Volunteer Clearance Process

At Bret Harte Middle School, there are two parent-led volunteer organizations:

1. The “Booster Club”, which supports the school’s after school athletic sports programs, and
2. The “Community Club”, which supports the teachers, staff, and students through activities and events. Please note all activities and events which interact directly with students, require approval from the school’s Principal and “clearance” from SJUSD.

This document describes the “clearance” process for those who are interested in volunteering for Bret Harte’s activities and events which have direct interaction with students. Most volunteer roles do not require district “clearance”. When completing the BHCC Volunteer Signup Form, if you have specified an interest area requiring clearance (listed in “bold” type), the steps outlined below must be completed. District clearance is required every year you volunteer for activities and events requiring clearance, regardless of whether or not you are a “returning” or “new” volunteer. If it has been more than 2 years since you have volunteered in SJUSD, which is considered “interrupted service”, your volunteer record at the District Office will have been deleted and you will be considered a “new” volunteer when you request clearance.

NEW VOLUNTEER
If this is your first time volunteering for San José Unified:

1. Review the district’s Volunteer Policies
2. Complete the online application.
3. Wait for the school(s) to verify you are allowed to be on campus. Each principal must verify that a volunteer is allowed to be on campus before HR can move forward with the volunteer process. 
4. After you receive your next steps email, complete a tuberculosis (TB) test. The TB clearance must be valid for the entire school year in which you are volunteering. 
5. Email your TB clearance, results must be from within the last 60 days, to [email protected].
6. Once Human Resources verifies your TB clearance, you will be invited for a fingerprint appointment at the District Office. These appointments are by invitation only. 
7. Once your fingerprints have cleared through the Department of Justice and FBI, you will receive an auto-confirmation email that you are cleared to volunteer. 

If you have any questions, please contact San Jose Unified Human Resources at 408-535-6139 ext. 15030 or [email protected].

​RETURNING VOLUNTEER
You are considered a returning volunteer if you have been fingerprinted by San Jose Unified and you have a current TB test. TB tests need to be redone every 4 years, fingerprinting only needs to happen once after August, 2010. All volunteers must complete this process each year:

1. Complete the online application at go.sjusd.org/VolunteerApp.
2. Send required documents to [email protected].

San Jose Unified will send an email confirmation once you are cleared to volunteer.

Thank you for your patience during this clearance and approval process! The school is very
appreciative of any volunteering time and effort you are able to offer during the year. We love our volunteers!

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Please address any questions you may have regarding the district volunteer clearance process, or the status of your submitted “GoFormz” Volunteer clearance request form, directly with the: SJUSD Human Resources Department, “Clearance Administrator” at (408) 535-6139 x15030.
​NOTE: Only the SJUSD Human Resources Department has access to your confidential information. Bret Harte Middle School DOES NOT have access to an individual’s fingerprinting, TB, or background check information.