Self-policing doesn't work.
June 30, 2007 - The Tennessean looks at "teachers crimes barely traced."
A student accused Kenneth T. Anderson, a science teacher, of fathering her baby girl while he was employed in Metro. Authorities cleared him in that case, but the school district ultimately fired him, citing poor classroom performance.The state has one investigator - an attorney for the Department of Education, Rich Haglund.
Anderson, now 38, promptly went to work in two other districts despite his questionable record. [He was quickly fired from one district.] It wasn't until he was accused of having sex with a 16-year-old student at Smyrna High School that school officials took steps to yank his teaching licenses and bar him from the classroom for good.
Anderson's case and others spotlight weaknesses in how Tennessee monitors its educators. Unlike other states, Tennessee has no independent agency dedicated to regulating teacher licensing and ethics. For the past two years, state lawmakers tried to create one, but the bills failed to gain momentum
The state Board of Education has 36 open cases involving teachers accused of sexual misconduct or inappropriate relationships with students. At least 18 of those cases have been opened so far this year, compared with 17 opened in all of 2006, Haglund said.
TT - The legislation proposed would be as politically fraught as the current system. Lawmakers proposed 17-member Professional Standards Commission composed of at least six teachers and three principals appointed by the governor. No taxpayers, no parents, no child advocates, no members of the National Council on Teacher Quality.
Every state should have independent oversight of teacher misconduct and licensing. Every hearing should be public and the hearings and all decisions should be available online to the public. School districts should be required to provide links to disciplinary actions against teachers and administrators in their district. Taxpayers and parents can then demand accountability.
Not only doesn't Tennessee investigate teacher misconduct. They don't even report it most of the time. They don't have to.
Hampering Tennessee is the fact that reporting is limited. (From Tennessean):
In Tennessee, school districts are required to report teachers to the state only when they commit violations so severe that they could lose their license. Those include:
• Conviction of a felony.
• Conviction of possession of narcotics.
• Being on school premises or at a school-related activity involving students while under the influence of or consuming alcohol or illegal drugs.
• Falsification or alteration of a teaching license or documentation required to get a license.
• Denial, suspension or revocation of a license or certificate in another state for reasons that would apply in Tennessee.
• Other good cause, including violations of TCAP testing security compliance requirements.
SOURCE: TENNESSEE BOARD OF EDUCATION
School districts are not obligated to report suspicion, investigation, or the arrest of teachers accused of teacher-student sex. Hence, the ability to move from one district to another, while the first district hastily tries to avoid gathering enough information that might lead to any criminal charges that might reflect poorly on the district. It isn't a new tactic.
In 1998, Education Week called the practice of allowing itinerant abusers to move from area to area when trouble arises, "Passing the Trash."
The three-part series called, "Betrayal of Trust" that can be found in their archives. (It's for subscribers, but you can take out a one-month subscription.) After a six-month investigation, Education Week concluded that "many school lawyers have been urging their clients ...to adopt policies of limited or no disclosure about past employees."
