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7 Questions to Consider Prior to Conducting Background Checks

background-checks

As a condition of service to the local Little League®, all managers, coaches, Board of Directors members, and any other persons, volunteers or hired workers, who provide regular service to the league and/or have repetitive access to, or contact with players or teams, must complete and submit an official Little League Volunteer Application to the local League President, or use the JDP Quickapp which is stored on the JDP database.

The safety and well-being of all participants in the Little League® program continues to be paramount, and it is on all of us to do our part to provide a fun, memorable, and safe experience each year. With the requirement of all volunteers to complete Abuse Awareness training each year, we are proud to announce the launch of the new Little League Abuse Awareness Course, now available for all volunteers to complete at LittleLeague.org/AbuseAwareness.

Annual background screenings and abuse awareness training for all volunteers must be completed prior to the applicant assuming his/her duties for the current season. Refusal to annually submit a fully-completed Little League Volunteer Application must result in the immediate dismissal of the individual from the local league. If a potential volunteer appears on the National Sex Offender Registry, the league must contact the Security Manager at Little League International prior to appointing the volunteer to participate in any capacity in the league. Call 1-570-326-1921; and ask to speak with the Security Manager.

Annual background screenings must be completed prior to the applicant assuming his/her duties for the current season. Refusal to annually submit a fully-completed Little League Volunteer Application must result in the immediate dismissal of the individual from the local league.

Note: A local Little League must conduct a background check that at a minimum meet the standard of a nationwide criminal search, a national sex offender registry search, and a review of the U.S. Center for SafeSport’s Centralized Disciplinary Database and the Little League International Ineligible list. 

In order to assist local leagues, Little League International, through an agreement with JDP, provides each chartered U.S. league with 125 FREE searches. Also, any additional searches above 125 that may be necessary for each league will be available for a nominal fee. Starting in 2025, background checks for all volunteers are required to be conducted through JDP, other providers will not be accepted. These checks must include the National Sex Offender Data, and be done in addition to any state or municipal laws and regulations.

Here are the questions that your Board of Directors should ask, as you prepare to conduct your league’s background checks for the year.

  1. Are we doing all of the background checks that are required?
    (Reminder: It does not matter who was checked last year – ALL background checks must be performed on an annual basis.)
  2. How many managers/coaches do we have per team – 2 or 3?
  3. How many additional people are helping at practices as “practice coaches”?
  4. Are we checking all the umpires that will be working in our league, even those from an umpire association?
  5. How many board members?
  6. How many parent(s) are assisting teams in various capacities?
  7. Do we have other positions in the league like concessions manager, equipment manager, field maintenance, scorekeeper, and/or announcer?

Once you answer these questions you should come up with five to six people per team as an average number of people per league that require background checks. For more information visit JDP, at: LittleLeague.org/background.