TPC Journal-V6, Issue 4- FULL ISSUE

375 Maribeth F. Jorgensen, NCC, is an Assistant Professor at the University of South Dakota. Kathleen Brown-Rice, NCC, is an Assistant Professor at the University of South Dakota. Correspondence can be addressed to Maribeth Jorgensen, 414 East Clark Street, Vermillion, SD 57069, maribeth.jorgensen@usd.edu . Maribeth F. Jorgensen, Kathleen Brown-Rice Analyzing CACREP-Accredited Programs’ Utilization of Criminal Background Checks The use of objective methods in gatekeeping processes has become increasingly more important due to legal and ethical implications and consequences. For example, the medical field has utilized criminal background checks (CBCs) as a gatekeeping assessment of a student’s ability to best serve future patients. This article focuses on the current use of CBCs by master’s-level counselor education programs ( N = 83) accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP). A significant implication from this study is the need for counselor education to consider best practices and guidelines for the use of CBCs. Keywords : criminal background, criminal background checks, gatekeeping, counselor education, counseling programs Counselor educators and supervisors are ethically bound to not endorse any counselor-in-training (CIT) for certification, licensure, employment or completion of an academic program when they believe a CIT is not qualified for the endorsement (American Counseling Association [ACA], 2014). In particular, educators are required to screen all counseling program applicants prior to admission and to continually and thoroughly evaluate and appraise students during their progression through the program (Erwin & Toomey, 2005). It has been suggested that utilizing criminal background checks (CBCs) with students should be part of the gatekeeping process in behavioral health programs (Brodersen, Swick, & Richman, 2009; Cowburn & Nelson, 2008; Erwin & Toomey, 2005). In fact, government agencies and private and public employers are increasing their use of CBCs as a screening mechanism (Sheets & Kappel, 2007). CBCs may be conducted to determine if an individual is a potential threat to clients, vulnerable populations or fellow employees. According to Sheets and Kappel (2007), “Because most consumers are not in the position to run CBCs . . . they depend on professional licensing boards to conduct appropriate screening of applicants” (p. 64). This could be a concern, however, because CITs work with clients while they are in their training program. Counseling programs that do not have access to CBC data may be left without critical information to help best protect vulnerable populations. Therefore, the responsibility of having CBC results might more appropriately fall on counselor educators (ACA, 2014). All 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands require a CBC for school counselors (American Counseling Association, Office of Public Policy and Legislation, 2011). According to ACA (2010), as of 2010 six states (i.e., Arizona, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Tennessee) required a CBC as part of the licensure application process. North Carolina requires applicants to sign a statement authorizing the licensing board to conduct a full criminal record search, including state and federal records (North Carolina Board of Licensed Professional Counselors 2013). The state of Washington requires applicants to submit fingerprints as a means to perform a professional criminal background check. Given that passing a CBC is a criterion for certification or licensure for professional counselors in some jurisdictions, it seems important to examine if counselor education programs are utilizing CBCs as part of the admission process, student evaluation for CITs, and ultimately as a tool for gatekeeping. The Professional Counselor Volume 6, Issue 4, Pages 375–386 http://tpcjournal.nbcc.org © 2016 NBCC, Inc. and Affiliates doi:10.15241/mfj.6.4.375