Press Release, U.S. Department of Education, June 30, 2004
http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2004/06/06302004.html The U.S. Congress recently requested a report from the U.S. Department of Education discussing the prevalence of sexual misconduct in schools. Hofstra University professor Charol Shakeshaft was contacted to conduct the study, and the DOE has recently released the results.
The study was quick to point out that sexual misconduct is not prevalent in America’s schools with the following excerpt: “The overwhelming majority of America's educators are true professionals doing what might be called the 'essential' work of democracy…The vast majority of schools in America are safe places. Nevertheless, we must be willing to confront the issues that are explored in this study. Any misconduct or sexual abuse in schools is of grave concern to students, parents, educators, and the Department of Education.”
The study also mentioned that many in the Department of Education had reservations about conducting this research, but that the results were clearly in the public’s interest.
