SportsSignup's KidSafePlus Provides World-Class Background Check System for Youth Sports Organizations

    SARATOGA, SPRINGS, NY, March 28, 2013 /24-7PressRelease/ -- SportsSignup (http://sportssignup.com), a national leader in online services for sports organizations, is introducing a redesigned and upgraded KidSafePlus coach and volunteer background check program, making the KidSafePlus service the most accurate, secure and up-to-date participant-protection system of its kind.

The enhanced KidSafePlus, SportsSignup's proprietary background check service, is strengthened by a strategic partnership with backgroundchecks.com. The improved system provides a streamlined process to conduct background screenings for adults who come in regular contact with youth athletes, by searching a national criminal database containing more than 430 million records, including sex offender registries from all 50 states. All applicants complete a secure online form, which includes a series of "self-admit" questions about their criminal history. If no criminal records are found, and the "self-admit" questions are satisfied, the applicant is automatically cleared to participate, saving sports administrators time and allowing them to evaluate and make decisions about applicants whose records reveal previous criminal activity. If criminal records are found, they are re-verified and authenticated by a trained researcher directly at the source before being reported, ensuring compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), which governs the way background checks are conducted.

"SportsSignup has a proud and distinguished history as a leader in participant safety through our KidSafePlus service which, for more than a decade, has offered sports administrators valuable information to help make decisions about coaches and other volunteers," said Anthony Bruno, CEO of SportsSignup. "As a parent, I know nothing is as important as our obligation to protect our children, which in our work means seeking and providing the best technology and tools available. Backgroundchecks.com has a well-earned reputation as the industry leader in accuracy and innovation, and we're thrilled to partner with them. There is no doubt this premium service is benefiting our customers and helping keep our kids safe."

One of the enhancements, which the company reports will be offered as an option to its standard single-name search, is the ability to perform searches for names the applicant may have used in the past, which typically would include maiden names or other aliases. In addition, all criminal matches found using KidSafePlus are verified directly at the source before being reported, ensuring maximum risk protection and greater accuracy compared to "Instant" criminal searches.

"SportsSignup has clearly taken a leading position in the market by powering their 'sports-centric' software with our US OneVERIFY and US AliasVERIFY products," said Craig Kessler, president of backgroundchecks.com. "Using these enhanced products helps to address the growing concern for data currency in this market and the trend to screen volunteers with the same diligence that employers use to screen potential candidates," continued Kessler.

KidSafePlus features a new "Wizard" interface for ease-of-use and information management, along with an integrated case-management system designed specifically for sports organizations. The background screening results are tied directly to team rosters, which feature a "status code" for each adult participant that indicates their eligibility. Only designated sports administrators can view the actual results of the coach or volunteer background check. To ensure compliance during play, KidSafePlus also facilitates the electronic capture of ID Photos for coaches during the application process, and coach "ID Passes" can be printed directly from the system.

"The robustness of the KidSafePlus system was one of the main reasons we recently selected SportsSignup to provide online registration and background check services for our Junior Giants Program, which now serves more than 20,000 boys and girls across 85 communities," said Paul Giuliacci, deputy director of the Giants Community Fund, based in San Francisco, CA. "When we compared KidSafePlus to the other systems on the market, it was clear that they were ahead of the curve in offering a system that fits our specific needs and best protects kids and adult volunteers."

About backgroundchecks.com
backgroundchecks.com -- a founding member of the National Association of Professional Background Screeners (NAPBS ) -- serves thousands of customers nationwide, from small businesses to Fortune 100 companies, by providing comprehensive screening services. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, with an Eastern Operations Center in Chapin, S.C., backgroundchecks.com is home to one of the largest online criminal conviction databases in the industry. For more information about the company's services, please visit www.backgroundchecks.com

About SportsSignup
SportsSignup, owned and operated by League Sports Services LLC, provides sports organizations and event organizers with easy-to-learn and easy-to-use integrated Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions to facilitate online sports registration and coach/volunteer background check management. Since 2003, the company has been dedicated to operating a secure, affordable, and hassle-free online service suite that enables administrators from thousands of soccer, football, baseball, lacrosse, basketball, track and field, and many other sports organizations to easily automate many aspects of their duties. For more information about SportsSignup, please visit SportsSignup.com.

# # #