A House committee failed to support a bill that would require districts to notify the Oklahoma Board of Education when a teacher is fired amidst allegationsof sexual misconduct.
Oklahoma Senate Bill 301, authored by Sen. Kyle Loveless and Rep. Scott Biggs, would create a new law that would require school districts, within 30 daysof termination or receipt of resignation from an employee under investigation for a violation of state law, to notify the state Board of Educationof the termination or resignation.
The authors of the bill say it is intended to protect Oklahoma students. Biggs likened teacher sexual misconduct to the sex abuse scandal that plagued the Catholic church,saying, "They moved the priests around and covered it up, and look what happened. This is an issue, and to stick your head in the sand and ignore itdoes a disservice to our kids.�
He cites that 34 teachers have been convicted of sex crimes since 2007.
But SB 301 is not about teachers who have been convicted of crimes. After all, teachers convicted of felonies are already stripped of their licenses. Rather,this is about teachers who are fired or who resign after being accused of a felony--of sex crimes in particular. Comparing the situation to the sexabuse scandal involving Catholic priests is a bit of a stretch. After all, in those cases, the church is accused of failing to report the allegationsto law enforcement. School districts are not failing to report allegations of sexual misconduct between teachers and students.
Opponents of the bill noted the difference between accusation and conviction and the role of school districts and law enforcement in investigating theallegations. Rep. Emily Virgin said the school districts are doing a good job of reporting allegations, and State Superintendent Joy Hofmeister assertedthat, while school districts have the responsibility to report accusations of sexual abuse, law enforcement has the responsibility to investigate thecrimes.
Requiring reporting of terminations or resignations of those accused of sex crimes could create unfair consequences for the falsely accused. After all,if a teacher is wrongfully accused of a sexual relationship with a student, the school district will report the allegations to police. A teacher subjectto such scrutiny may tender his or her resignation rather than to be surrounded by suspicion in the work environment. Even if an investigationproves the claims to be false, or if charges are ultimately dismissed, or even if the teacher is found not guilty, under the new law, the resignationand the investigation would be reported to the Board of Education, and a teacher could have his or her license revoked or may have significant difficultyin finding new employment.
Is it possible that some teachers resign among allegations, are not convicted, and then are subsequently convicted of a sex crime at a new school? Certainly.In 2003, a Clinton High School wrestling coach resigned after being accused of being involved in a sexual relationship with a student. Although policeinvestigated, there was insufficient evidence of a crime, and charges were not filed. Six years later, in 2009, the man was again accused of a sexualrelationship with a student, this time as wrestling coach of Piedmont High School. He was ultimately convicted in the Piedmont case of two counts ofsecond degree rape after admitting a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old student.
But that case is rare. Typically, if the allegations are real, the teacher is ultimately convicted. If the allegations are false, there is no subsequentcharge. In many cases, a falsely accused teacher is too gun-shy to even seek future employment as a teacher. They understand how easily they can beburned.
Although SB 301 has failed, another, similar measure has been introduced. Senate Bill 711 passed committee, but the bill's author, Sen. John Sparks, saidhe will not allow the measure to pass to the governor's desk this year. Instead, he wants to make sure that false accusations at one school would nothaunt a teacher who tried to seek employment at another school.
