All active, on-site volunteers in the state of Pennsylvania are required to submit three clearances: PA child abuse clearance, PA criminal background check, and FBI clearance. The PA child abuse clearance and PA criminal background check are free for volunteers. The FBI clearance does have a fee which will be reimbursed by the museum with a paid receipt. The clearances must be completed every five years.

We do accept clearances if you already have them for work or another volunteer site through Compass and EPATCH, as long as they are not older than five years. NOTE: A previous FBI clearance can be accepted if it has been done through IdentoGo in PA within the past five years.

Pennsylvania Child Abuse Clearance:

https://www.compass.state.pa.us/cwis/public/home

A couple of helpful guidelines:

  • This site is free to volunteers.
  • Create an Individual Account or choose the Individual Login if you already have an account.
  • Use “Railways to Yesterday” and NOT Rockhill Trolley Museum for the name of the organization.
  • Do not use initials. Write out your entire name, including your middle name.
  • You do need to list everyone and everywhere you have lived since 1975. Do not worry if you don’t have every detail but do the best you can. The more information you provide the more it will accelerate the process.
  • To be safe, check the box requesting a written copy of your clearance in case you have trouble printing it. Print 2 copies of the clearance, 1 for your personal records and 1 for RTY’s Secretary for the organization’s file.

Pennsylvania State Criminal Background Check:

https://epatch.state.pa.us/

A couple of helpful guidelines:

  • This site is free to volunteers.
  • Select “New Volunteer Record Check” and follow the prompts.
  • Use “Railways to Yesterday” and NOT Rockhill Trolley Museum for the name of the organization.
  • The security check is usually completed within a few minutes. Print 2 copies of the completed clearance form provided, 1 for you personal records and 1 for RTY’s Secretary for the organization’s file.

FBI Clearances:

There are two options to meet this requirement based on the amount of time you resided in PA.

If you have continuously resided in Pennsylvania for 10 years:

Volunteers who have continuously resided in Pennsylvania for 10 years must fill out the Ten-Year Resident Waiver, which can be accessed here:

https://www.dhs.pa.gov/KeepKidsSafe/Resources/Documents/Disclosure%20Statement%20for%20Volunteers.pdf

A witness signature is required.  With this completed form, you do not need to complete the FBI Clearance.

If you have lived outside of Pennsylvania in the last 10 years:

  • This is required to be completed every 5 years.
  • Register at identogo.com/locations/Pennsylvania.
  • Select Digital Fingerprinting.
  • The Service code requested is 1KG6ZJ.
  • The fee can be paid using a credit or debit card. RTY will reimburse out-of-state or former out-of-state volunteers for this expense with a submitted receipt.
  • You may choose a convenient site/time for fingerprinting on the website.
  • A photo ID is required on the day of fingerprinting.

You can email your clearances to Shannon Turner at shannont0918@gmail.com

A PDF version of this page can be downloaded here: Volunteer Clearances (Revised March 2024)