Although volunteers are
not school employees and are therefore not legally required to report
child abuse, it is the expectation of the Sacramento City Unified School
District that volunteers will immediately report any suspected child abuse
to a staff member who is a mandated reporter so that the report can be
made to child protection authorities, consistent with the law.
California Child Abuse
Reporting law, Penal Code Section 11166 requires teachers and other school
personnel to report known or suspected abuse to the proper authorities.
The following is an excerpt from the law:
…any child care custodian, health
practitioner, employee of a child protective agency, child visitation
monitor, firefighter, animal control officer or humane society officer who
has knowledge of or observes a child, in his or her professional capacity
or within the scope of his or her employment, whom he or she knows or
reasonably suspects has been the victim of child abuse, shall report the
known or suspected instance of child abuse to a child protective agency
immediately or as soon as practically possible by telephone and shall
prepare and send a written report thereof within 36 hours of receiving the
information concerning the incident…For the purpose of this article,
“reasonable suspicion” means that it is objectively reasonable for a
person to entertain a suspicion, based upon facts that could cause a
reasonable person in a like position, drawing, when appropriate, on his or
her training and experience, to suspect child abuse. For the purpose of
this article, the pregnancy of a minor does not, in and of itself,
constitute a basis of reasonable suspicion of sexual abuse.
Types of child abuse include:
-
Physical Abuse
-
Physical Neglect
-
Sexual Abuse
-
Emotional Maltreatment
For more information about child abuse
reporting, click here.
(www.capcsac.org/childabuse/reporting.html)
