LAWMAKERS TAKE ON IMPROPER STUDENT-TEACHER RELATIONSHIPS
Improper student-teacher relationships are on the rise in Texas, according to the Texas Education Agency (TEA).
The TEA reported new numbers to a Senate Committee looking to fix the problem on Thursday.
Through the end of January, the TEA opened 97 new cases in the fiscal year that began last Sept. 1st. There were 66 cases that were opened during the same time period last year.
In addition, the Houston Chronicle reports that state records show the number of educators accused of having sex or inappropriate relationships with students has increased by 42 percent over the last five years.
State lawmakers said they will make it a priority to change how schools and districts report and prevent cases of misconduct. The Senate Education Committee heard two bills Thursday, Senate Bill 7 and Senate Bill 653.
Senate Bill 653, filed by Senator Van Taylor (R-Plano), would create a $3 Million registry of educator offenders who are banned from future employment. The bill would also expand the TEA’s subpoena authority and bolster training for teachers and principals.
Senate Bill 7, filed by Sen. Paul Bettencourt (R-Houston), would make it a crime for a principal or superintendent to fail to report teacher misconduct. It would also:
- Require more training for teachers on appropriate boundaries with students
- Automatically revoke a teacher’s license if they are ordered to register as a sex offender
- Give the TEA’s investigations department authority to subpoena witnesses
- Revoke the certification of any educator who knowingly helped secure a classroom job for a teacher charged with sexual misconduct with a student or minor
To read both bills in full, click here.