In this episode, Erika Sanzi joins us to discuss the Rhode Island house bill (HB 5817) that would make sex between school employees and students a crime. We talk about what the Rhode Island bill means for schools in general and the education sector. You'll learn why the bill hasn't passed yet– even though other states have similar laws, how the lack of legislation on this issue makes schools less safe for students, and why most people don't realize that student sexual abuse is an issue.
Erika Sanzi spent a decade as a teacher and school dean before becoming a full-time education advocate. She writes about all things education (and some things motherhood) at Good School Hunting as well as for Education Post and the Thomas B. Fordham Institute. [spp-player url=http://traffic.libsyn.com/voices4ed/26_-_Education_Post_-_Student_Abuse.mp3] [spp-tweet tweet="“In the conversation of #metoo and #timesup, which I think have been very important conversations, minors have been left out.” – Erika Sanzi"]
Episode Details:
- Why sex between students and teachers is not already a crime in Rhode Island
- The legal precedent in other states
- How sexual predators are able to move from state to state freely
- Why the bill is opposed by teachers unions
- How Rhode Island is currently a haven for sexual predators
- Why most people don't know that student sexual abuse is an issue
Links Mentioned:
[spp-tweet tweet="“Wherever children spend time, there are bad people who try to get into those places and do bad things. And so the more we can protect students and children from harm, the better we are.” – Erika Sanzi"]