North Carolina General Statutes 115C-209.1. Nondisclosure of certain volunteer records
(a) The records comprising a volunteer file of a local school administrative unit are not public records as provided in Chapter 132 of the N.C. Gen. Stat.. These records shall be open for inspection only to the following individuals:
(1) The volunteer, former volunteer, individual who applied to be a volunteer, or that individual’s properly authorized agent who may examine the individual’s file in its entirety at any reasonable time.
Terms Used In North Carolina General Statutes 115C-209.1
- following: when used by way of reference to any section of a statute, shall be construed to mean the section next preceding or next following that in which such reference is made; unless when some other section is expressly designated in such reference. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
- Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
- Lawsuit: A legal action started by a plaintiff against a defendant based on a complaint that the defendant failed to perform a legal duty, resulting in harm to the plaintiff.
- Local school administrative unit: means a subdivision of the public school system which is governed by a local board of education. See North Carolina General Statutes 115C-5
- Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
- state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, shall be construed to extend to and include the District of Columbia and the several territories, so called; and the words "United States" shall be construed to include the said district and territories and all dependencies. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
- Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
- Superintendent: means the superintendent of schools of a public school system or, in his absence, the person designated to fulfill his functions. See North Carolina General Statutes 115C-5
(2) The superintendent and other supervisory personnel.
(3) The parent or guardian of any student with whom the volunteer has or had contact.
(4) Members of the local board of education and the board’s attorney.
(5) A party to a lawsuit, by authority of a subpoena or proper court order, only to the extent authorized by and in accordance with that subpoena or court order.
(b) A local board of education shall also release or permit the inspection of a volunteer file, except as prohibited by State or federal law, if prior to the release of the information or inspection of the file:
(1) The local board of education determines that the release of the information or inspection of the file is essential (i) to maintaining the integrity of the local board of education or (ii) to maintaining the level or quality of services provided by the local board of education; or
(2) The local board of education makes a written finding that there is a substantial showing of the criteria set forth in subdivision (1) of this subsection. The local board of education’s written finding shall be a public record.
(c) A volunteer shall be notified at the time the individual applies to volunteer that the local board of education may maintain a volunteer file on the individual, and that information in that file may be open to inspection in accordance with this section.
(d) This section shall not be construed to require a local school administrative unit to maintain records on volunteers, former volunteers, or individuals applying to be volunteers.
(e) As used in this section, the following terms mean:
(1) Volunteer. – An individual who provides services to a local board of education without expectation of compensation and with the understanding that the local board of education is under no obligation to continue accepting those services or to compensate the volunteer for them.
(2) Volunteer file. – Any information collected by the local board of education regarding volunteers, former volunteers, and individuals applying to be volunteers that relates to the individual’s application, selection or nonselection, performance, disciplinary action, or termination, wherever that information is located or in whatever form it is maintained. (2003-353, s. 1.)