Trustees refine volunteer policy: ages, parental consent and background checks discussed
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Summary
Trustees revised volunteer policy language to clarify minimum ages, parental consent for volunteers under 18, and background-check procedures; they also pared volunteer duties to simpler categories and discussed recordkeeping for long-term volunteers.
Hubbardston Public Library trustees discussed revisions to the volunteer policy covering minimum ages, parental consent, background checks and volunteer duties.
Trustees proposed a minimum volunteer age of 14 and debated whether volunteers ages 14–17 should require parental consent. Members cited state guidance noting minors are individuals under 18 and that libraries commonly require written parental permission for volunteers under 18; trustees agreed that volunteers aged 14–17 should have parental consent documented. Several trustees emphasized keeping the policy practical for high-school students who commonly seek volunteer hours.
The trustees discussed background screening. The draft requires applicants to coordinate background checks with the town administrative office. A staff speaker noted that CORI/SORI checks (state criminal-record checks) appear in results if there are issues, and recommended re-submitting checks for volunteers who serve longer than three years because the checks expire. Trustees asked the director or staff to confirm the town’s exact process and whether the policy should state a recheck interval.
Trustees streamlined the listed volunteer duties. Several members suggested condensing detailed task lists (weeding, processing discards, periodical organization, technical services, etc.) into broader categories such as shelving and collection maintenance, children’s-room support, program setup and clerical assistance while keeping flexibility for other tasks. They also agreed that the director will keep applications on file for up to one year if no immediate opportunities exist.
On leaving volunteer service, trustees agreed to add a simple procedure for volunteers who choose to discontinue: notify the director or immediate supervisor (no formal written notice required for this small operation). For volunteers who cannot perform assigned duties, the director will place the application on file and contact the applicant if an appropriate role opens. No formal vote was taken; trustees asked staff to confirm specific statutory or town requirements and to return a cleaned-up draft.