A few things....

I live in Massachusetts, which requires anyone working with children get a CORI form filled out, which is basically a background check. I'm all for this. After reading an article about a Long Island magician recently (Infantino) they can DNA me if they want to protect the children I work with. We can't be more careful, and I think anything a state wants to do they should do. Let's just hope and cross our fingers that anything they want us to do is easy enough to do...and not too many hoops.

It would be nice if the Café had subsections by state or country for this subject. Not that I don't mind hearing about what others have to go through, but if I'm in Massachusetts this is the type of situation where I really need to speak with another magician or performer from my area, and someone from the UK really wouldn't be much of a help....imho...

--Jon

I've yet to be asked to be fingerprinted and I perform in several schools every year.

You will my friend...you will!

Most likely. Usually, I have to fill out a W-9 so that the school or sponsor can process a check. That has identifying information, anyway.

Anyone know if there is such a thing in the following states:
Indiana
Illinois
Wisconson
Michigan
Ohio
Kentucky
Thanks for any heads up so we can get registered.

I hope it doesn't happen to Singapore...

Hi Todd (and everyone else in Texas)--

I also got that e-mail about fingerprinting and background checks. Now I have a new e-mail abour Senate Bill 9 that seems to let us off of the hook. It reads:

Good afternoon! I am an attorney with the Texas Association of School Boards and one of my assignments is to advise districts on Senate Bill 9 compliance. Your e-mail about performer background checks was forwarded to me by a district that was concerned about compliance for speakers and performers. I thought I would share my thoughts with you, too, in the hopes that you can pass them on to your listserve members.

SB 9 does require background checks for contractors who have continuing duties on the contract and direct student contact. Both of these requirements -- continuing duties AND direct contact -- must be satisfied before a contractor is covered. There has been some confusion as to what constitutes "continuing duties" and "direct contact" under the statute. In an effort to assist, TEA has proposed rules defining these terms, as follows:

"Continuing duties related to the contracted services" -- work duties that are performed pursuant to a contract to provide services to a school entity on a regular, repeated basis rather than infrequently or one-time only.

"Direct contact with students" -- The contact that results from activities that provide substantial opportunity for verbal or physical interaction with students that is not supervised by a certified educator or other professional district employee. Contact with students that results from services that do not provide substantial opportunity for unsupervised contact with students, such as addressing an assembly, officiating a sports contest, or judging an extracurricular event, is not, by itself, direct contact with students. However, direct contact with students does result from any activity that provides the opportunity for unsupervised contact with students, which might include, without limitation, the provision of coaching, tutoring, or other services to students.

As you can see, TEA's emphasis is on whether the contractor is supervised. A contractor who is accompanied by a librarian or other professional district employee while interacting with students would not be considered covered by SB 9. The person may, however, be subject to the district's existing procedures for campus visitors.

TEA's proposed rules are available here (but please note, we are expecting an update to these within the next week or so): http://www.tea.state.tx.us/rules/commissioner/proposed/0508/153dd-ltrprop.html.

In addition, I have prepared FAQs on SB 9's requirements for district employees and for contractors. These are available here: http://www.tasb.org/services/legal/faqs/personnel.aspx

Sincerely,
Holly Claghorn
Senior Attorney
Texas Association of School Boards

I just got that same email this morning. Thanks for sharing!

P.S. Dal- where the heck were you this year? You did not attend Kidabra!

I took August off to finish preparing for my little lecture tour that begins next Tuesday in Houston. You can't go out of town AND write lecture notes. I did make the IBM/SAM Combined Convention in Louisville, TAOM in Fort Worth and the Corporate Entertainer's Convention in Chicago this summer. Hopefully I'll be back at KIDabra next year...along with Magic Live, SAM, and TAOM.