As with many scandals, the outcome is far less dramatic than what has led up to it. The outcome of an investigation by The Chicago Tribune is that the Chicago Public School system has terminated 130 school district employees who 
were either immediately terminated or resigned after undergoing background checks. Among the numbers were 35 classroom aides plus substitute teachers and hourly workers. Many more have not been allowed to return to their jobs because they have been slow to re-submit fingerprints for updated background checks. Chicago relieves 130 workers of duty.
Failure to Protect
In early June 2018, The Chicago Tribune charged that Chicago Public Schools had failed to protect hundreds of students from sexual abuse and misconduct by its own employees. At the heart of the matter is that the CPS has for years used an ineffective system of background checks. Said CPS CEO, Janice Jackson:
“There’s a lot that has been done, but my test is that if there’s one case, that’s one case too many, and so there are opportunities for us to do a better job.”
Sexual abuse of school children is apparently nothing new. The Tribune series reported that hundreds of students had fallen prey to a lack of child protection over at least a decades-long harassment pattern. Worse yet, was that when children reported the abuse to teachers and principals, nothing was done about it. Estimates show that at least 500 students were abused, and claims include kissing, groping, verbal harassment, and rape.
According to the Tribune:
“Ineffective background checks exposed students to educators with criminal convictions and arrests for sex crimes against children. The CPS failed to disclose to other districts that past employees had resigned after investigators found credible evidence of abuse and harassment.”
The newspaper’s investigative reporters identified at least 72 individuals who were allowed to prey within the system who had criminal arrests, disciplinary actions, trials, and various lawsuits.
In virtually every case, the students who were sexually abused knew their attackers. The attackers ranged from bus drivers to teachers. Obviously, many of the attackers have long since dropped out of the system, but the damage they did persists to this day. Children do not “bounce back” from abuse. Many drop out and many develop emotional problems such as trust and intimacy.
Investigation reveals
The investigation revealed that many employees were unsure or afraid to report on fellow co-workers. Following the investigation, the district is placing a much stronger emphasis on background checks and staff. They also require stronger reporting channels to report suspicions of predatory behavior.
The school district has also retained a high-powered law firm to review all of the policies and procedures around sexual harassment in the district. Part of this new-found motivation might stem from the fact that two former students have filed lawsuits claiming they reported problems through the prescribed channels and nothing was done about it.
Though the school district claims that it has been addressing the issue of sexual harassment and abuse allegations in recent years, the investigative report says that reports of harassment have not abated over recent years.
Sexual predators who were not caught, or who slipped undetected through the weak background check system, saw an easy opportunity to harass frightened students. Teachers, aides, and even school workers are in a position of authority. The children were fearful of where a negative report might lead. The predators themselves satisfied a need, and as sick and repugnant as it may be, the flaws in the system and certainly not the victims allowed the pattern to continue unabated despite the bravest of the students who attempted to step forward.
Perhaps the most puzzling element of all is how the harassment, along with the lack of oversight, was permitted to perpetuate. The school system rationalized it had done what was necessary, though I can’t imagine they believed it themselves. Perhaps there is something far more sinister at play: a system of cover-ups and not wanting to upset the status quo by divulging inappropriate peer behavior. The predators, those with any insight, might have rationalized that the kids would not remember (they always will) or simply that the kids “looked old enough,” or “gave them permission.”
This is an especially troubling scandal for it involves the most vulnerable. The “I’m sorry” admissions here are just not enough. Chicago relieves 130 workers of duty.
