Failure to report could result in sanctions to your professional certificate, if you have one. Any person who knowingly or intentionally makes a false report commits a class-A misdemeanor. Each school district must provide child abuse anti-victimization programs in elementary and secondary schools. The child made me promise not to tell anyone. Many students report child abuse to teachers, administrators, paraprofessionals and particularly, counselors, with the expectation that the information will remain in confidence.
Many educators are worried about betraying a student s trust by making an official report.
In such cases, you may want to explain to the student that you are required by law to make the report and that you may suffer criminal penalties if you do not. If a child chooses you as a confidante, it is important to listen carefully and elicit as much information as you can in your conversation. If you are the first person a child has told about sexual abuse, your testimony could become very important in possible future legal proceedings. This is not an exhaustive discussion of legal protections available to public school employees. Read your ATPE News and Straight Talk publications throughout the year for additional information on your rights.