At every level of the process the person submitting the request will have the right to appear and present the reasons, supported by relevant witnesses and material, as to why distribution of the written material is appropriate.

Permission to distribute material does not imply approval of its contents by either the school district, the board, the administration or the individual reviewing the material submitted.

III. Time, place and manner of distribution.

The distribution of written material is prohibited when it blocks the safe flow of traffic within corridors and entrance ways of the school or otherwise disrupts school activities. The distribution of unofficial material is limited to a reasonable time, place and manner as follows:

1. The material will be distributed from a table set up for the purpose in a location designated by the principal, which location will not block the safe flow of traffic or block the corridors or entrance ways, but which will give reasonable access to students.
2. The material will be distributed either before and/or after the regular instructional day.
3. No written material may be distributed during and at the place of a normal school activity if it is reasonably likely to cause a material and substantial disruption of that activity.

IV. Definitions.

The following definitions apply to the following terms used in this policy:

1.  "Obscene to minors" is defined as:
   
   1. The average person, applying contemporary community standards, would find that the written material, taken as a whole, appeals to the prurient interest of minors of the age to whom distribution is requested;
   2. The material depicts or describes, in a manner that is patently offensive to prevailing standards in the adult community concerning how such conduct should be presented to minors of the age to whom distribution is requested, sexual
   3. conduct such as intimate sexual acts (normal or perverted), masturbation, excretory functions, and lewd exhibition of the genitals; and
   4. The material, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value for minors.
2. "Minor" means any person under the age of eighteen.
3. "Material and substantial disruption" of a normal school activity is defined as follows:
   
   1. Where the normal school activity is an educational program of the district for which student attendance is compulsory, "material and substantial disruption" is defined as any disruption which interferes with or impedes the implementation of that program.
   2. Where the normal school activity is voluntary in nature (including, without limitation, school athletic events, school plays and concerts, and lunch periods), "material and substantial disruption" is defined as student rioting, unlawful seizures of property, widespread shouting or boisterous demonstration, sit-in, stand-in, walk-out, or other related forms of activity.
   3. In order for expression to be considered disruptive, there must exist specific facts upon which the likelihood of disruption can be forecasted including past experience in the school, current events influencing student activities and behavior, and instances of actual or threatened disruption relating to the written material in question.
4. "School activities" means any activity of students sponsored by the school and includes, by way of example but not limited to, classroom work, library activities, physical education classes, official assemblies and other similar gatherings, school athletic contests, band concerts, school plays and in-school lunch periods.
5. "Unofficial" written material includes all written material except school newspapers, literary magazines, yearbooks, and other publications funded and/or sponsored or authorized by the school. Examples include leaflets, brochures, flyers, petitions, placards and underground newspapers, whether written by students or others.
6. "Libelous" is a false and unprivileged statement about a specific individual that tends to harm the individual's reputation or to lower him/her in the esteem of the community.
7. "Distribution" means circulation or dissemination of written material by means of handing out free copies, selling or offering copies for sale and accepting donations for copies. It includes displaying written material in areas of the school which are generally frequented by students.

V. Disciplinary action.

Distribution by any student of unofficial written material prohibited in subsection I or in violation of subsection III may be halted, and students may be subject to discipline including suspension and expulsion. Any other party violating this policy may be requested to leave the school property immediately and, if necessary, local law enforcement officials will be called.

VI. Notice of policy to students.

A copy of this policy will be published in student handbooks and posted conspicuously in school buildings.

  

 

Approved: January 1997
Reviewed: February 1999, July 2009, March 2012, March 2015, March 2018, January 2022