Transparency questioned in DC schools sexual abuse cases
Photo courtesy of Alice Deal Middle School/Facebook.
WASHINGTON (FOX 5 DC) - A District of Columbia Public Schools staff member is accused of sexually abusing a student at a Northwest middle school and advocates say a lack of transparency in the District is part of the problem.
The staff member, who DC schools and police did not identify, is accused of sexually abusing a student at Alice Deal Middle School in Northwest, according to officials.
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The police report from Thursday is just one-line long and states an unidentified staff member is accused of sexually abusing a student. Transparency advocates say having nearly no information about these kinds of cases is part of the issue.
FOX 5 tried at least three ways to ask DC Deputy Mayor for Education Paul Kihn what the current number of credible claims of sexual abuse in the DC public and charter school system is. His office told FOX 5 it was six from January 2018 through August 2019.
“We take allegations of sexual misconduct extremely seriously,” Kihn said.
FOX 5 pressed Kihn for an update since his current numbers were at least three months old.
Kihn didn't answer the question – and instead repeated that keeping students safe from sexual abuse is a top priority.
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While that is the district’s stance, the school system is also keeping information from parents and elected officials like Denise Krepp - who is representing nearly 60 ANC commissioners trying to find out at which six schools students were abused.
“The city is saying there are privacy concerns and there are rumors and we wouldn’t want to start the rumor mill and I might believe that except that all colleges and universities in Washington DC are required to report that information,” Krepp, the Capitol Hill-area ANC commissioner told FOX 5.
And although the District may be one of the most secretive school districts - teachers and other staff members have been accused of abusing students throughout the DC region almost on a monthly basis.
Just since June, at least seven teachers or after-school workers have been arrested or placed on leave for sexual abuse allegations at public schools in the area.
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On Dec. 1, a Bowie High School teacher was accused of repeatedly sexually abusing a student.
A few days before Thanksgiving, three teachers in Vienna, Fairfax and Derwood were all accused of having sexual contact with at least four students.
Many of the cases involve some level of inappropriate contact through phones or social media.