BishopAccountability.org
	Some Brave New 'Miranda' Rights By Madeleine Dean Philadelphia Daily News [Philadelphia PA] December 5, 2005 O, wonder!... O brave new world, That has such people in't! - Miranda, in Shakespeare's "The Tempest" PHILADELPHIA and other cities are in the midst of a tempest - a sad storm of sexual abuse of children by adults who children have a right to trust. Two weeks ago, parents of children at St. Joseph's Preparatory School learned of the abrupt resignation of a longtime teacher. On Nov. 9, a teacher of 29 years quit in the middle of fourth period. The students were all surprised by the teacher's midday dash - some were under the impression that he walked out in protest over disciplinary treatment of a student. But that was just a rumor. Instead, a few days later, parents received a letter from the Prep that began: "It is with concern and sadness that I am writing to you today. Last week, Church officials received inquires concerning... incidents of alleged inappropriate [behavior by the teacher] with three students in the mid-1990s." I make no judgment about the teacher; the facts are few and thin. And it is not for me to judge. It will be up to others to make a clear, full and truthful determination - for us and for our children. But it is not too early to judge the actions of those in charge at St. Joe's Prep - both now and in the past. In a real way, we parents must judge them, since we employ them for our children's benefit. St. Joe's has known of allegations against this teacher for at least nine years. In 1996, the Prep found complaints against this teacher serious and credible enough to place him on a probationary status, limiting his employment. Some of the conditions of his employment were mandatory psychological counseling and evaluation, loss of his private office and limited out-of-class interaction with students. The teacher was told, in effect, one more time and you're out. Which brings me to this brave new world. Until I opened my "Dear Parents" letter, I did not know this history. There was no disclosure, no transparency, no evidence of the school's worries. And it was not the administration who asked the teacher to leave now. The teacher abruptly resigned because the archdiocese began investigating. In nine years, the Prep did not figure this out - one way or another. The president of the Prep said recently that he would have done something sooner "if he knew then what he knows now." But there was nothing new at the point of this teacher's resignation, nor did the Prep do something. That's the problem: The Prep did not act, and this inaction hurts everybody involved. At a swiftly called parents meeting at the Prep, among other sad things that occurred to me was the loss of trust and confidence in any administration that hides such things. AHIDDEN ONE-more-time-and-you're-out is not the policy my husband and I agreed to when we sent our son to the school. How could the Prep - or any school - secretly assume such risks for our children? Has the burden now been shifted to parents to ask if any of a school's employees is under similar restrictions? Under a similar watch? Under any restrictions? Under any watch? In short, is the school hiding known risks to our children? I reject this shift. In this brave new world of 2005, we should codify a new set of "Miranda" rights: Parents: You have the right to expect that your schools will not hide concerns about employees that may endanger your children. Schools: You do not have the right to remain silent in light of credible concerns for the welfare of the children in your care and safekeeping. Schools: You have the responsibility to take appropriate, swift action to protect the best interests of the children; anything you fail to say or do, which you know places children at risk, can and will be held against you. And, most importantly: Children: You have a right to trust those who run, teach and work in your schools. It is a brave new world, Miranda: You sure have to be brave to live in it.
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