The-Press-News.com - State Rep. John Hagan seeks to protect children from teacher misconduct

The following is an editorial by State Representative John Hagan, 50th District:

Our schools should be a safe haven for kids; a place where they can learn another year's worth of knowledge and new lessons. And while most of our teachers are trustworthy leaders in the classroom, this is not always the case.

Last year The Columbus Dispatch released a troubling report highlighting flaws within our education system. The report found that since the year 2000, approximately 85 educators were found to have had inappropriate relations with students. Additionally, nearly one in four teachers who emotionally, physically or sexually abused children still had their teacher's license. Of those found to have had inappropriate relationships, more than 20 educators had kept their licenses for at least two years after being charged with felonies against children.

In Ohio, the law required that teacher misconduct be reported to the state, and districts were required to keep teacher investigative records and personnel information-- including resumes, recommendations and job performance evaluations-- in the same file. In doing so the law intended to allow potential employers in other districts to have access to a more complete history of prospective job applicants. However, the maintenance of the information and the task of reporting it to the state board of education was the responsibility of the individual district. Moreover, background investigations and hiring practices were also the responsibility of school districts that may or may not have performed thorough research.

Ohio has approximately 155,000 licensed educators in 613 school districts around the state. It goes without saying that most of these teachers do an outstanding job. But there are a select few who are tarnishing the profession. The Legislature needed to take steps to keep teachers who have committed these types of offenses out of the classroom. The Ohio House has passed two bills to directly address this problem and try to prevent situations such as these from occurring again in the future.

The first piece of legislation, House Bill 190 was introduced by my colleague State Representative Cliff Hite (R- Findlay). In an effort to catch misdeeds even after a teacher is hired, the bill requires school districts to conduct FBI and Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation background checks on all employees every five years. House Bill 190 was recently signed into law by the governor.

In conjunction with House Bill 190, state Representative Arlene Setzer (R- Vandalia) introduced House Bill 428. The legislation allows for the automatic revocation of an educator's license if a teacher is convicted of serious offenses such as rape, drug trafficking or unlawful sexual contact with a minor. Additionally, teachers who are arrested for any of these offenses would be immediately removed from the classroom. This bill was recently signed into law.

Schools are supposed to be safe places for our children to learn and grow. While the vast majority of our teachers are dedicated individuals working to improve the lives of our children, it is essential that we protect students from those who would do them harm. Rest assured we will continue to work on legislation that ensures the safety of our children in the classroom.

As always, please do not hesitate to contact my office if you have any questions about any matter we discuss here at the Statehouse. I can be reached by phone at 614-466-9078, by e-mail at district50@ohr.state.oh.us or by writing me, State Representative John Hagan, 77 South High Street, District 50, Columbus, OH 43215.