CAPITOL Teacher sex laws get top priority Legislators aim to keep abusers out of classroom BY MICHAEL GORMLEY The Associated Press
Top Democrats, Republicans and policymakers are making a priority this legislative session of reducing the rise in cases of teachers having sex with students. Senate Education Committee Chairman Stephen Saland, who gave teeth to enforcement of teacher-sex cases in a 2001 law, is supporting several measures for greater enforcement, swifter sanctions and better training pushed by the state Board of Regents. He is also seeking $800,000 in the state budget to hire more investigators to clear a backlog of cases, just one of the board’s priorities. In some cases, it can take a year or more to revoke the license of a convicted teacher, with several state hearings conducted in prisons. Nationwide, at least 16 states are now considering tougher laws to punish teacher sexual misconduct and stronger oversight to keep abusers out of classrooms following an Associated Press series on the topic that ran nationwide in October. The AP searched records in every state and found 2,570 educators whose teaching credentials were revoked, denied, surrendered or sanctioned from 2001 through 2005 following allegations of sexual misconduct. Experts who track sexual abuse say those cases are representative of a much deeper problem among the 3 million public school teachers nationwide. “It is critically important that school employees are investigated when these cases arrive in as timely and expeditiously [a manner] as possible,” said Saland, a Poughkeepsie Republican. “The AP story was the catalyst for the inquiry.” In eight states, leaders pushing changes said the AP investigation had inspired their proposals. ‘MOVEMENT’ PROMISED In New York, the number of “moral conduct” accusations against teachers, administrators and aides has doubled in five years. In all, 485 misconduct cases were reported over five years, most of them involving sexual misconduct. “There’s definitely going to be movement on the legislative side,” said Manny Rivera, deputy secretary for education to Democratic Gov. Eliot Spitzer. “We know the Board of Regents wants to advance a statute which calls for the automatic suspension of educators convicted of sex crimes. We’re supportive of that and we’ll work with them.” Rivera also said the administration is exploring changes in the broader disciplinary process for educators. “I think there are more things we can do to strengthen this issue down the road,” he said. The state Board of Regents elevated the issue to among its top priorities of the state legislative session this year. The board presses its case by noting there was a 400 percent increase in complaints against teachers from 2001 to 2007, with 75 percent of actions against certified teachers involving sex. In one bill, the Regents seek a faster way to suspend then revoke licenses of a teacher or administrator convicted of a sex offense. The board also seeks funding to increase staffing. Currently, there are eight investigators, attorneys and support staff to investigate a caseload that now includes a backlog of 800 allegations. Staffing would also allow for ethics courses on student contact to be written then required in teachers’ colleges. In all, the Board of Regents seeks $1.45 million more to fund better enforcement, prevention and training of school employees and prospective teachers. “The Board of Regents initiatives are centered on information, education and prevention,” said Johanna Duncan Poitier, senior deputy education commissioner. “Through ongoing education and collaboration with schools as well as prompt enforcement where necessary, the Regents initiatives will support safe and healthy school environments for all students across New York state,” she said. The Education Department continues to handle a huge increase in requests for public records that officials attributed to the AP’s guide on how parents can get documents related to their schools and teachers. Sen. William Larkin of Orange County, a veteran Republican in the GOP-led chamber, is also sponsoring a bill that would require the immediate suspension of pay of a tenured teacher convicted of a child pornography charge. The law already requires this for drug convictions. Assembly Education Committee Chairwoman Catherine Nolan, a Queens Democrat, said she also seeks action in the Democrat-led chamber. That improves the chances of the bills becoming law in 2008.
CAPITOL Funds to help probe teacher conduct Budget aids sex investigations BY MICHAEL GORMLEY The Associated Press
The Legislature has restored funding to bolster an understaffed investigative unit in the state Education Department to cut into a backlog of hundreds of cases involving teachers and administrators accused of having sex with students. The unit will be able to hire eight investigators and attorneys to dig into more than 800 pending cases of “moral misconduct” against teachers, administrators and applicants for certification. Most cases involve sex with students. The state budget adopted Wednesday restored the $500,000 that former Gov. Eliot Spitzer sought to cut from the unit’s funding and added another $600,000 to hire more investigators and attorneys to reduce the backlog, said Senate Education Committee Chairman Stephen Saland, a Poughkeepsie Republican. “This will move these people out of the classroom environment more quickly,” Saland said. “It’s money well spent. In fact, it’s a bargain.” The funding will speed prosecution of cases against the certifi cates of teachers with criminal accusations, according to the education department. In February, Saland blasted Spitzer from the Senate floor, accusing the governor of calling “open season on children” for sex predators in schools. He read passages from 2007 stories by The Associated Press that showed that the number of “moral conduct” accusations against teachers, administrators and aides had doubled in five years. In all, 485 misconduct cases were reported over five years, most involving sexual misconduct. “This will be fixed,” he said then of the cut made over the objection of Education Commissioner Richard Mills. The Spitzer administration wanted to cut the funding, saying automation could accomplish the same thing and provide savings against a nearly $5 billion state budget deficit. The $1.6 million total budget for the unit is up from $1 million last year and triple the $500,000 Spitzer proposed, according to the department. The increase was supported by Gov. David Paterson, who succeeded Spitzer. Spitzer resigned in March after he was implicated in a prostitution scandal.
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