Addressing the Serious Issue of Sexual Assault by Teachers on Students
A Call for Vigilance and Reform
Parents for decades have told their kids, “Mind your teachers and behave in the classroom.” We all knew this meant getting in trouble when we got home if parents heard from the teacher or worse, the principal. The perception has been that school personnel have the very best in mind for the students and that he or she is always right.
As an educator, I thought for many years the teacher next door or across the hall from me held the same views and perspectives as I did and that our perceptions of what is best for students were the same. I believe that was mostly true in the past, but today in many areas, I am less and less convinced this is the case. There are great districts with great teachers in the classrooms, but the quality of care and education among all schools is less than equal. That goes for the administration and the school board members. They are not all created equal.
Sexual assault is a deeply troubling and serious issue that can have profound and lasting impacts on victims. When it occurs within the educational setting, especially when perpetrated by teachers or coaches against students, it represents a grave violation of trust and a breach of the fundamental responsibility educators have to ensure the safety and well-being of their students.
Our young athletes, boys and girls, are told to study hard and work equally hard on the field, whichever one they play on, in the hopes of being the school's star athlete, chosen for coveted playing time under the lights, becoming a college pick for scholarships, and put into highly sought-after positions on teams.
Because the emphasis has been so heavily placed on these prestigious positions and the scholarships are so coveted, we have inadvertently placed our young people in very vulnerable positions.
While no doubt it’s been happening for years, recent and not-so-recent reports have surfaced revealing school employees who have taken advantage of their relationships and proximity to kids. While the majority of teachers are dedicated professionals committed to their student's academic and personal growth, cases of sexual misconduct by educators have unfortunately emerged all over the country. These incidents underscore the need for vigilant measures to protect students and hold perpetrators accountable.
What parents are not realizing, it is happening way more often than they know and if you are a single mother, your children are at a greater risk of this manipulation and control than kids from a 2-parent household. Admitted by the groomers and predators themselves, they prey on the weakest and most vulnerable of the students. It is also important to stress that all children, both males and females, of all ages, are the targets of these groomers and predators.
A study conducted by the USDE stated they believe 1 in 10 students will be sexually harassed, assaulted, or abused by a school employee by the time the student graduates from high school. In the same study, over 28K students reported rape/attempted rape(14K) and sexual assault(14K). The incidence of rape and attempted rape had a 99% increase over the prior year reports.
Recently in Oklahoma, there have been stories about coaches who have taken advantage of their stations with athletes and used their authority over them to intimidate and control them. They see opportunities to give rides, help pay for equipment and/or tournaments, buy phones, pay for meals, and anything else the student may need or want. Parents, completely oblivious to the intentions of the perpetrator, are usually so thankful for the help or the mentorship for their child, that they are unaware of the vulnerable circumstances in which this places their child.
At this age, sports dominate their time and their ideas of success, and often parents put so much pressure on them to excel and win those highly coveted positions. Once the favors begin, the student feels a sense of special standing with the coach or they become indebted to them and very often afraid of losing their status on the team. Once this bond and perceived debt are owed to the coach, the coach starts making suggestions and often demands of the student. They now are in a position for the person in authority to take advantage of the situation.
I’ve been reading testimonies and court documents from young men and women who have found themselves in the position of being manipulated, advantage being taken and oftentimes sexually abused or raped. They were put in vulnerable positions to be sexually assaulted, forced into sexual relationships, and some to become pregnant by their coach and so many other atrocities that no one should experience, especially children who are taught to trust the very ones who are taking advantage of them and abusing them.
The predators, in many cases, use social media to entice their prey. One report was of a young woman who went to the beach with her friend for their senior spring break trip. To their surprise, their coach and a few of his buddies showed up at the place they were staying, provided alcohol to the underage girls, and then raped them on a trip that was supposed to be memorable.
Thanks to these men, it was not memorable, but a nightmare that has lasted for 22 years.
The people committing these crimes against children are the very people entrusted to guide, encourage, and mentor our children. What’s worse is the school employees who are in charge of ensuring our children are safe at school are allowed to keep their jobs allowing these perpetrators to continue for years, abusing students even after the perpetrator has been reported to the administration. In some cases, these same perpetrators are allowed to resign instead of being reported to DHS and investigated. All too often, as seen in recent cases, the perpetrators who are allowed to resign their positions without any investigation at all, are free to move on to other districts and continue their trail of grooming and abuse. This practice is referred to as Passing the Trash.
In the state of Oklahoma, everyone who knows or suspects abuse against a child is, by law, a mandatory reporter. It is the duty of administrators, teachers, school board members, and any school employee to report suspected abuse of a child to DHS and to file a police report. In several cases, school districts where there were adults who knew of or suspected sexual abuse have been held liable and were sued for failure to protect. The court cited the fact that the cycle of abuse could have been stopped, but instead, the adults protected the predator, not the children.
Since the beginning of 2023, just in the state of Oklahoma, there have been 14 (and counting) reported cases, seemingly with a new case every day, spanning years of abuse in some cases, where a school employee has solicited nude photos, sexually assaulted, raped, or mentally raped students in our public schools. The most notorious of those is a coach from Shawnee who was allowed to groom and sexually assault students at the high school for 17 years. Adults in the district, at the highest levels, knew of his abuse and allowed him to continue preying on the boys in the high school without reporting him to law enforcement and without reporting the abuse to child protective services.
Prevention and Education:
So how do we protect our children? How do we allow them to play sports and participate in activities not knowing who is supervising the students and keeping them safe from people who will rob them of their innocence?
School boards, both state and local, are responsible for creating and putting into place the policies parents and students rely upon to maintain safety. For this reason, comprehensive teacher training programs that emphasize professional boundaries, ethical conduct, and the prevention of sexual misconduct should be established and strictly followed.
Training should be provided which will equip all school employees with the tools and resources to recognize and properly respond to signs of abuse as well as comprehensive training on the state’s mandatory reporting laws.
Clear policies and reporting procedures are a must when establishing district guidelines regarding teacher-student interactions, ensuring that both educators and students are aware of appropriate boundaries.
Establishing confidential reporting procedures that encourage students to come forward without fear of retaliation is non-negotiable. Moreover, districts must establish robust protocols for investigating allegations of sexual assault promptly and impartially and collaborate with law enforcement agencies to ensure a thorough examination of reported incidents.
Moving through the legislature in Oklahoma is legislation that stops the use of digital and electronic communication with individual students and ensures appropriate consequences for teachers who violate the communication law. Future legislation is needed that will ensure swift, appropriate legal consequences for any school employee found guilty of sexual assault or misconduct and those who hide or protect these predators.
Without clear guidelines, strict adherence to policy, and swift action from school administrators, a culture is created that supports and encourages misconduct and abuse of our students.
Addressing sexual assault by teachers on students requires a concerted effort from educators, policymakers, parents, and communities. By prioritizing prevention, education, and accountability, schools can work towards fostering safe and supportive environments where students can thrive without fear of exploitation. It is a collective responsibility to protect the well-being and dignity of every student, ensuring that they receive an education free from the scourge of sexual assault.
Together we can stop this. Help me elevate the voices of victims and educate parents about the dangers.
Attached are some of the cases either reported, charged, or convictions from the last year in Oklahoma.
https://law.justia.com/codes/oklahoma/2022/title-70/section-70-1210-163/
https://www.kecofm.com/featured/weatherford-man-accused-of-soliciting-teens-charged/
https://www.aol.com/teachers-sexual-misconduct-small-oklahoma-110200523.html
Educators are the #1 reporters of child abuse happening or suspected to be happening at home or within a family. Their reporting record concerning child abuse at the hands of school staff is dismal. Unacceptable self protectionism. Trust has been broken. Accountability must be restored.