Most parents send children to school assuming they are being taught by someone with years of training and a clean history.

But the same can't always be said for the people teaching outside the classroom.

It can be difficult for parents to know the history and training of a private tutor. While teachers in public schools must be certified by the state and pass background checks, it can take little more than a phone call to become a tutor.

Take Joelle Netti-McLaughlin, for example. The former Jordan-Elbridge High School teacher was mentioned in a recent Associated Press report about sexual abuse in schools.

According to the report, Netti-McLaughlin - who also coached softball at the school - had a sexual relationship with a student between 2001 and 2003. Netti-McLaughlin, the report stated, also sent inappropriate and controlling e-mails with the student.

Netti-McLaughlin no longer teaches at the school. However, she has recently been working as a private tutor for local students.

But because there is no screening process or state certification required to be a private tutor, parents were unaware of her history.

“All families should know that someone they are bringing into their home as a tutor is like anyone else they are hiring,” said Auburn High School principal David Roth, who received phone calls from concerned parents after the report was published in The Citizen. “Parents should be present while their son or daughter is working with a tutor, and it should be done in a safe environment.”

The Auburn Enlarged City School District does not have any program through which it recommends or refers students to local private tutors, Roth said. Counseling offices sometimes suggest students use the Cayuga Community College Academic Support Center, which provides professional and peer academic assistance to students of all ages. If a student or parent requests a tutor, schools have a list of area tutors provided by the Cayuga-Onondaga Teacher Center, Roth said.

The center's tutor list holds the names and phone numbers of more than 50 tutors, and Netti-McLaughlin's name is not on the current one. Many of the people on the list are certified or retired teachers, but some are college graduates or professionals.

According to the Teacher Center, tutors need only to call and

register their names with the

center to be included on the list. However, the list is compiled only as a resource, and an included disclaimer states that the center does not test the skills or knowledge of the tutors, nor does it refer parents to specific individuals.

Teacher Center chair Debra House said parents should always be careful and look into the background of someone who will be working with their children.

“I don't think you would want someone off the street with limited knowledge or experience with education,” House said.

Roth suggested that parents should interview a number of tutors before choosing one to work their children. But it can still be difficult for parents to know the background of a private tutor. The Associated Press obtained the state records for its report through the Freedom of Information Law. Resources like the state's sex offender registry are only helpful if the person has a criminal history, Roth said.

'If something like that is prosecuted in the courts, then so be it,“ Roth said. ”If not, parents have one less tool that is available to them.“

Staff writer Christopher Caskey can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 282 or christopher.caskey@lee.net.