Screening New Members for Your Fan Franchise

A Ghostbusters fan franchise is a volunteer organization that will routinely interact with the public — including children — in costume, at public events. That context makes thoughtful member screening one of the two most important things you do, alongside the minor safeguarding policy.

Most new-member applications are people who will turn out to be perfectly fine. A small number are not, and a smaller subset are actively looking for the social cover a costumed charity group provides. A good screening process catches the problems and doesn't insult the good applicants.

The non-negotiable baseline

Every fan franchise should require all of these before a new member is allowed to attend public events in the franchise's name:

1. A written application.
2. At least two references (preferably one member and one non-member).
3. A criminal background check appropriate to your jurisdiction.
4. A probationary period of at least 90 days before full membership.
5. Signed acknowledgment of the franchise's code of conduct and safeguarding policy.

If any of these feels like too much work for your group, you are not yet ready to be a fan franchise that invites the public to its events — especially where children will be present.

The application

Keep the application short enough that real people will actually fill it out, but detailed enough to reveal inconsistencies. A good baseline:

• Full legal name and any other names used.
• Current city, and any cities lived in during the last ten years.
• Date of birth (needed for background checks; protect this data accordingly).
• Employment or school (current role; you're not underwriting a loan, you're building a picture).
• How they found you and why they want to join.
• Have they been a member of any other costumed / cosplay / charity organization? Which ones? Did their membership end in good standing?
• Two references with contact info.
• A short written paragraph on what they bring to the group and what they hope to get out of membership.
• An acknowledgment that they'll submit to a background check, and contact info for background-check coordination.

Red flags on the application itself:

• Refusing to provide legal name or DOB.
• Inconsistencies across the timeline.
• Previous membership that "ended badly" with vague reasons.
• Sudden strong interest in events involving children.
• Pressure to expedite the process.
• Listing only references who are family members.

None of those are automatic disqualifiers. All of them justify asking more questions.

References

Always call both references. Not text, not email only. Actually call.

A good reference call is 5–10 minutes. Sample structure:

• "Can you tell me how you know [applicant]?"
• "What would they bring to a volunteer group that works with the public, including kids?"
• "Is there anything about them that would give you pause?"
• "Are you aware of any conflicts at previous volunteer or community organizations?"

Listen for what is not said. Reference calls where the reference hedges, goes quiet, or gives a very thin answer are often the most informative ones.

If a reference says "you should probably talk to someone else before finishing your decision", do.

Background checks

For a volunteer organization in the United States, you have several options:

• Commercial background-check services designed for volunteer organizations (many churches, scout organizations, and volunteer coordinating groups use these). Cost per check is typically $20–$50.
• Name-based county-level checks via court records (free but very labor-intensive).
• State-level volunteer check programs (some states have subsidized programs for volunteer organizations).

Your franchise should decide in writing:

• Which service(s) you use.
• Which offenses are automatic disqualifiers (any offense against a child is non-negotiable).
• Which offenses trigger a case-by-case review and who reviews them.
• Who has access to the check results (limit this to 2–3 named people).
• How long you retain check records and how you destroy them when a member leaves.

If you are in a country outside the US, there are equivalent national registries and volunteer-vetting services. Use them.

Data protection matters. Background-check results are sensitive. Keep them on paper in a locked cabinet or in an encrypted, password-protected file accessible only to a small vetting committee. Do not email them around. Do not discuss specifics of a member's history on Discord. A data-handling failure here can be a serious legal matter in its own right.

The probationary period

A new member's first 90 days are probationary:

• They can attend events with other vetted members present.
• They are never alone with a minor.
• They are not added as an administrator on any franchise account, channel, or asset.
• They wear a visible identifier (e.g. different name-tag color) at their first 2–3 public events.
• They are paired with an assigned mentor, who checks in after each event.

At 90 days, the leadership team explicitly reviews the probation:

• Did they show up when they said they would?
• Did they behave appropriately around the public, including children?
• Did any of their interactions with other members raise concerns?
• Is there any new information the original screening missed?

If there is any concern, extend probation or end membership. Don't promote someone out of probation just because the clock ran out.

Automatic disqualifiers

Every franchise's policy is slightly different, but the community-norm floor is:

• Any conviction, charge, or credible accusation of an offense against a minor. Non-negotiable.
• Any sexual offense against an adult.
• Domestic violence convictions within the last seven years, absent specific rehabilitative evidence.
• Stalking or restraining-order history.
• Registry presence. If someone is on a sex-offender registry in any jurisdiction, the answer is no.

These are floors, not ceilings. You are allowed to set higher bars.

Case-by-case reviews

Between the floor and "perfectly clean" lies a range of records that justify review. Examples:

• Old, unrelated misdemeanors (shoplifting 15 years ago).
• Non-violent drug possession charges.
• Minor traffic offenses.
• A single DUI several years ago with clear rehabilitation.

For these, the committee reviews:

• What happened.
• How long ago.
• What has changed in the applicant's life since.
• Whether the offense has any nexus to your volunteer activities.

Document the decision in writing, even if it's two lines. Especially if it's a "yes" — you want a record of the specific facts the committee knew and accepted.

The hardest conversation

Sometimes the screening says "no". Telling an enthusiastic fan they can't join your group is uncomfortable, and lots of groups flinch.

Say it plainly and in writing:

"After review of your application, we are not able to offer you membership at this time. We will not be providing further detail. We wish you the best."

Do not expand. Do not debate. Do not offer a revisit in six months unless your policy actually allows that. Do not share screening details with the applicant, other members, or anyone else.

If the applicant pushes back, the answer does not change. If they threaten or harass the group, document it and consider law enforcement.

Keeping records

Maintain:

• The application.
• Reference-call notes.
• Background-check results (or a log of date-run and result without storing the full report, depending on your data-handling policy).
• The committee's written decision and the date.

Retain for the member's entire tenure plus a retention period your policy defines (often 5–7 years after they leave). Destroy securely at the end.

Re-screening existing members

Many franchises run a re-check every 2–3 years for existing members, especially those who interact with children. People's lives change. A check that was clean five years ago is not a permanent safety certificate.

Announce the re-check policy in writing, apply it uniformly, and don't treat a re-check as accusatory.

This interlocks with safeguarding

Member screening is one half of a two-part safety system. The other half — the safeguarding minors policy — defines what any member, even a screened one, is allowed to do around kids. You need both. Neither substitutes for the other.

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Not legal advice. Background-check laws, data-protection rules, and the legally permissible scope of volunteer vetting vary by state, country, and the specific activities of your organization. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) in the United States, GDPR in Europe, and comparable laws elsewhere impose specific procedural requirements on background checks — including consent, adverse-action notices, and data retention. Consult a qualified attorney and, where available, your insurance carrier and a non-profit safeguarding specialist before finalizing your screening policy.