U.S. Secretary of Education says DCSD part of sexual misconduct investigation

DeKalb County School District (DCSD) is part of a national investigation announced by the U.S. Department of Education due to suspicions of allowing teachers and other school employees accused of sexual misconduct to transfer to other schools.

On July 15, U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said that DCSD “is a target of a federal campaign to keep children safe from predators in public schools throughout the nation.”

According to McMahon’s announcement, DCSD is one of 20 school districts throughout the country to receive a “Dear Colleague” letter from the U.S. Department of Education “putting the nation’s school administrators on notice of the legal obligations they are under to combat sexual misconduct.”

“The department has observed a troubling and recurring pattern in schools across the nation of credible reports of sexual abuse and harassment by adults in positions of authority going uninvestigated, institutional cultures that protect employees over students, and administrative indifference that allows predatory conduct to fester,” the letter states, in part.

“Those schools that allow sexual misconduct to occur risk the termination of applicable federal assistance provided by the federal government,” the letter continues.

DCSD Interim Superintendent Norman Sauce confirmed receipt of the letter and responded to it.

“The district’s reporting of certain Civil Right Data Collection information and whether its policies, procedures and handling of allegations involving sexual harassment and sexual assault are consistent with Title IX requirements will be examined under a directed investigation by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights,” Sauce stated. “The letter also states that the initiation of this investigation is not evidence of a violation of federal civil rights laws or regulations.”

Sauce’s response, released district wide on July 15, also states that DCSD expects every employee to comply with Georgia’s mandatory reporting laws and board of education’s policies.

“Allegations involving suspected child abuse or potential criminal conduct are reported to the appropriate law enforcement and child protection agencies. The district fully cooperates with all external investigations,” Norman said.

Because student and personnel matters are confidential, DCSD does not comment on specific allegations or active investigations, officials stated.

A timeline for the investigation was not available at press time.

For more information, visit https://www.ed.gov/laws-and-policy and dekalbschoolsga.org.