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  Law Lags in Tackling Sex Abuse in Schools

The Associated Press, carried in Poughkeepsie Journal [New York]
August 7, 2005

ALBANY — Nicholas Provanzana was the kind of teacher administrators, fellow teachers and students at Washingtonville High School loved — "the coolest teacher alive," according to one music student's Internet posting in 2003.

They didn't know he had pleaded guilty to "offensive touching" of a minor in New Jersey after a night of heavy drinking and sex games in 2000 with two female students, according to New York state records. He served 60 days in jail and was on five years probation when he began teaching at Washingtonville, Orange County, state education records revealed.

Provanzana was among at least 77 men and women school employees, from New York City to the smallest rural districts, who lost their licenses over the past five years for sexual misconduct involving students, according to records obtained under the state Freedom of Information Law.

Common reason

Beyond brief scandals in local headlines, the records show sex with students and sex-related offenses are by far the most common reason licenses are revoked or denied.

Many of the teachers, principals, aides and coaches — men and women — abused children for months or years before their licenses were revoked. Rather than one-time sexual assaults, most are termed "sexual relationships" that can last months.

The state records mirror the growing concern nationwide about sexual abuse of children in schools. Action against the abuse is hindered by victims' fear of not being believed, a bureaucracy that makes enforcement lengthy, uncertain and costly, and, often, fear of scandal.

"We really aren't uncovering or investigating or aware of the full extent of what is happening," said Professor Charol Shakeshaft of Hofstra University, who has studied educator sexual abuse in New York and last year wrote an analysis of the scant research in the area for the U.S. Department of Education. She said the best study found nearly one in 10 students nationwide are targets of "educator sexual misconduct."

The state records don't include private schools, which aren't subject to the same reporting requirements as public schools unless a teacher has a state license.

Last week, a former English teacher at the all-boys Christian Brothers Academy in Albany was charged with rape for allegedly having sex with a student. Sandra Geisel, 42, was charged with two counts of third-degree rape and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child, police said.

Educator abuse in public schools costs taxpayers millions of dollars in lawsuits and settlements — New York City alone paid $18.7 million in five years ending in 2001 to sexually abused students.

Effect on victims listed

Victims can suffer a loss of attention span and studying skills, lower grades, fear and embarrassment, sleep disorders and more, Shakeshaft's study said.

"A lot of the misconduct is carried out by people who have been in schools a long time and were doing this for a long time and, finally, somebody noticed," Shakeshaft said. "It's probably not one child, but lots of children."

There are several reasons abuse isn't reported right away, if at all.

"In my interviews with school administrators, a lot of them don't particularly want it to come out because it's not something they would like the community to be aware of," she said. "Teachers tell me if, 'If I'm wrong and make a big deal of this, it will ruin a career.' I tell them if they are right about it and don't report it, they will ruin a kid's life."

"But more often it's a lack of knowledge ... they are working in an organization that is not telling them what to do," Shakeshaft said.

Any time accusations of sexual misconduct are made, the criminal justice system should be included, said Marjorie Smith, Dutchess County senior assistant district attorney.

"It's important when allegations like these are made that they get reported to law enforcement," said Smith, who added if schools let law enforcement agencies do such investigations "it's more likely to result overall, I think, in an objective finding."

Complaints increasing

The number of complaints about school employees' moral conduct increased from 673 in 1998 to 980 in 2004, topping 1,000 three times, according to Education Department records.

But most cases were deemed not credible by the state or there wasn't enough evidence to proceed, said Jonathan Burman, spokesman for the state Education Department. The number of licenses revoked, surrendered, suspended has averaged 40 since 1998.

Of 113 case reports provided by the state in which licenses were revoked or denied in the last five years, 77 involved sex offenses, mostly after criminal convictions. Of 74 revocations, 59 were for sex acts involving children.

Other reasons for license revocation or denial included cheating by teachers on standardized tests taken by their students, larceny, drug dealing and drunken driving.

Shakeshaft called for two hours of focused training each year for school staff with a mandate to turn over reports to police to investigate, rather than school administrators who aren't trained to do so and could be motivated to close a case before it becomes public.

Burman said the state already requires training for all school personnel on mandated reporting of sexual abuse. The training must be provided to teachers, nurses, counselors, psychologists, social workers, administrators and school board members.

Superintendent Mary DeRose of Kings Park on Long Island said there are likely many more cases than are reflected in the records the state made public. In her experience, some teachers quit and move before they're charged or other cases are settled with the district.

Incidents hushed up

She acknowledge her district tries to keep the incidents from the public because of union and legal restrictions aimed at protecting the teacher. That advice comes from the district's lawyers.

"I think we're doing the best we can under difficult circumstances," she said. "Remember, there is a lot of due process ... and you have to keep paying them" while an investigation is done and the teacher is assigned to home or duties away from children. "It can take a long, long time."

She supports more training for school employees, but said there also must be greater law enforcement power to quickly handle a case and better investigate the backgrounds of prospective hires.

State law requires fingerprinting of new hires and applicants are asked if they ever left a job or were fired because of disciplinary action or even the prospect of disciplinary action. The state records include cases in which applicants lied and were caught in a criminal background check before they were hired or, in some cases, years afterward.

Alleged incidents can go unaddressed for years.

Harry E. Lynch was accused of having "frequent sexual intercourse with a female student" in his music class at Ketcham High School in Wappingers Falls from 1993 to 1995, according to state records.

He resigned in an agreement with the school in 2003. He never before had a disciplinary action against him in his 27-year career despite "rumors throughout the school" of the relationship in 1994-95, the records stated.

Allegations surfaced only after Lynch allegedly started a sexual relationship with a younger student, the records showed. The state revoked his license in 2004, but records said no criminal charges were brought. The state Education Department's case was made against Lynch based on the testimony of the first victim, who was then in college.

"She states that as a result of the relationship, she lost her innocence and self-respect," a state investigator wrote. "It was obvious as she was testifying that this relationship has caused her great difficulty over the past 10 years."

Attempts to reach Wappingers Superintendent Richard Powell and board President Anthony Locicero Saturday were unsuccessful.

States take action

The national education journal Education Week reports states are starting to pay attention. Many states, including New York, have in recent years outlawed the long-standing "passing the trash" practice in which districts elicited quiet resignations in exchange for silence about the abuse to the public and even other districts looking to hire the offender.

"We've heard of principals and vice principals trying to contain it and not call law enforcement, and there's a lack of training of teachers and administrators on how exactly they should respond," said Grier Weeks, executive director of the National Association to Protect Children that operates in 50 states and nine countries. "No one wants to cause the same kind of crisis in our schools that happened to the Catholic Church and that's why schools have got to take care of it themselves."