How and Why to Get Clearances

If our hopes of building a better and safer world are to become more than wishful thinking, we will need the engagement of volunteers more than ever.

-Kofi Annan

Child Protective Law Services passed in 2014 requires parents and community members who volunteer in our schools to apply for and submit official clearances from the state of Pennsylvania with the school district. 

The PA State Criminal Record Check and the PA Child Abuse History Clearances are required under Act 153.

  • If a volunteer has resided in the state of Pennsylvania for the past ten (10) years, they may sign a PA Resident Form and Waiver Request.

  • If the volunteer has NOT resided in the state of Pennsylvania for the past ten (10) years, they must complete the FBI background check.

Parents are permitted to attend award assemblies, after-school family functions, parent-teacher conferences, and events on school property and performances without submitting clearances. Individuals who wish to volunteer must submit clearances. Examples include but are not limited to:

  • Volunteer Tutors

  • Chaperones

  • Room Parents

  • Career Day/Classroom Presenters

  • Party/Classroom/Building Helpers

  • Volunteer Coaches/Club Advisors

All visitors to a school building must check in through the Raptor system with a valid state-issued photo ID or Driver’s License.

If the following information is not submitted and approved in Raptor, you will NOT be permitted to volunteer:

More info about required clearances is available from the PA Department of Human Services.

    • Must be no more than 1 year old when first provided to the school.

    • As of 2015, clearances will need to be updated and resubmitted every 5 years.

    • Prospective volunteers will need to submit their clearances via the Raptor system. ECS does not accept hard copies of clearances or emailed clearances.

    • When submitting clearances through Raptor, you must have all three clearances/waivers ready for upload. All three are required for successful submission. Raptor does not save incomplete applications.

    • Once submitted, approval can take up to 30 days.

    • The submitted clearances must be the correct required clearances. See ECS Guide to Volunteering to learn more.

    • Once approved, volunteers will receive an email via the Raptor system.

    • Volunteers will receive two generated reminder emails from Raptor at the 90 and 30-day mark prior to the expiration of your clearances.

If you have questions regarding volunteering or your clearances, please email raptor.management@ecspgh.org
Thank you for your dedication to ECS! Your services are invaluable.

Please note that Raptor does not save incomplete applications. Have all materials ready prior to starting the application process.

Get Involved

In collaboration with ECS, the Parent Community Organization (PCO) offers many ways to volunteer. There are opportunities to fit everyone’s interests and schedules (including many at-home tasks that can be accomplished in your own time). Consider Joining a PCO Committee (below), visit our Events page for information on ways to volunteer for upcoming events or email volunteer@ecspco.org. See our PCO Committee lists.

Join a PCO Committee

A list of ECS PCO Committees is provided below.

    • Fall Festival (fallfestival@ecspco.org)

    • Gingerbread House (gingerbread@ecspco.org)

    • Family Game Night (gamenight@ecspco.org)

    • Ice Skating (iceskating@ecspco.org)

    • Kennywood Day (kennywood@ecspco.org)

    • Mini-Grants (minigrants@ecspco.org)

    • Staff Appreciation (staffappreciation@ecspco.org)

    • Staff Appreciation Week (staffappreciationweek@ecspco.org)

    • Lost & Found

    • Bake Sales (bakesale@ecspco.org)

    • Blooming Bash (bloomingbash@ecspco.org)

    • Uniform Re-Use Market (uniforms@ecspco.org)

    • Plant Sale (plantsale@ecspco.org)

      • Mum Sale

      • Spring Plant Sale

    • Book Fair (bookfair@ecspco.org)

    • Box Tops for Education (boxtops@ecspco.org)

    • Emily Press Labels (emilypress@ecspco.org)

    • Giant Eagle Apples for the Students

    • Yard Sale

    • Email Newsletter (newsletter@ecspco.org)

    • Social Media

    • PCO Website

    • Publications

      • School Directory (directory@ecspco.org)

      • Yearbook (yearbook@ecspco.org or msyearbook@ecspco.org)

NOTE: You MUST have State Child Abuse, Criminal, and FBI clearances before volunteering for activities involving students.

Contact volunteer@ecspco.org to learn more about volunteering.

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Room Parents

Room parents are a tremendous asset to ECS teachers. By handling volunteer coordination, planning parties, and helping out “behind the scenes” room parents free up teachers’ time so they are able to focus their time and energy on what is most important–teaching our kids!

If you are interested in serving as a room parent or want to find out who the room parent is for your child’s class, please contact the Room Parent Coordinator.

Room Parent Resources

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