芝加哥公立学校 (CPS) 最近在进行新的背景调查后解雇了 128 名员工。根据芝加哥论坛报的一份报告 ，被罢免的员工名单包括 9 名教师和 35 名课堂助手以及其他地区员工。

CPS 选择不披露被解雇员工的具体细节，包括他们的姓名、他们工作的学校或导致解雇的背景调查结果。然而，该学区确实表示，其大部分员工——这一类别包括大约 68,000 人——现已通过背景调查，可以与儿童一起工作或接近儿童。

今年夏天，CPS 宣布打算对大约 45,000 名现有员工进行新的背景调查。 芝加哥论坛报的 一项调查 发现，学区让学生在有犯罪记录或过去对儿童性虐待的指控的员工周围容易受到伤害，从而 引发 了 重复背景调查的浪潮。《 论坛报》 辩称，CPS 没有足够的背景调查系统，主要是因为学区只在雇用时对员工进行审查。

除了 CPS 解雇的 128 名员工外，该地区还告别了 130 名学校志愿者和 184 名供应商员工，他们为 CPS 签订某些服务合同的公司工作。还有一份 124 名地区雇员的名单，他们被暂时禁止在该地区工作，因为他们没有提交指纹以进行背景调查。最后，学区希望仔细研究 27 名教练 和 350 名 供应商 和 志愿者——这些人在此期间也被禁止与学区合作。《 论坛报》 说，对这些工人的背景调查“发现了促使地区更仔细审查他们个人历史的信息。”

该 论坛 文章概述了几个潜在的问题与CPS迄今所采取的行动。首先，芝加哥教师工会表示，CPS 没有安排对其解雇的教师进行纪律处分——这是该地区与教育局签订的合同所要求的。  劳工  团体。其次，法律要求 CPS 报告因虐待或忽视指控而被解雇（或辞职）的任何教育工作者的姓名。伊利诺伊州教育委员会表示，CPS 尚未澄清其最近被解雇的教师是否符合这些标准。

最后，尽管对大多数现有员工进行了大规模的重新检查，但据报道，CPS 没有制定持续的策略来监控员工是否有新的犯罪活动。今年早些时候，当《 论坛报》 发表对 CPS 的调查时，最大的收获是，该地区没有有效的手段来了解员工在受雇后犯罪的情况。大规模的重新检查操作暂时关闭了这些漏洞，但随着时间的推移它们会再次形成。CPS 将受益于实施定期重新筛选员工的政策。

Chicago Tribune, the list of ousted employees included nine teachers and 35 classroom aides among other district employees.

CPS has opted not to disclose specific details about the fired employees, including their names, the schools where they worked, or the background check findings that resulted in their termination. However, the district does say that most of its employees—a category that includes roughly 68,000 people—have now been cleared by background checks to work with or near children.

In the summer, CPS announced its intention to conduct new background checks on around 45,000 existing employees. The rash of repeat background checks was prompted by a Chicago Tribune investigation which found that the school district had left students vulnerable around employees with criminal records or past accusations of child sexual abuse. The Tribune argued that CPS did not have a sufficient background check system, mainly because the district only vetted employees at the time of hire.

In addition to the 128 employees that CPS dismissed, the districted bid farewell to 130 school volunteers and 184 vendor employees who work for companies that CPS contracts for certain services. There is also a list of 124 district employees who are temporarily barred from working with the district, as they have not submitted fingerprints for their background checks. Finally, the district wants to take a closer look at 27 coaches and 350 vendors and volunteers—individuals who are also barred from working with the district in the interim. The Tribune says that the background checks for these workers “uncovered information that prompted a closer district review of their personal history.”

The Tribune article outlined several potential issues with the actions that CPS has taken so far. First, the Chicago Teachers Union says CPS has not scheduled disciplinary proceedings with the teachers it has dismissed—something that is required under the district’s contract with the  labor  group. Second, CPS is required by law to report the names of any educators who have been fired (or who have resigned) over allegations of abuse or neglect. The Illinois State Board of Education says that CPS has not clarified whether any of its recently dismissed teachers fit these criteria.

Finally, despite the massive undertaking of re-checking most of its existing employees, CPS reportedly does not have an ongoing strategy in place for monitoring employees for new criminal activity. When the Tribune published its investigation of CPS earlier this year, the big takeaway was that the district did not have an effective means of learning about employees who committed crimes after they were hired. The big re-check operation closed those holes for now, but they will form again over time. CPS would benefit from implementing a policy for re-screening employees on a regular basis.