Have You Completed The Required Clearances?

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All current PIAA-registered officials who have not yet submitted to PIAA the certifications identified below are required to obtain and submit them to PIAA on or before January 1, 2016.  The failure to submit such certifications shall result in suspension of registration until the certifications are submitted.

What this means? 

  • If not previously submitted, clearances for PIAA registered officials are required by January 1, 2016.  They are not required by law until this date.
  • All registered officials are required to re-submit all three clearances every five years.
  • Clearances for those officials that have registered in the last five years will remain in effect until their initial five year period expires.
  • Clearances obtained by newly registered officials in the year prior to their test date may be used to satisfy the clearance requirement.
  • There is no “grandfather clause” in this legislation.  ALL officials are required to obtain all three clearances and have them on file with PIAA by January 1, 2016.
  • Clearances obtained through employment may be used to satisfy PIAA clearance requirements.  However, clearances obtained as a volunteer may not be used to satisfy PIAA clearance requirements.

There are three clearances that are required by PA State Law.  Each can be accessed at the links below:

  1. FBI clearance – https://pa-aps.3m.com/perlpub/registration_edu_pci.pl
    (This is the Cogent site required to be used by Department of Education – this clearance must be done online)
    Click here for the Cogent Fingerprint site locations

     In completing the FBI clearance, there is an area that requests “reasons” – the answer is school districts.

     Approximately 4 weeks after getting fingerprinted, you will receive your Cogent results in the mail.  These are the documents (both front and back sides) that will need to be uploaded to the PIAA website.

    Click HERE for a list of locations where you can have the fingerprinting part of the process done.

  2. PA State Police clearance – https://epatch.state.pa.us

        In completing the PA State Police clearance, the “reason” is employment.

 3.   Department of Human Services clearance (PA Child Abuse) –    https://www.compass.state.pa.us/cwis/public/home

      **Once at this site create an individual account**

       In completing the Child Abuse History clearance, under the application purpose, check the box titled, “School Employee Governed by Public School  Code”.

**The PA State Police clearance and the Department of Human Services clearance can be printed and mailed to those depts.  

Click here for the printer version of the PA State Police clearance.

Click here for the printer version of the Department of Human Services clearance.

Additional information: 

  • PIAA registered officials are not considered “volunteers.”  Do not click on any of the boxes that reference volunteers.  Officials are independent contractors employed by the individual schools and school districts.  In addition, the Affidavit-Exemption from FBI Clearance form is not acceptable for PIAA registered officials.  All officials must be fingerprinted every five years.
  • Expenses for obtaining clearances shall be borne by the registered sports official.  PIAA is not permitted to accept certifications which were obtained for volunteering purposes under Section 6344.2 (relating to volunteers having contact with children).
  • Keep the originals of your clearances and hold on to copies in the event a particular school wants to view your clearances.
  • Upon receiving copies of your clearances, you will need to scan them and save them as PDFs on your computer.  Please refer to “Instructions for Officials to enter their clearances into the Officials database”.