Students majoring in education at Ball State University are required to submit a criminal background check before teaching at Burris Laboratory School.
Marilyn Deweese, instructor of elementary education, said Burris officials began requiring the background checks in Spring 2007 to protect the children in the school.
"We have to do everything to protect the safety of our students," she said.
More and more schools in Indiana are requiring teachers to submit a background check, which includes criminal history, arrest record and any sex offender charges, she said.
No students have complained about having to submit the background checks, Deweese said.
"Everyone agrees it's a good thing," she said. "Anything you can do to protect the children is a wise thing."
Judy Miller, director of the Office of Teacher Education Services, said she also has not received any complaints from students. For the most part, students have been understanding about the process, she said. They put themselves in place of the parents, and they would want to know who was teaching and interacting with their children, she said.
"Most people are just worried about the inconvenience and the timeliness of getting the background check back," Miller said.
If a student submits the background check online through the Indiana State Police, it costs $17 to $24, and the student is immediately checked, Miller said. If the student submits the background check through the mail, the fee is $7, but the process is much slower, she said.
Junior Alison McCorkle, an elementary education major who teaches at Burris, said she has mixed feelings about the required background check.
"I think it's a good idea, and I'm glad they're requiring it," she said. However, she does not like the process, she said. "The background check expires, and I will have to keep renewing it."
Miller said the background checks do expire, but the time limit depends on what the check is being used for. Sometimes schools want a recent background check, but other schools are more flexible, she said.
"It's well within their right to ask for a new one," she said. "It's up to the school to make that call."
Overall, Miller said she believed the background checks are beneficial to students in the schools.
"I think people are being proactive," she said. "It just makes good sense to do that. If you were a parent, you wouldn't want to take any risks with your children."
Every school district in Delaware County requires anyone tutoring, instructing or teaching lessons to children to submit a background check, Miller said. People observing a classroom do not need to submit one, she said.
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