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The American School Counselor Association outlines ethical guidelines that counselors should abide to in their line of work. Section A pertains to Responsibility to Students. Subsection L states that counselors should maintain appropriate boundaries with students and refrain from having any kind of romantic or sexual relationship with a student whether the action is legal or not. They are to uphold the upmost moral values in their line of profession and continue to maintain boundaries with the students they have served in the past, in the present, and in the future (American School Counselor Association, 2021). This is implication that it is important for counselors to understand the ethical guidelines that precede their role, and use those guidelines to guide their actions toward relationships with students.

Citation: American School Counselor Association. (2021). ASCA ethical standards for school counseling
https://www.schoolcounselor.org/getmedia/44f30280-ffe8-4b41-9ad8-f15909c3d164/EthicalStandards.pdf

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1. Adhere to ethical guidelines set by federal, state, and organizational teams for educators.
2. Understand the impact that teacher/student relationships have on the lives of students and their families. Get insight if there are any confusions on the policies set in place by the district.
3. Be aware that these situations are career and life threatening not only for the teacher/employee but the student involved. Many students and teachers do not recover quickly, if at all, from events like these.
4. Have a support team incase there are questionable instances that take place in or out of the professional setting. Always report contact or allegations from a student rather than overlooking events thinking they will just go away on their own.
5. Adhere to legal guidelines set by federal, state, and organizational institutions. Follow your contract and the practices you promise to adhere to while employed within a school system of any level.
6. Always be aware of cases and incidents possibly happening around you or in your area, and be an advocate for healthy student/teacher relationships. This is a way to encourage healthy and positive interactions instead of pretending like these events are not currently posing an issue in the school system.

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In order to counteract the negative incidents happening with teacher/student inappropriate relationships, counselors can seek information that speaks life into their role. This blog is written to encourage counselors to build and maintain effective relationships with students that will have an extensive professional impact. The information on this site gives pointers that guide counselors to the basics of developing those healthy relationships with students. This can also be effective and be applied for classroom teachers.

Citation: 6 easy ways to build relationships with your students. Hey Teach! (2022a, February 9). https://www.wgu.edu/heyteach/article/6-easy-ways-to-build-relationships-with-your-students1908.html

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Discover the future of education with the WGU blog.

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This policy is from San Angelo ISD employee handbook, and it outlines the regulations regarding student-teacher relationships. Under section DH – Employee Standards of Conduct it states that employees should adhere to ethical standards towards all school personnel including students (Board Policy Manual, 2019). Under this policy it also states that employees should not have direct communication with a student over an electronic device, which could help eliminate inappropriate student-teacher relationships. This policy also has a section dedicated to loss of retirement annuity for any crime that results in a felony charge including sexual assault and improper relations between a student and teacher. The local policy linked to this specific policy states that any employee who fails to follow the guidelines set by the district will have consequences, and possible termination of their role.

Citation: Board policy manual. TASB. (2019, January 11). https://pol.tasb.org/PolicyOnline/PolicyDetails?key=1139&code=DH#localTabContent

Link: Board policy manual. TASB. (2019, January 11). https://pol.tasb.org/PolicyOnline/PolicyDetails?key=1139&amp;code=DH#localTabContent

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Judicial Law- Christopher Lehto vs. Board of Education of the Ceasar Rodney School District

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Judicial Law- Christopher Lehto vs. Board of Education of the Ceasar Rodney School District

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Christopher Lehto vs. Board of Education of the Ceasar Rodney School District- This court case involved a man who had committed a crime by engaging in a sexual relationship with a seventeen-year-old girl who had been his student in the past. The criminal case got dropped due to lack of evidence, but district policy and concern caused him to lose his job. He contested in court claiming that the inappropriate relationship had not affected his ability to do his job effectively, nor did it effect his students test scores. The district ruled that they will only have employees who uphold morals and set an example that is noble for the students they serve day in and day out. Overall, Christopher did not receive his job back.

Citation: Christopher Lehto vs. Board of Education of the Ceasar Rodney School District, No. 175, 2008. https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/de-supreme-court/1344980.html

Link: https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/de-supreme-court/1344980.html

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Senate Bill 7 acts as an extension to the Texas Penal Code as it extends the misconduct of sexual relations with a student. This bill states that any employee of a school having sexual relations with any student from any other organization or district is punishable by the law, not just offenses within an organization or school campus/district. This bill also extends the responsibility for reporting employee/student misconduct to the principals and superintendents. Now, principals are responsible for reporting sexual relations between an employee and a student just like superintendents. This bill was enacted due to the rising number of missed sexual conduct incidents between school employees and students. Along with more strict reporting guidelines, failure to report consequences also increased with the passing of this bill. A principal or superintendent could receive a state jail felony for failing to report inappropriate relations between an employee and student within the district. Lastly, this bill made it possible for educators to lose their certificate in their state if they complete this offense, or help another employee get hired knowing they have a past with inappropriate relations with a student. Employees can also be stripped of their retirement funds after committing this offense.

Citation: 85th Leg., R.S., Ch. 178 (S.B. 7), Sec. 5, eff. September 1, 2017.

Link: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/85R/billtext/pdf/SB00007I.pdf

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Section d-1A of penal code 21.12 defines what sexual contact is and its regulations. This section reads as follows:

“In this section, ‘sexual contact’ means the following acts, if committed with the intent to arouse or gratify the sexual desire of any person:

(1)  any touching by an employee of a public or private primary or secondary school of the anus, breast, or any part of the genitals of:

(A)  an enrolled person described by Subsection (a)(1) or (a)(2)(A); or

(B)  a student participant described by Subsection (a)(2)(B); or

(2)  any touching of any part of the body of the enrolled person or student participant with the anus, breast, or any part of the genitals of the employee.” (Texas Penal Code, 2019).

Citation: Texas Penal Code § 21.12 (2019)

Link: https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/docs/pe/htm/pe.21.htm

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Texas Penal Code 21.12 defines sexual offences in the state of Texas. Section 21.12 explains the laws relating to improper relationship between educator and student. This penal code states that any sexual contact between an employee of a school and a student enrolled at that school or another public, private, or religious organization will result in a second-degree felony crime. It also explains that an employee having sexual relations with a student in an educational event hosted by the school district is a second-degree felony regardless of the students age.

Citation: Texas Penal Code § 21.12 (2019)

Link: https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/docs/pe/htm/pe.21.htm

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This news article covers a shocking case of a college professor that had an inappropriate relationship with a student on campus and then threatened the witnesses that were testifying against him (Flaherty, 2022). This article sheds light on how serious these events can get, and need to be made known so others can learn from the damage that can come from a situation like inappropriate contact with a minor.

The main points of this article reflect the danger that individuals can pose when confronted about a crime like inappropriate relations with a minor. It can also show that sometimes what starts as a small unprofessional problem, can quickly turn into something not just job threatening, but possibly life threatening.

Citation: Flaherty, C. (2022, December 18). Chico State Faces backlash for faculty discipline. Inside Higher Ed | Higher Education News, Events and Jobs. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2022/12/19/chico-state-faces-backlash-faculty-discipline

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Inside Higher Ed | Higher Education News, Events and Jobs

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California State University, Chico, is in turmoil over how administrators dealt with a professor accused of having sex with a graduate student and then threatening to kill two colleagues who reported him.

"I know this past week has been deeply disturbing and unsettling to our students, faculty and staff," President Gayle E. Hutchinson said in a campus memo last week, speaking to widespread concern over the case. "I would like to invite you to join me as we turn our attention to addressing how we can work together to rebuild trust and address campus safety, sexual misconduct and transparency."

Chico State's provost, Debra Larson, also announced her immediate resignation last week following an Academic Senate meeting where members debated Larson's handling of the case. Senators discussed a vote of no confidence in Larson at the special meeting but decided to first ask for an independent investigation into just what happened.

Two Investigations, One Promotion

The professor in question, David Stachura, of the biological sciences department, denied having an inappropriate sexual relationship with the student to university investigators and to Inside Higher Ed. He also said the threats of violence are fabricated. But he entered into a settlement with the university in 2020 suspending him for part of the spring 2021 term. The settlement acknowledges that the inappropriate relationship claims are "disputed" but says that Stachura was found to have violated a university policy on consensual relationships and that he lost his subsequent appeal.

Chico State found Stachura had violated the consensual relationships policy, according to university investigation documents first reported by as he'd "spent time attacking the credibility of witnesses rather than describing or explaining why he would be alone in his office with (the student) with the lights off, the futon extended into a bed, and with what a witness described as post-coital smells emanating from the room."

As part of the agreement, Chico State said it would not include the disciplinary action in his personnel file at that time. Stachura agreed to withdraw his request for early promotion to full professor.

Despite his partial suspension in 2021, Chico State named Stachura an "Outstanding Professor" for the academic year.

Then, in August 2021, as Stachura was about to return to teaching full time, Chico State learned that Stachura's wife had filed a restraining order against him alleging he'd purchased a handgun, a semi-automatic shotgun and hollow-point bullets to shoot two co-workers and himself.

Stachura "was very specific that he bought hollow-point bullets for maximum damage and took the guns to (a shooting) range so he'd know how to shoot them and be accurate," his wife wrote in court documents first obtained by EdSource. He "believed there was a conspiracy at work. He had many conversations with me about how angry he was about his co-workers for reporting him. He often referred to these women as bitches and couldn't seem to let go of the fact that they had complained about his behavior."

The two women in question were presumably two junior colleagues who'd participated in the university's investigation against him. One reportedly said she'd heard loud sex noises coming from Stachura's office on multiple occasions. The other said she'd knocked on his office door and that when a shoeless Stachura opened it after a time, a graduate student was sitting there on a futon folded out like a bed. One of the two colleagues also said she saw Stachura kissing the same graduate student in a campus laboratory.

In response to the restraining order request, Stachura reportedly told the court that he'd had a dream about a shooting and bought weapons for home defense only. His wife then filed a copy of a receipt showing that Stachura bought ammunition at a local gun store on Oct. 15, 2020 -- the day Chico State denied his appeal in the relationships policy case.

A local judge granted the restraining order. Stachura's wife's lawyer informed the two female instructors of the alleged threats against them.

Chico State hired a former federal law enforcement agent from the Threat Assessment Group to review the new allegations against Stachura. According to EdSource, the assessment said that if Stachura "remains angry toward the two professors, it may be appropriate to conclude that (Stachura) does pose an unacceptable risk of violence to the workplace," warranting termination -- lest CSU "perpetuate the risk of potential harm to the two professors who provided evidence against (Stachura) and, potentially, the broader CSU community."

The assessment noted that Stachura was under family stress and had possibly been previously dishonest with investigators, calling these additional risk factors.

Stachura was put on leave for several weeks during this second investigation. But he ultimately was cleared to return to work.

He was promoted to full professor last academic year, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Suspended Anew

Following these revelations -- and related criticism of Chico State's handling of both the Stachura investigations -- the university suspended Stachura earlier this month for a third time, for 60 days.

Hutchinson and Larson, the president and provost, led a Zoom call last week with hundreds of students and employees to discuss the matter. During that meeting, Betsey Tamietti, a lecturer in biology, said that Stachura had previously spoken to her about going "on a shooting spree," and warned to not be "become part of the problem."

Tamietti also said on the call, "I am truly terrified of this man."

Multiple students told Hutchinson that they felt the university had put them in danger. One said that if Stachura returns too campus, he should work out of the central administration building.

The Chico State chapter of the California Faculty Association, Stachura's union, separately issued an apology last week for its role in representing Stachura, saying, "We want to make absolutely clear that [the union's executive] board did not fight hard enough for all members, and in hewing to procedures that are meant to protect due process, we wound up failing our colleagues and community."

Stachura said via email, "I can tell you this: I was accused of having a consensual relationship with a student. We both denied having a relationship. I did settle with the university, and both the university and I deny any wrongdoing." Regarding the threats of violence, Stachura said they're "completely fabricated. My soon-to-be ex wife has created these accusations to get custody of my children. It, as you can imagine, has been an extremely bitter divorce. I have been thoroughly vetted by the police, a workplace violence consultation team, an outside violence consultation team, and the DOJ. I'm not a threat to anyone."

Asked about Tamietti's public statement last week that Stachura had threatened her, Stachura called her "the stockroom attendant in the department." He added, "I don't want to say too much due to forthcoming litigation, but I can say that nothing she said is true." (Tamietti is a lecturer who works in the department's media lab.)

Sean Murphy, university spokesperson, reiterated via email that Stachura was suspended in 2021 due to evidence that he'd violated an executive order on consensual relationships, and that he was placed on administrative leave for 60 days last fall while the university investigated the alleged threats against employees.

Chico State suspended Stachura again on Dec. 9, Murphy said, due to "disruption of programs and operations and concern for the safety of the Chico State community. The president placed him on leave to enable the University to finish the semester without further disruption, and to determine what additional actions may be needed."

As to when Stachura may be back on campus, Murphy said it's "premature to speculate on that right now. President Hutchinson has stated that he will not be teaching courses in the spring semester."

In addition to the outside threat assessment, Murphy said that Chico State's Campus Violence Consultation Team "conducted a thorough review of the situation before Dr. Stachura was allowed to return to campus in Fall 2021."

Murphy said the university was previously unaware of Tamietti's claim that Stachura had spoken to her about violence, and that "allegations relating to threats against employees are always taken seriously. This new information is now under investigation."

Tamietti was not immediately available for an interview but told Inside Higher Ed, "At the time of the incident I discussed the threats with a few colleagues and later made a full report to the appropriate administrators," including David Hassenzahl, dean of natural sciences at Chico State. "There should be a record backing my story."

Hassenzahl did not respond to a request for comment.

Lindsay Briggs, associate professor in the department of public health and health services administration at Chico State and a member of the Chico State faculty union's executive board, said in an interview that the union assured Stachura had adequate representation in the consensual relationships policy case, but that "ultimately, it was the administration that decided, 'Let's have a settlement where we just give him a month or so's punishment, and then we'll let him come back to work. Nobody knew about threats of violence. That didn't come become apparent until his divorce case a year later."

The California State University System "has a very serious issue with sexual violence and sexual harassment," Briggs said, noting such high-profile cases as one at Fresno State University that triggered the resignation of former system Chancellor Joseph I. Castro, in February (Castro was accused of mishandling a harassment case when he was president of Fresno State). "So none of this is surprising."

What is surprising about Stachura's case, however, Briggs said, "is the workplace violence stuff."

'The Shocking Part'

"In this era of mass shootings -- and we're seeing shootings on university campuses -- the fact that they just did some threat assessment and said, 'Oh, he's fine, he's definitely not going to shoot up a university,' and didn't tell anybody? That is the shocking part."

Andrew Staples, another university spokesperson, said Sunday that Stachura's teaching and research projects have been reassigned and alternate advisors have been identified for his students. The university recommended that Stachura voluntarily surrender his firearms to Chico State, and he complied, Staples also said, while swipe card access is being added to the building that houses the biology department.

Gordon Wolfe, professor of biology at Chico State, said that Stachura "started his blatant affair in his office, antagonizing and disturbing the junior women faculty trying to work in neighboring offices, I called him on their behalf and told him he was jeopardizing his career and had to stop immediately. He is a compulsive liar and denied everything."

Information-sharing surrounding the investigatory process that followed was poor, although somehow Stachura apparently learned who had spoken to investigators about him, based on the alleged threats against them, Wolfe continued.

"I alerted our chair and dean about the potential for bloodshed, which led to Stachura's suspension and second investigation. Once again, we were interviewed but given no feedback on the process or results. When Stachura was reinstated in October 2021, we were given maybe two days' notice." Wolfe said he closely followed Stachura's legal case and was the only university employee, to his knowledge, to have attended a particular hearing: "I was very concerned that a decision against him regarding the custody of his children would lead him to take violent action against us, since he has consistently blamed others for his failures and believes in a conspiracy against him."

Wolfe said he understood that "confidentiality and personnel rules limit what can be shared with faculty, staff and students." But the administration "failed badly" by not distinguishing between an inappropriate relationship, he said, "and threats of violence against specific faculty, and against the campus at large. Surely public safety overrides privacy, especially in an era where there are campus shootings almost every month. The president has issued statements every time a school shooting occurred, stating the campus has zero tolerance for threats. Imagine how that made us feel, knowing she has worked to cover up what happened here."

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Chico State faces backlash for faculty discipline

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Faculty members and students at California State University, Chico, demand answers in a case involving a professor alleged to have lied about sleeping with a student and threatening professors who reported him.

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This article gives tips for developing strong and appropriate relationships with students. Some of the key points discussed in this article are as follows, and help guide educators to know what they need in order to succeed in this area.
·       Oftentimes, teachers become mentally unhealthy in their jobs which can cause rash or out of the ordinary behaviors.

·       Controlling and taking care of your emotions as a teacher is extremely important.

·       Connecting with others in an appropriate and professional manner is important for educators.

·       Boundaries need to be set with colleagues and students to ensure that relationships are meaningful and appropriate.

Citation: Prothero, A. (2023, February 8). 4 steps for building strong relationships with students and colleagues. Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/4-steps-for-building-strong-relationships-with-students-and-colleagues/2023/02

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Strong, positive relationships with the adults in school underpin students' ability to learn and cope. But building and sustaining those relationships is often harder to do than it seems.

So, what steps should educators take to foster positive relationships with students and co-workers?

Adam Saenz, a psychologist and author of The Power of a Teacher, has some pointers, which he shared recently at the Texas Computer Education Association convention in San Antonio.

Saenz breaks relationship building into four parts: reflecting, directing, connecting, and protecting.

1. Your state of mind matters, and that's in your control

Teachers who are unhappy in their jobs cannot initiate and maintain healthy relationships. While there is a lot outside of an individual's control, they can control their mindset. This is why taking time to reflect on one's mission and purpose and to focus on how to "grow where they're planted and live the life that they have well" is a crucial first step to building relationships, said Saenz.

2. Emotions are fuel. How you direct that energy determines the success of your relationships

Emotions are fuel that drive you to take action. Even "bad" emotions, such as fear or anger, can prompt people to take productive steps to protect themselves or make necessary changes in their lives. But emotion can also fuel destructive, unhelpful behavior. And expressing emotion inappropriately, or allowing it to fuel bad behavior, will sabotage a person's ability to build healthy relationships.

Emotional intelligence, said Saenz, is making that fuel work in your life. Directing emotion positively requires identifying the negative feeling, linking that feeling with the behavior it's causing, and then choosing a positive substitute for that behavior.

3. How to connect with someone who is unlike you

"It's human nature to connect most easily with people who are most like us," said Saenz. But while people naturally gravitate toward those who are like them, teachers don't have that luxury. They must connect with students no matter how different they are from themselves in order to build those all-important relationships.

The key to connecting is what Saenz calls non-contingent communication. Contingent communication is focused on business or completing a task such as asking a student if they turned in their homework. Although an important form of communication, it doesn't help establish or deepen a relationship. Non-contingent communication is the opposite: asking a student what they did this weekend, for example, or where they bought their new shoes.

It's especially important to use non-contingent communication with people who are different from you-be it because of their gender, generation, values, socio-economic status, or culture.

It's the students who "drive you the most crazy," said Saenz, that teachers must be especially aware of practicing non-contingent communication with.

"That's a check engine light, that's the kid you have to go ask: How was the game last weekend? How is your brother doing?" he said.

4. Setting boundaries is very important

Boundaries -protecting your feelings, thoughts, body, and possessions-is necessary for relationships to thrive. The boundaries you set will differ with each relationship, Saenz said, but whatever that boundary is you decide on, how you establish it requires the same steps: naming your limit, practicing clear and respectful communication, and seeking support.

Boundary setting can be an invitation to some people to test the limits you set, so anticipate some pushback. And in that case, seek support from a third party-a friend or an administrator.

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4 Steps for Building Strong Relationships With Students and Colleagues

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Strong, positive relationships with the adults in school underpin students' ability to learn and cope. But building and sustaining those relationships is often harder to do than it seems. So, what steps should educators take to foster positive relationships with students and co-workers?

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The National Education Association gives good insight on why mentorship is important in the education profession. Mentorship is beneficial because it acts as a coaching source for new employees to the profession. This resource specifically discussed the ways that mentorship helps new teachers stay in the profession and not lose sight of the purpose of their career (Flannery, 2023).

Citation: Flannery, M. E. (2023, July 20). Why mentoring matters. NEA. https://www.nea.org/advocating-for-change/new-from-nea/why-mentoring-matters

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About 20 new educators joined Big Sky High School in Missoula, Mont., last year. The question is: How many will return this year?

Retirements are up. So are I-can't-take-this-anymore resignations. Across the nation, the shortage of educators is a "five-alarm crisis," says NEA President Becky Pringle.

But, in Missoula, a union-district partnership is working to retain educators for the long run. Originally funded through an NEA Great Public Schools grant for $578,008, the project provides intensive one-on-one support to new teachers by trained mentors

"The ultimate goal is to keep them in the profession," says Mary Lyndes, a mentor in the district who has taught and coached teachers and paraeducators for 38 years. "They come in with so much energy-they want to save the world! But they can't do it without support."

'It's Become so Much Harder'

The list of what new teachers need to know includes: How to get email; how to create a class website; how to set up the classroom, including small-group work areas. Where do supplies go? (What happens when you run out?) How do you sign up for the computer lab? (And what happens when you break something in it?)

And then there's the big stuff: Lesson plans that reflect district and state standards; a plan for classroom procedures and behavior management; and more.

"It's become so much harder to teach," says Lyndes. "Back in the day, we used to just shut the door and figure it out. That's just not possible for new teachers today."

To help new educators navigate this world, the district's mentors rely on resources developed through the NEA grant by project leaders Brandy Thrasher O'Neill and Angela Knieper. Throughout the year, Thrasher O'Neill and Knieper also bring together mentors and mentees for at least eight 90-minute workshops.

Their focus? Mostly the Danielson Framework for Teaching domains: planning; classroom environment; instruction; and professional responsibilities. Meanwhile, mentors and mentees meet every week or so.

The Power of Positivity

"My philosophy is not just to 'fix the teacher,'" says Noel Nesmith, an instructional coach and mentor at Big Sky. "[It's] much more student-based. It's what do I want them to learn, and how do I want them to learn it? I'm here to provide teachers with the support to be successful."

Nesmith visits her mentees' classrooms-not to evaluate them, but to observe and advise, often through leading questions.

"My feedback tends to things like, 'That was a great intro, you hooked the kids, and I could see the objective. How do you know they got it? What are your checks for understanding? And what [will you] do tomorrow to review what they learned today?'"

Every mentee is different. Some need help with classroom management; others with work-life balance. Some learn through role-playing with a mentor. Others may need to co-teach a lesson. But every mentor-mentee relationship must be rooted in trust, so that mentees can freely share their struggles, and mentors can respond honestly.

"You come out of college thinking you can do anything. Well, you can't!" Lyndes says. "I help them accept that if they fall on their face, it's OK."

Are You a Marigold?

Mentorship isn't the only answer to retaining educators. How about better pay? But Missoula's mentors believe they're having an impact.

"I can certainly say that [new] teachers are more successful and less frustrated because they have somebody to go to," Lyndes says.

Thrasher O'Neill calls it the "marigold effect," a phrase used in education and business. Just as home gardeners grow marigolds to protect other plants from weeds and diseases, the Missoula project plants mentors to nurture new teachers and support their development.

And, as it turns out, they're not the only ones who benefit. It's authentic collaboration. Lyndes notes, "It's a two-way street. I get a lot out of it."

"[New teachers] come in and they're like, 'Yeah, I'll try that!'" says Nesmith, who is entering her 19th year in the profession. "For me, that fills my cup. I feed off their energy and enthusiasm and willingness to try new things."

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A good mentor can keep a new colleague in the profession.

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The topic for this legal guide is inappropriate teacher/student relationships. This topic covers the relationships that teachers and students have that take an inappropriate approach rather than staying professional. This issue has been around since the beginning of teaching and has increased immaculately over the years. Within the 2018-2019 year, Texas alone had seen a 42% increase in inappropriate teacher/student relationships (Proffer, 2018). This number has increased since then and continues to rise, which gives reason for this issue to be addressed.

Citation: Proffer, A. E. (2018, October 11). Texas sees 42 percent rise in inappropriate student-teacher relationship investigations. kvue.com. https://www.kvue.com/article/news/local/texas-sees-sharp-rise-in-inappropriate-student-teacher-relationship-investigations/269-603049596#:~:text=TEXAS%20%E2%80%94%20The%20number%20of%20opened,increase%20since%20a%20decade%20ago.

Just recently in January of 2023, a teacher was arrested for having sexual relations with a high school student (Masso, 2023). This teacher started messaging the student during their sophomore year and did not share sexual relations until their senior year of high school. Situations like this could be avoided if information is spread about the issue of inappropriate teacher/student relationships.

Citation: Masso, S. (2023, January 29). Affidavit provides new details into Texas teacher, student relationship. KXAN Austin. https://www.kxan.com/news/affidavit-provides-new-details-into-texas-teacher-student-relationship/

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The topic for this legal guide is inappropriate teacher/student relationships. My professional background comes from being a teacher and pursuing a school counseling degree. The audience that this topic will reach is teachers across the field. It is important for teachers and employees to understand the legal limitations to having relationships with students, and what is considered appropriate and inappropriate.