PFSA Asks Full State Senate to Support Bill to Train School Personnel to Spot Child Abuse

HARRISBURG, Pa., Oct. 13, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The Pennsylvania Family Support Alliance (PFSA) has formally asked all members of the state Senate to support legislation that would require school personnel to be trained in how to spot and report child abuse and neglect.

The measure, Senate Bill 449, has moved out of the Senate Appropriations Committee but has not yet been scheduled for a vote in the full chamber.

In a letter to all senators this week, PFSA Executive Director Angela Liddle said school personnel "have more consistent, ongoing contact" with a majority of Pennsylvania's children than any other group legally required to report abuse.

"They are in a unique position to ensure children and families are referred to the appropriate agencies for protection from harm and service to prevent further harm," Liddle wrote. "This can only happen when quality reports are made."

School teachers and other school employees are considered mandated reporters with a legal obligation to report abuse and neglect—but training on when and how to report abuse has never been required.

Liddle estimated that only 15 percent of school districts in Pennsylvania have had such training.

PFSA has been a long-standing proponent of Senate Bill 449, which was introduced earlier this year by state Sen. Pat Vance, R-Cumberland and York counties.

The legislation would ensure that school personnel have the knowledge and skills to fulfill their reporting responsibility under the law.

The bill directs the state Department of Public Welfare, in consultation with the state Department of Education, to set up a child abuse recognition and reporting program. Teachers and other mandated reporters employed by or under contract to schools would be required to undergo a minimum of three hours of training every five years. In addition to teachers, school-employed social workers, guidance counselors, school nurses, and administrators would be covered.

The proposed law would apply to public school districts, intermediate units, vocational-technical schools, charter schools, and private schools.

Pennsylvania officials received more than 24,600 reports of suspected child and student abuse in 2010. According to the state Department of Public Welfare, mandated reporters, the majority of whom are school employees, account for 77 percent of all substantiated reports of abuse in Pennsylvania.

PFSA, a nonprofit organization, provides training on recognizing and reporting child abuse and neglect through schools, early childhood education centers, religious institutions, and social service agencies. It trained 8,100 mandated reporters during its past program year.

For more information, visit the PFSA Web site at www.pa-fsa.org.

Pennsylvania Family Support Alliance
Protecting children from abuse
Training for professionals
Support for families
Education for communities

Visit the PFSA website at www.pa-fsa.org

SOURCE Pennsylvania Family Support Alliance