• Community Sponsor Information

     

    2023 Senior Internship:  May 8 - June 2
     
    For over 50 years, seniors at Conestoga High School have had the opportunity to explore a potential career area during the month before Graduation. With the help of a Faculty Advisor, the Program Coordinator, and you, the Community Sponsor, students will gain experience in their areas of interest, possible college majors and potential careers. Students will also learn responsibilities and skills necessary in a work environment. Internships take place at a wide variety of businesses, professional fields, and service organizations.
     
    In 2023, seniors may do a traditional in-person internship, a virtual internship, or a combination of both.

    Thousands of professionals in our community and extended area have offered training, expertise and guidance to Conestoga students over the years. The continued success of the Senior Internship Program is due to the generosity and willingness of these Community Sponsors to provide this unique opportunity to Conestoga students. The students are expected to work for 7 hours/day, 5 days/week for the sponsoring business/organization.

    Background Clearances for Community Sponsors
    As you may know, there has been increased awareness and conversation regarding the topic of protecting our youth.  The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania takes this issue very seriously and has passed the Child Protective Services Law to ensure that employees and volunteers who have regular and repeated contact with students have appropriate background clearances.  This law was recently amended to include adults who supervise, are responsible for, and have direct contact with a child in an internship externship, work-study, co-op or similar program (House Bill 1276, Chapter 63).
     
    To be compliant with this law, Community Sponsors for Conestoga internships must have the necessary background clearances to work with Conestoga students who are under 18 years of age, as of May 9, 2022.  These include (1) the Pennsylvania Criminal Background Check, (2) the Pennsylvania Child Abuse History Clearance, and (3) the Federal History Criminal Record.
     
    Instructions for Obtaining Background Clearances: 
    In order to be a Conestoga High School Senior Internship Program Community Sponsor, the designated individual at your place of employment who will be in the immediate vicinity at regular intervals with the student intern (under 18 years of age) must obtain the following three clearances (through the PA Dept of Human Services):

    1) The Pennsylvania Criminal Record Check can be done either online or by mail. The online results are available right away. If you choose to mail the form, it could take up to 8 weeks for the results to be returned to you. To begin this process, click on the link below. At the end of the process, you will need to print two copies of the certification form. Please keep a copy of your Criminal Record Check for your personal records. The fee for the PA Criminal Record Check is $8.00.

     Steps for Obtaining a PA Criminal Background Clearance

    1. Register online at https://epatch.state.pa.us/Home.jsp and click Submit a New Record Check.
    2. You should receive a response of “No record” or “Request under a review.
    3. Click on and print “Certification Form”.

     2) The Pennsylvania Child Abuse History Clearance (Act 151) application can be submitted online. Below is the link to the Child Welfare Portal where you must create an account or log in if you already have an account. Notes: You will need an email address to create an account. And, this form asks for former addresses and the names of people with whom you have lived, so you may want to have that ready. The fee for the PA Child Abuse History Clearance is $8.00.

     Steps for Obtaining a PA Child Abuse History Clearance

    1. Register online at http://www.compass.state.pa.us/CWIS 
    2. Choose "create individual account" and fill out the necessary information.   
    3. You choose your own Keystone ID.  You will receive an email containing your temporary password.
    4. Log back onto the website with your password and follow the prompts.
    5. You will receive an email when your clearance is available on the website for printing.
    3) The Federal Criminal History Record (Act 114) To complete this clearance, you will register online and receive a document which you will then to take to a fingerprinting location.  The fee for the Federal Criminal History Record is $22.60.

    Instructions for Completing a FBI Federal Criminal History Records Check

    • Fee: $22.60. All applicants will now receive an unofficial copy of their report. Fee is payable to IDEMIA. The fee is subject to change so please check the IDEMIA website for the current price.

     The fingerprint-based background check is a multiple-step process, as follows: 

    1. Registration: The applicant must register prior to going to the fingerprint site. Walk in service is allowed but all applicants are required to complete pre-enrollment in the new Universal Enrollment system. Pre-enrollment can be completed online or over the phone. The registration website is available online 24 hours/day, seven days per week at https://uenroll.identogo.com. Telephonic registration is available at 1-844-321-2101 Monday through Friday, 8am to 6pm EST. During the pre-enrollment process, all demographic data for the applicant is collected (name, address, etc.) along with notices about identification requirements and other important information. When registering on-line, an applicant must use the appropriate agency specific Service Code to ensure they are processed for the correct agency and/or applicant type. Using the correct service code ensures the background check is submitted for the correct purpose. Fingerprint requests processed through any other agency or purpose cannot be accepted and are not transferrable. If an applicant enters the wrong code by mistake, the incorrect applicant type will appear at the top of the screen. The applicant should select the “Back to Home” button and begin the process again, by reentering the correct Service Code. If the applicant proceeds with the process under the incorrect code, the pre-enrollment and/or results cannot be transferred to another state agency and the applicant will have to start the process over and pay for the background check again. 

    SERVICE CODES

    • Employment in PA public schools: 1KG6XN (Pennsylvania PDE-School Districts)
    • Volunteering in PA public schools: 1KG6Y3 (Pennsylvania PDE-Volunteer) 

     

    1. Payment: The applicant will pay a fee of $22.60 for the fingerprint service and to secure an unofficial copy of the Criminal History Record. Major Credit Cards as well as Money orders or cashier’s checks payable to MorphoTrust will be accepted on site for those applicants who are required to pay individually. No cash transactions or personal checks are allowed.
    2. Fingerprint Locations: After registration, the applicant proceeds to the fingerprint site of their choice for fingerprinting. The location of the fingerprint sites and days and hours of operation for each site are posted on IDEMIA's website at https://uenroll.identogo.com. The location of fingerprint sites may change over time; applicants are encouraged to confirm the site location nearest to their location. PDE encourages entities where access to the fingerprint location is more than 25 miles away to contact IDEMIA and suggest areas where another closer site could be established.
    3. Fingerprinting: At the fingerprint site the Enrollment Agents (EA) manages the fingerprint collection process. The fingerprint transaction begins when the EA reviews the applicant’s qualified State or Federal photo ID before processing the applicant’s transaction. A list of approved ID type may be found on the IDEMIA website at https://uenroll.identogo.com. Applicants will not be processed if they cannot produce an acceptable photo ID. After the identity of the applicant has been established, all ten fingers are scanned to complete the process. The entire fingerprint process should take no more than three to five minutes. 

    Please contact Jeanne Braun, Community and Volunteer Services Coordinator, at braunj@tesd.net or 610-240-1913, if you are interested in becoming a Senior Internship Community Sponsor or if you have any questions.