Rebel Girl has been following developments in Berkeley and Sacramento in light of recent investigations into sexual misconduct allegations regarding an educator.
Porposed changes to the California Public Records Act and Education Code might be able to "amend Public Records Act law to mandate disclosure of records in cases of substantiated sexual harassment allegations."
Your can read all about it here and here.
According to Ally Markovich reporting in Berekelyside about the Berkeley Unified case: "Under the separation agreement, [the educator] agreed not to sue, to go on paid leave immediately and to resign quietly at the end of the school year. In return, the district agreed to stay silent about his alleged misconduct to potential employers conducting reference checks, promising to only disclose his basic employment information, which can be a red flag for future hires."Of course this allowed the instructor to pursue teaching in other districts which did not have information about the nature of his "separation" from his employer of many years.
As Markovich points out: "Separation agreements with gag orders are commonplace. They get teachers out of the classroom right away, but they leave the door open for predators to make their way back to young people in a practice widely known as “pass the trash.” Five states — but not California — have laws requiring districts to disclose if claims of sexual misconduct against an educator have been substantiated."
The apt term "pass the trash" was new to Rebel Girl but a quick inquiry revealed it is, sadly, in use.
The apt term "pass the trash" was new to Rebel Girl but a quick inquiry revealed it is, sadly, in use.
More later.
