Florida ? The Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind allowed felons to work on campus construction jobs during the past two years, according to interviews and documents.

Many of the workers were allowed on campus even though they had failed background checks, school employees complained.

The felons included a man convicted of domestic battery and selling cocaine; a man convicted of aggravated assault; and a man convicted of offenses including trafficking in hallucinogens, battery on his spouse and domestic violence, The St. Augustine Record reported Sunday.

Current and former staff members started complaining to school and state officials about nine months ago, saying school officials didn’t show concern for student safety, the newspaper said.

School President Elmer Dillingham said he believes the administration made acceptable decisions.

He said the felons were supervised by a full-time off-duty police officer and only hired because the school could not find a felon-free construction crew to work on emergency construction projects.

“I don’t think, if you go to any public school in this state, that you’ll find a better security system,” he said.

School districts are required by the 2005 Jessica Lunsford Act to run background checks on workers and most visitors. The checks include a search of crime databases and a fingerprint scan.