Another in the series of articles by guest blogger Jack Thomas.
Check back frequently to see if you’re state has been covered!

Everyone has experienced a substitute teacher in their lifetime. No surprise there. But a 19 year old? You read it right-19! In an article from the Salt Lake Tribune, there seems to be an uproar from the Granite School District,where they used a 19 year old student as an emergency substitute teacher. A further outcry came when the substitute was arrested for a sexual encounter with a 13 year old female student. That’s right-13. Read more…

The following article is written by Jack Thomas, Guest Blogger and Author of our Nifty 50 Series. The excerpt is from an interview with the head of a local University. The source has asked to remain anonymous to avoid any response directly to their institution. We of course have granted this request, and hope you find the advice as insightful as we have.

Interview tips from Leaders in Business

1. What are some of the most common mistakes you see in the application process?

From the agency/organization’s side: When the organization creates a job description, it lists 15 to 20 pieces of information in it:  job functions,     responsibilities, and candidate qualifications.  Usually, all of this is good.  However, most organizations don’t take the next step to prioritize which are most important or which are required.  So when applications come in, it’s hard to screen them.  I would recommend identifying 3 to 4 qualifications that are required and create a “gate” with them. Read more…

Prospective nominees for Presidential appointments must answer 63 questions in order to ensure there are no skeletons in the closet. The original pdf is available here.

1. Professional Background
1. Please furnish copies of all resumes and biographical statements issued by you or any other entity at your discretion or with your consent within the past 10 years.
2. If you are a member of any licensed profession or occupation, please specify the following: the present status of each license; whether any such license has been withdrawn, suspended, or revoked; whether any disciplinary action of any kind has ever been taken in connection with your license. Please also list any applications for professional licenses or certifications that may have been denied and the reasons for denial.
3. Please provide the names of all corporations, firms, partnerships, trusts, or other business enterprises, and all non-profit organizations and other such institutions with which you are now, or during the past ten years have been, affiliated with as an advisor, attorney or consultant.
4. Please chronologically list activities, other than those listed on your resume or biography, from which you have derived earned income (e.g. self-employment, consulting activities, writing, speaking, royalties and honoraria) for the past 10 years.
5. Have you or your spouse ever registered as a lobbyist or other legislative agent to influence federal or state legislation or administrative acts? Have you or your spouse ever received payment for acting as a lobbyist or legislative agent? If so, please supply details.
6. If you or your spouse have performed any work, received any payments from and/or made any payments to any foreign government, business, non-profit organization or individual, please describe the circumstances, and identify the source and amount. Also please specify if you or your spouse have ever been registered as an agent for a foreign principal.
7. If you or your spouse have ever lived or worked abroad, please describe the circumstances.
8. Briefly describe the most controversial matters your have been involved with during the course of your career.
9. Please provide the names, addresses and telephone numbers of three professional references. If possible, please furnish names of individuals with whom you have worked as a peer, a subordinate and as a supervisor.
2. Publications, Writings & Speeches
10. Writings: Please list and, if readily available, provide a copy of each book, article column or publication (including but not limited to any posts or comments on blogs or other websites) you have authored, individually or with others. Please list all aliases or “handles” you have used to communicate on the Internet.
11. Testimony: Please identify each instance in which you have testified before Congress or other legislative, administrative, investigative or regulatory body, and specify the subject matter of the testimony. If available, please provide summaries or transcripts of your testimony.
12. Speeches: Please identify all speeches you have given. If available please provide the text or recordings of each such speech or identify any recordings of speeches of which you are aware.
13. Electronic communications: If you have ever sent an electronic communication, including but not limited to an email, text message or instant message, that you could suggest a conflict of interest or be a possible source of embarrassment to you, your family, or the President-Elect if it were made public, please describe.
14. Diaries: If you keep or have kept a diary that contains anything you could suggest a conflict of interest or be a possible source of embarrassment to you, your family, or the President-Elect if it were made public, please describe.
3. Relationships & Affiliations
15. Please list all corporations, partnerships, trusts, or other business entities with which you or your spouse have ever been affiliated as an officer, director, trustee, partner, or holder of a significant equity or financial interest (i.e. any ownership interest of more than 5%), or whose decisions you or your spouse had the ability to influence. Please identify the entity, your relationship to the entity, and dates of service and/or affiliation.
16. Please list each membership, including any board memberships, you or your spouse have or have had with any political, civic, social, charitable, educational, professional, fraternal, benevolent or religious organization, private club or other membership organization (including any type of tax-exempt organization) during the past 10 years. Please include dates of membership and any positions you may have had with the organization.
17. Have you or your spouse at any time belonged to any membership organization, including but not limited to those described in the proceeding paragraph, that as a matter of policy or practice, denied or restricted membership or affiliate based on race, sex, disability, ethnic background, religion or sexual orientation or has been subject to a claim that is has done so? If so, please provide details.
18. Please specifically describe any affiliation to you, your spouse or any member of your immediate family have, or have had, with an financial, banking, mortgage or insurance institution that is currently the subject of federal government intervention as part of the ongoing economic crisis. This question includes, but is not limited to, the following: Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, AIG, and Washington Mutual.
19. If you currently serve or in the last ten years have served as an administrator, executor, trustee, receiver, or in any other similar fiduciary capacity, please describe for each: your exact position; the nature of your duties; the persons or entities for whom you act(ed) as a fiduciary; the dates during which you served in such a fiduciary capacity; and any supervising courts.
20. Other than the entities identified in questions 15-19 above, please provide the names and details of any individuals and organizations with which you or you spouse have ever been associated with which might present a conflict of interest with your proposed federal office, or have the potential for embarrassment.
4. Financial Information
21. Please provide copies of all financial disclosure forms you or your spouse have been required to file within the past ten years, if applicable.
22. Please furnish a copy of each net worth statement that you have prepared and submitted for any purpose (e.g., bank loans) during the past ten years.
23. Please furnish a copy of all brokerage statements for investment accounts for the past year.
24. Please list all loans in excess of $10,000 made to you or your spouse, or by you or your spouse, which existed at anytime during the past ten years. Please specify the creditor or debtor, interest rate, due date and any other key terms, and identify the purpose for which the liability was incurred. Please also specify the extent to which any such loans contained terms not generally available to the public, such as below-market rates.
25. Please furnish a copy of each trust of which you, your spouse or any child under 21 is a grantor or beneficiary. Also please furnish a copy of any amendment, and any document indicating a change in trustee of any such trust.
26. Please describe all real estate held in your name or in your spouse’s name during the last ten years. Please include real estate held in combination with others, held in trust, held by a nominee, or held by or through any other third person or title-holding entity, and identify such other person or entity.
27. Please describe the mortgage terms for any properties listed under question 21, including the rate, date, holder, service entity, and any special circumstances surrounding the acquisition of the mortgages.
28. Have you or your spouse at any time held property (as names owner of record individually or in combination with others) the title to which contained any restrictive covenant based on race, sex, ethnic background, religion or sexual orientation? If so, please provide all relevant information and records.
29. Please describe any contractual or informal arrangement you may have made with any person or business enterprise in regard to future employment or termination payments or financial benefits that will be provided to you if you enter federal government employment or you leave your current employment.
30. Do you, your spouse, or any member of your immediate family, or business in which you, your spouse, or immediate family member have a substantial interest, have any relationship with any government, whether federal, state, local, Indian, or foreign, through contracts, consulting services, grants, loans or guarantees? If yes, please provide details.
31. Are there any categories of personal financial records (e.g., individual, partnership or sole proprietorship tax returns, mortgage documents, loan agreements) that you (or your spouse) will not release publicly is necessary? If so, please identify these records and state the reasons for withholding them.
32. Other than from relatives, or from close and longstanding person friends on occasions such as birthdays or seasonal holidays, have you or your spouse ever received a gift exceeding $50.00 in value? Please indentify the donor, the value of the gift, the date received and the circumstances in which the gift was made.
5. Tax Information
33. Please furnish a copy of each federal and state (and, if applicable, municipal or foreign) tax return, including any amended return, for 2005 and all subsequent years. If filed separately, furnish the same documents for your spouse.
34. Have you and your spouse filed all required federal, state, local and foreign income tax returns?
35. Have you or your spouse ever filed a late tax return without a valid extension? If so describe the circumstances and resolution of the matter.
36. Have you ever paid any tax penalties? If so, describe the circumstances and the resolution of the matter.
37. Has a tax lien or other collection procedure ever been instituted against you or your spouse by federal, state or local authorities? If so, describe the circumstances and the resolution of the matter.
38. Have you ever not paid U.S. and/or state income taxes because you were not a resident in the United State, or for any other reason?
39. Have you ever been or do you have any expectation that you will be the subject of any tax, financial, or other audit or inquiry? If so, please describe.
40. Have you have participated in an investment program or partnership which has been audited or investigated by federal, state or local authorities? If so, please describe the circumstances and the resolution of the matter.
41. Please answer each of the questions in this section for your spouse (for the past ten years) and for any business with which you have been affiliated as an officer, director, partner, trustee or significant owner (i.e., any ownership interest of more than 5%).
6. Legal and Administrative Proceedings
42. Please list any lawsuits you or your spouse have brought as a plaintiff or which were brought against you or your spouse as a defendant or third party, or in which you or your spouse have testified at trial or deposition. Include in this response any arbitrations, mediations, and contested divorce proceedings or other domestic relations matters.
43. Please list and describe any administrative agency proceedings in which you or your spouse have been involved as a party or material witness, and describe the details of your involvement.
44. Please list any insolvency or bankruptcy proceedings in which you or your spouse have been involved as a debtor, creditor, claimant, or defendant, and describe details of that involvement.
45. If you have ever been investigated by any law enforcement agency (whether federal, state, military, local, Indian or foreign), arrested for, charged with, or convicted of violating any law, regulation or ordinance (whether federal, state, military, local, Indian or foreign), please identify each such instance and supply details, including: date, place; law enforcement agency; and court. Provide the same information for your spouse and for each child over 21, and for any business with which you have been affiliated (e.g. as a director, officer, partner, trustee, or holder of any significant ownership interest), and furnish all pertinent records. You may exclude traffic offenses for which the fine was less than $50.
46. Have any members of your family or close social or business associates been arrested for, charged with and/or convicted of a crime, other than a minor traffic violation? If so, please identify and describe each such arrest, charge or conviction. Please provide the same information for anyone under your professional supervision, or anyone of your superiors.
47. Have you or your spouse ever been accused, formally or informally, of any violation of government or agency procedure (specifically including security violations)?
48. Please list any complaint ever made against you or your spouse by any administrative agency, regulatory body, professional association or organization, or federal, state, local, Indian or foreign ethics agency, committee, or official.
49. Please list any malpractice claim made against you, formally or informally, and describe the resolution of the matter.
50. Please list any claims of sexual harassment or other workplace misconduct, made against you or any other employee directly supervised by you, including the resolution of the matter.
51. Have any civil judgments or liens been rendered against you or your spouse? If so, please provide details.
52. With regard to each obligation of child support and/or alimony owed by you or your spouse, please state the following: Have any payments been made late or have there been any lapses in payment? Have any motions or court actions for modification of child support or alimony been filed or instituted? Have any actions or motions to compel payments or initiate collection of late payments and/or past due amounts been filed or threatened? Have any writs of garnishment been issued? If yes, please provide details.
7. Domestic Help
53. Do you presently have or have you in the past had occasional (to be sure, a monthly housekeeper is covered) or regular domestic help? (e.g., a housekeeper, babysitter, nanny or gardener) If yes, please indicate the name and years of service for each individual and also provide a brief description of the services rendered.
54. Were all individuals listed in Question 53 legally eligible to work in the U.S. at the time that you employed them?
55. Have you ever paid all taxes and social security obligations applicable to the employment of the individuals listed in Question 53? Do you use an outside service to pay such individuals? Have all payments related to the employment of these individuals been made in a timely fashion? If not, please identify the length and reason for the delays(s).
56. Have you have complied with all federal, state and local laws and regulations related to the employment of individuals listed in Question 53?
8. Miscellaneous
57. If applicable, please list the names, addresses and phone numbers of cohabitants within the last ten years. A cohabitant is a person with whom you share bonds of affection, obligation, or other commitment, as opposed to a person with whom you live for reasons of convenience (a roommate).
58. Please provide the URL address of any websites that feature you in either a personal or professional capacity (e.g., Facebook, MySpace, etc.)
59. Do you or any members of you immediate family own a gun? If so, provide complete ownership and registration information. Has the registration ever lapsed? Please also describe how and by whom it is used and whether it has been the cause of any person injuries or property damage.
60. Have you had a complete physical within the past year? Please describe your overall health and any medical treatment you are currently receiving.
61. Have you had any association with any person, group or business venture that could be used – even unfairly – to impugn or attack your character and qualifications for government service?
62. Do you know anyone or any organization, either in the private sector or government service, that might take steps, overtly, or covertly, fairly or unfairly, to criticize your nomination, including any news organization? If so, please identify and explain the potential basis for criticism.
63. Please provide any other information, including information about other members of your family, which could suggest a conflict of interest or be a possible source of embarrassment to you, your family, or the President Elect.

I posted about a company I used to work for and how they did comprehensive background checks on all of their employees including the janitor.  I thought it was ridiculous that they would do a credit check on a janitor and it made it extremely difficult to hire for that low level position.

Then Jeri posted about Obama’s background questionnaire on the CrimCheck blog (here’s a link to the actual PDF document) and it just about knocked me over.

Read more…

Applicants for Obama’s administration have to pass an extensive background check. The seven-page document questions applicants regarding domestic help, social media sites such as Facebook, requests copies of any text messages or emails that could prove a source of embarrassment. Read more…

We all know that stealing is wrong, right? That’s pretty obvious.

Okay, so you ended up stealing something. You don’t tell anyone, right? Well, of course!

You certainly don’t publish the story to one of the largest read websites in the country, right? Duh!

That’s why this story about Phil Busse is so … well … just take a look:

Read more…

This article points out the fact that the opportunity for student teachers to do harm is just as real as full-time teachers and other school employees. Therefore, the State of Kansas is wise to consider it mandatory to require the school district to perform background checks if the student teacher’s college does not provide one. Read more…

Not all states allow public access to statewide criminal records information. At this time, forty states allow some type of criminal record access. Some allow online access, others require written application forms and still others require in-person inquiries. Fees vary, and the data reported varies greatly and may not be up-to-date. Read more…

One of the really interesting things to me about background checks is what services people use and why they choose to screen certain employees in certain ways.

Just for a quick example, a former employer of mine used to screen everyone exactly the same no matter what the position entailed. So a financial controller gets the same level of scrutiny as our janitor. The amount of background checks some lower level staff went through was excrutiating to them. The janitor candidates would shake their heads at the amount they would have to go through. We lost many others because of past credit problems as well.

Read more…

What’s the one thing I hate to hear coming into HR at an organization? 

Me: When is the last time you’ve done a self-audit? When is the last time you had someone else audit your files?

Them: *Earth shattering, rock concert deafening silence. *

Me: Nooooooo

Read more…