FIRST® – WCPA

Youth Protection

FIRST Western & Central Pennsylvania strives to provide a safe environment for students at our events. As part of this effort, volunteers and adults affiliated with a team are required to follow FIRST’s policies and Pennsylvania Child Protection Services laws.

The FIRST Youth Protection Program

The FIRST Youth Protection Program (FIRST YPP) is an important part of the protection of our youth. It sets minimum standards recommended for all FIRST activities. You may find more information about the FIRST YPP program guide, the screening process, and frequently asked questions at the FIRST Youth Protection Program webpage.

Pennsylvania Child Protection Services Laws

In 2014 and 2015 the Pennsylvania legislature updated the Child Protection Services Law changing how Pennsylvania responds to child abuse. These changes significantly affect the reporting, investigation, assessment, prosecution and judicial handling of child abuse and neglect cases. Beginning August 25, 2015, many adult volunteers are required to obtain background checks, including the Criminal History Record Check, issued by the Pennsylvania State Police and the Child Abuse History Clearance, issued by the Department of Human Services.

More information may be found on the Pennsylvania Keep Kids Safe website.
The state of Pennsylvania requires that a person suspecting child abuse must make an immediate and direct report of suspected child abuse to Child Line either electronically at Child Welfare Portal or by calling 1-800-932-0313.

Although the overall goals of the Pennsylvania Child Protection Services Law and the FIRST Youth Protection Program may be similar, the background checks required by each are different and both sets are required.

Event Volunteers

Volunteers applying for a FIRST Robotics Event in Western & Central PA through the firstinspires.org dashboard will receive notification and further instructions by our Volunteer Coordinators.

You must notify FIRST Western & Central PA (FIRST[email protected]) if you are convicted of an offense that would constitute grounds for denying participation in the program, activity or service, or are named as a perpetrator in a founded or indicated report. You must provide to FIRST Western & Central PA a written notice no later than 72 hours after the arrest, conviction or notification, that you have been listed as a perpetrator in the statewide database.

If you have been listed as a perpetrator or are otherwise in violation of the youth protection laws, you will not be able to volunteer.

Instructions for Event Volunteers

Information on the Pennsylvania requirements can be found at the Get a Clearance webpage. When asked for a Volunteer Organization on these forms, you may enter FIRST.

Click the items below to find the instructions that apply to you.

I am an event volunteer that resides in Pennsylvania
I have been a Pennsylvania resident for less than 10 years

You will need to complete the following steps:

  1. Complete the PA State Police Request for Criminal Record Check
    • Issued by issued by the Pennsylvania State Police
    • Browse to Pennsylvania Access to Criminal History
    • Select: “New Volunteer Record Check”
    • Fill out the information requested and submit form
    • Save and print your Pennsylvania State Police Criminal Record Check
  2. Complete the PA Child Abuse History Clearance
    • Issued by the Department of Human Services
    • Create an Individual Account on the Child Welfare Portal
    • Select: “Create Individual Account”
    • Once your Keystone ID is created, go back to URL above and select INDIVIDUAL LOGIN
    • Fill out the information requested and submit form
    • You will be notified by email when your Pennsylvania Child Abuse History Clearance report is ready. Save and print your PA Child Abuse History Clearance.
    • Note: The report may be ready well in advance of when you are notified. Please check your account periodically if you are waiting for a report.
  3. Complete the FBI Fingerprint Based Record Check
    • See Keep Kids Safe FBI Criminal History Clearance for information
    • The state charges a nominal fee for the FBI fingerprint based record check
    • You will need the volunteer code: 1KG6ZJ
    • Note: The FBI fingerprint based record check may take up to two weeks or more to receive the clearance

Once you obtain the documents necessary for the PA Background Checks, they are yours to copy keep and use for any time you volunteer with youth in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The documents expire five years from the date of issue.

Please gather the three documents needed to volunteer with FIRST Western & Central PA:

  • Criminal History Record Check, issued by the Pennsylvania State Police
  • Child Abuse History Clearance, issued by the Department of Human Services
  • FBI fingerprint based record check submitted through the Pennsylvania State Police or its authorized agent

Make copies of the three documents and MAIL the copies to

Daphne Frownfelter
5820 3rd St.
Verona, PA 15147-2448

PLEASE DO NOT EMAIL THE DOCUMENTS. Once received, the copies of your background check will be recorded and kept in an undisclosed location in accordance with FIRST’s General Data Protection Regulation guidelines.

I have been a Pennsylvania resident for 10 years or more

You will need to complete the following steps:

Note: For people who have lived in Pennsylvania for the past 10 years, this process generally takes less than an hour.

  1. Complete the PA State Police Request for Criminal Record Check
    • Issued by issued by the Pennsylvania State Police
    • Browse to Pennsylvania Access to Criminal History
    • Select: “New Volunteer Record Check”
    • Fill out the information requested and submit form
    • Save and print your Pennsylvania State Police Criminal Record Check
  2. Complete the PA Child Abuse History Clearance
    • Issued by the Department of Human Services
    • Create an Individual Account on the Child Welfare Portal
    • Select: “Create Individual Account”
    • Once your Keystone ID is created, go back to URL above and select INDIVIDUAL LOGIN
    • Fill out the information requested and submit form
    • You will be notified by email when your Pennsylvania Child Abuse History Clearance report is ready. Save and print your PA Child Abuse History Clearance.
    • Note: The report may be ready well in advance of when you are notified. Please check your account periodically if you are waiting for a report.
  3. Complete the Disclosure Statement for Volunteers
    • Complete, sign, and have a witness sign the Disclosure Statement for PA Resident Volunteers form
    • The FBI fingerprint based record check is NOT required as long as:
      • The position the volunteer is applying for is an unpaid position; AND
      • The volunteer has been a resident of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for the entirety of the previous 10 years
      • If either of those is not the case, follow the “I have been a Pennsylvania resident for less than 10 years” directions

Once you obtain the documents necessary for the PA Background Checks, they are yours to copy keep and use for any time you volunteer with youth in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The documents expire five years from the date of issue.

Please gather the three documents needed to volunteer with FIRST Western & Central PA:

  • Criminal History Record Check, issued by the Pennsylvania State Police
  • Child Abuse History Clearance, issued by the Department of Human Services
  • The signed and witnessed Disclosure Statement

Make copies of the three documents and MAIL the copies to

Daphne Frownfelter
5820 3rd St.
Verona, PA 15147-2448

PLEASE DO NOT EMAIL THE DOCUMENTS. Once received, the copies of your background check will be recorded and kept in an undisclosed location in accordance with FIRST’s General Data Protection Regulation guidelines.

I am an event volunteer that resides outside of Pennsylvania
I will be volunteering in Pennsylvania for 30 days or less

You will need to complete the following steps:

  1. Complete all screenings in accordance with the Child Protection laws of your state
  2. Complete, sign, and have witness sign the Disclosure Statement for Non-Resident Volunteers form

Once you obtain the documents necessary for the Non-Resident Background Checks, they are yours to copy keep and use for any time you volunteer with youth in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The documents expire five years from the date of issue.

Make copies of the documents and MAIL the copies to

Daphne Frownfelter
5820 3rd St.
Verona, PA 15147-2448

PLEASE DO NOT EMAIL THE DOCUMENTS. Once received, the copy of your document will be recorded and kept in an undisclosed location in accordance with FIRST’s GDPR guidelines.

I will be volunteering in Pennsylvania for over 30 days

You will need to complete the following steps:

  1. Complete the PA State Police Request for Criminal Record Check
    • Issued by issued by the Pennsylvania State Police
    • Browse to Pennsylvania Access to Criminal History
    • Select: “New Volunteer Record Check”
    • Fill out the information requested and submit form
    • Save and print your Pennsylvania State Police Criminal Record Check
  2. Complete the PA Child Abuse History Clearance
    • Issued by the Department of Human Services
    • Create an Individual Account on the Child Welfare Portal
    • Select: “Create Individual Account”
    • Once your Keystone ID is created, go back to URL above and select INDIVIDUAL LOGIN
    • Fill out the information requested and submit form
    • You will be notified by email when your Pennsylvania Child Abuse History Clearance report is ready. Save and print your PA Child Abuse History Clearance.
    • Note: The report may be ready well in advance of when you are notified. Please check your account periodically if you are waiting for a report.
  3. Complete the FBI Fingerprint Based Record Check:
    • See Keep Kids Safe FBI Criminal History Clearance for information
    • The state charges a nominal fee for the FBI fingerprint based record check
    • You will need the volunteer code: 1KG6ZJ
    • Note: The FBI fingerprint based record check may take up to two weeks or more to receive the clearance

Once you obtain the documents necessary for the Non-Resident Background Checks, they are yours to copy keep and use for any time you volunteer with youth in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The documents expire five years from the date of issue.

Please gather the three documents needed to volunteer with FIRST Western & Central PA

  1. Criminal History Record Check, issued by the Pennsylvania State Police
  2. Child Abuse History Clearance, issued by the Department of Human Services
  3. FBI fingerprint based record check submitted through the Pennsylvania State Police or its authorized agent, OR the signed and witnessed Disclosure Statement in lieu of the FBI fingerprint based record check

Make copies of the three documents and MAIL the copies to

Daphne Frownfelter
5820 3rd St.
Verona, PA 15147-2448

PLEASE DO NOT EMAIL THE DOCUMENTS. Once received, the copy of your document will be recorded and kept in an undisclosed location in accordance with FIRST’s GDPR guidelines.

I am not an event volunteer but a coach, mentor, or other adult affiliated with a team competing in Pennsylvania

Coaches mentors and other adults, regardless of state of residency or location of the team, are required to be in compliance with the:

  1. FIRST Youth Protection Program
  2. Pennsylvania Child Protective Services Law

Compliance with the Pennsylvania Child Protection Services Law, including tracking clearances of adults, is the responsibility of each individual team and their School or Organization.