Political Quotes

“I rise today on behalf of myself and Senator Hutchison, to introduce bipartisan legislation that would expand No Child Left Behind professional development funding to include training for teachers and school personnel on how to recognize signs of sexual abuse in students. According to the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System, 695,000 children were victims of maltreatment in 2010. Approximately 9.2 percent, or 63,940 children, were victims of sexual abuse; this is an increase from 7.6 percent in 2009. Recent events have shown that warning signs of sexual abuse in children are being missed. The vast majority of States mandate that teachers report suspicions of child abuse, yet not all States require teachers to participate in training. According to the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System, 60 percent of all reports of child abuse and neglect are made by professionals, yet only 16 percent of abuse and neglect is reported by education personnel. Given the amount of time teachers and school personnel spend with children, it is of absolute importance that the warning signs of child sexual abuse be identified, reported, and acted on. It is critical to make sure all school personnel have access to training on how to recognize child sexual abuse.…”