School Research Placement

Procedures and Requirements | Criminal Background Check | Deadlines | School Research Ideas Forms

Information Regarding Criminal Background Checks

All individuals who wish to conduct research in preschools, elementary, middle, or high schools are now required to pass a criminal background check which is facilitated by the Office of School-University Research Relations.

Faculty members, graduate students, and undergraduate research assistants, must come to the Bureau of Educational Research in Room 38 Education and submit a one-page Background Check Form in order to have this check run. Please bring two forms of identification with you, one picture ID, and one with your social security number. There is a $20.00 fee for each background check. The fee for background checks run in the Bureau may be paid by cash, check, or voucher charging to a University research account. (The Principal Investigator must approve the use of a research account; for instructions on completing a stores voucher to charge to a University research account, see Voucher Payment Instructions.)

The information on the form you complete is sent electronically to the Illinois State Police. The background check does a name search for any convictions an individual has received in the state of Illinois. Individuals who have been convicted of criminal offenses that would prevent them from receiving teacher certification in Illinois will be barred from doing research in the schools. Examples of such offenses are first degree murder, attempted first degree murder, class X felonies, or certain narcotics or sexual offenses. Some school districts require a copy of the criminal background check result. Except for the school districts that require this information, all background check results will be kept confidential and will not be shared with any other firms, organizations, or agencies. Please contact the OSSUR office for a copy of the results.

If the researcher has had a background check done previously in the State of Illinois, and can provide the appropriate verification of the check, then it may be acceptable for research in schools. Please bring the documentation to the OSURR office for approval and entry into the OSSUR system.

For faculty and graduate students who may be involved in multiple projects over the course of several years, the background check is typically required only once unless otherwise notified. If you are unsure if you have complied with this policy please check with the OSURR office where confidential records are maintained or contact Anne Robertson with any questions.

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