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My professional perspective is of a school counselor sharing this guide with other school counselors, the goal is to provide and share resources to parents, guardians, students, and school staff.

The topic of my Legal Guide is:
Title 1 Schools and the Impact of Poverty on Child Abuse

I chose this topic because growing up I attending Title 1 campuses and was impacted by poverty. My childhood friends suffered from abuse and I was not sure how I could help, teachers and administrators would get involved and at times I would not see my friends for a few days or weeks. As a child, I was curious and confused. As an adult, I want to gather tools and resources to help children not suffer the same reality.

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This news article describes the reality of students impacted by abuse during the pandemic and how having less contact with students, due to school closures and remote classes impacted reporting child maltreatment, "While reported abuse dropped, the confirmed evidence of abuse rose by 30 percent from 2019 to 2020" (Sparks, 2021).

Moving forward, school counselors have a duty to communicate a plan to teachers on what signs to look for when it comes to child abuse. Sparks (2021) shares that possibly updating the mandated-reporter training to add more clarification of the signs of abuse and neglect that can show up in remote classes such as:

self-harming behavior

defensive behavior toward adults

signs of neglect in the home.

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If teachers see signs of child abuse, they have both a professional duty and a legal obligation to report it, to ensure children get help. A year of extreme family stress coupled with more remote learning has highlighted how damaging it can be when teachers can't fulfill that safeguard role.

University of California, Irvine, researchers found that reported cases of suspected child abuse in one large, unnamed county in the Golden State fell during the pandemic-but the severity of actual child abuse cases rose over that time. And teachers and other adults at schools made up the biggest hole in the safety net for children during this time.

The pandemic shutdowns and widespread economic instability since early spring 2020 raised parental stress; caused strain on family budgets; forced families to crowd together for quarantines, telecommuting, and remote schooling; and limited social and mental health supports for parents.

The researchers studied monthly reports of suspected maltreatment from county social services from March to December in 2019 and 2020, and compared these data to data in the same periods from county child abuse clinic medical evaluations, which are conducted when suspected abuse is considered severe enough that a child needs a doctor's examination and potential treatment.

From 2019 to 2020, the total reports of suspected child abuse fell more than 24 percent during the period from March to December, from more than 25,400 to about 19,300, and the number of children suspected of being mistreated fell nearly 29 percent, from more than 33,000 to just over 23,600.

While reported abuse dropped, the confirmed evidence of abuse rose by 30 percent from 2019 to 2020, based on clinic medical reports during that time. The proportion of suspected child abuse cases that were considered severe enough to need medical evaluations and intervention rose from 10 percent before the pandemic to 17 percent during it.

"By the time children are identified, the abuse they have suffered is more severe than it otherwise would have been," said Stacy Metcalf, a clinical research coordinator at the University of California, San Francisco, and a doctoral researcher at U.C. Irvine, in a presentation on the study at the Association for Psychological Science virtual conference last week.

Teacher observations needed

Mandated reporters in schools and day-care facilities made up a third of all those who reported suspected abuse during the study in 2019, but that percentage fell by more than half in 2020, to only 16.4 percent. Police, social workers, and even people such as neighbors, who were not required to report, became more likely to be the ones to spot suspected child abuse.

One reason for the dropoff in reports was that teachers and others at schools simply had less contact with students overall, due to school closures and remote classes. Child abuse reporting generally dips during the summer, when children already have less contact with teachers and other mandated reporters in schools, and researchers found that summer showed a smaller-though still significant-difference in reporting from the summer of 2019 to 2020.

Some of the signs of child abuse that teachers are trained to look for-including social isolation and poor hygiene-became hard to differentiate during the pandemic, and actual bruises became much easier to cover up in video conferences than classes.

As schools reopen, Metcalf expects an "exponential increase" in the number of families and students identified as needing support services related to abuse and neglect. States such as Delaware have started to change their mandated-reporter training to add more clarification of the signs of abuse and neglect that can show up in remote classes, such as self-harming behavior, defensive behavior toward adults, and signs of neglect in the home.

Teachers and administrators can also improve lines of communication for students. For example, in a randomized controlled trial just before the pandemic, the national child abuse prevention group Childhelp's Speak Up Be Safe curriculum significantly increased secondary students' understanding of potentially abusive situations at home and on campus and how to reach out to adults who can help them at school.

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Child Abuse Cases Got More Severe During COVID-19. Could Teachers Have Prevented It?

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A study finds that the severity of identified child abuse cases grew during the pandemic, even as reports of abuse declined.

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Current News Article: Professional School Counseling Journal

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Current News Article: Professional School Counseling Journal

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This news article is a great resource relating to how school counselors were found to be more likely to suspect defensive parents of abuse than cooperative or non-involved parents. An important reality for school counselors related to physical abuse, "Children who fit a specific profile may be more typically reported...(this) may mean that children who do not fit this profile are experiencing physical abuse that may go unreported" (Tillman et al., 2015, p. 108). It is our duty to protect students and advocate for their safety, especially when they cannot escape an unsafe situation.

This study sought to explore possible child abuse reporting disparities among school counselors, "school counselors were more likely, across the board, to report abuse than to suspect abuse" (Tillman et al., 2015, p. 103).

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Texas Education Agency (2021)

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Relating to Child Abuse Reporting and Training
Texas Education Code (2 Tex. Edu. Code § 38.004)

Maintain a list of links to sites that provide information regarding the prevention of child abuse and develop a training program on the prevention of child abuse that is used for staff development.

Provide child abuse anti-victimization programs.

Texas Education Code (2 Tex. Edu. Code § 38.0041)

Adopt and implement a policy addressing sexual abuse and other maltreatment of children and include that policy in the district improvement plan and any informational handbook provided to students and parents.

Participate in training on prevention techniques and recognition of sexual abuse and other forms of child maltreatment.

Maintain records that include the name of each district staff member who participated in the training.

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EDUCATION CODE CHAPTER 38. HEALTH AND SAFETY

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Sec. 38.002. IMMUNIZATION RECORDS; REPORTING. (a) Each public school shall keep an individual immunization record during the period of attendance for each student admitted. The records shall be open for inspection at all reasonable times by the Texas Education Agency or by representatives of local health departments or the Texas Department of Health.

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Which school personnel must we notify prior to initiating a school investigation? (40. Tex. Admin. Code § 707.615)

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(a) Prior to conducting an investigation under this subchapter, we must notify the school principal (or the principal's supervisor if the school principal is an alleged perpetrator) of the fact that a report has been assigned for investigation, the nature of the allegations contained in the report, and the date and time we plan to visit the school campus to begin the investigation. (b) We must also orally notify the superintendent of the school district about the investigation. If the alleged perpetrator is an employee of a charter school, we must orally notify the director of the charter school of the investigation. If the alleged perpetrator is an employee of a private school, we must orally notify the chief executive officer of the private school of the investigation. (c) We must request that the school personnel notified of the investigation as provided in subsections (a) and (b) of this section not alert the alleged perpetrator or others regarding the report until we have had an opportunity to interview the alleged perpetrator.

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(a) Prior to conducting an investigation under this subchapter, we must notify the school principal (or the principal's supervisor if the school principal is an alleged perpetrator) of the fact that a report has been assigned for investigation, the nature of the allegations contained in the report, and the date and time we plan to visit the school campus to begin the investigation.

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Reporting Child Abuse or Neglect, Including Trafficking of a Child
(19. Tex. Admin. Code § 61.1051)

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(a) The following words and terms, when used in this subchapter, have the following meanings. (1) Child abuse or neglect--The definition of child abuse or neglect includes the trafficking of a child in accordance with Texas Education Code (TEC), §38.004. (2) Other maltreatment--This term has the meaning assigned by Human Resources Code, §42.002. (3) Trafficking of a child--This term has the meaning assigned by Texas Penal Code, §20A.02(a)(5), (6), (7), or (8). (b) The board of trustees of a school district or governing body of an open-enrollment charter school shall adopt and annually review policies for reporting child abuse and neglect. The policies shall follow the requirements outlined in Texas Family Code, Chapter 261. (1) The policies must require that every school employee, agent, or contractor who suspects a child's physical or mental health or welfare has been adversely affected by abuse or neglect submit a written or oral report to at least one of the following authorities within 48 hours or less, as determined by the board of trustees, after learning of facts giving rise to the suspicion: (A) a local or state law enforcement agency; (B) the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, Child Protective Services Division; (C) a local office of Child Protective Services, where available; or (D) the state agency that operates, licenses, certifies, or registers the facility in which the alleged child abuse or neglect occurred. (2) The policies must require a report to the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services if the alleged abuse or neglect involves a person responsible for the care, custody, or welfare of the child and must notify school personnel of the following: (A) penalties under Texas Penal Code, §39.06; Texas Family Code, §261.109; and Chapter 249 of this title (relating to Disciplinary Proceedings, Sanctions, and Contested Cases) for failure to submit a required report of child abuse or neglect; (B) applicable prohibitions against interference with an investigation of a report of child abuse or neglect, including the following: (i) Texas Family Code, §261.302 and §261.303, prohibiting school officials from denying an investigator's request to interview a student at school; and (ii) Texas Family Code, §261.302, prohibiting school officials from requiring the presence of a parent or school administrator during an interview by an investigator; (C) immunity provisions applicable to a person who reports child abuse or neglect or otherwise assists an investigation in good faith; (D) confidentiality provisions relating to reports of suspected child abuse or neglect; (E) any disciplinary action that may result from noncompliance with the district's reporting policy; and (F) the prohibition under TEC, §26.0091, against using or threatening to use the refusal to consent to administration of a psychotropic drug to a child or to any other psychiatric or psychological testing or treatment of a child as the sole basis for making a report of neglect, except as authorized by TEC, §26.0091. (3) Each school district and open-enrollment charter school shall adopt and implement a policy addressing sexual abuse, trafficking, and other maltreatment of children. The policy must be included in any informational handbook provided to students and parents and must address the following: (A) methods for increasing staff, student, and parent awareness of issues regarding sexual abuse, trafficking, and other forms of maltreatment of children, including prevention techniques and knowledge of likely warning signs indicating that a child may be a victim; (B) actions a child who is a victim of sexual abuse, trafficking, or other maltreatment should take to obtain assistance and intervention; and (C) available counseling options for students affected by sexual abuse, trafficking, or other maltreatment. (4) The policies must be consistent with Texas Family Code, Chapter 261, and 40 TAC Chapter 700 (relating to Child Protective Services) regarding investigations by the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, including regulations governing investigation of abuse by school personnel and volunteers. (5) The policies may not require that school personnel report suspicions of child abuse or neglect to a school administrator prior to making a report to one of the agencies identified in paragraph (1) of this subsection. (6) The policies must include the current toll-free telephone number of the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. (7) The policies must provide for cooperation with law enforcement child abuse investigations without the consent of the child's parent, if necessary, including investigations by the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. (8) The policies must include child abuse anti-victimization programs in elementary and secondary schools consisting of age-appropriate, research-based prevention designed to promote self-protection and prevent sexual abuse and trafficking. (c) The policies required by this section and adopted by the board of trustees shall be distributed to all school personnel at the beginning of each school year. The policies shall be addressed in staff development programs at regular intervals determined by the board of trustees. (d) Training concerning prevention techniques for, and recognition of, sexual abuse, trafficking, and all other maltreatment of children, including the sexual abuse, trafficking, and other maltreatment of children with significant cognitive disabilities, must be provided as a part of new employee orientation to all new school district and open-enrollment charter school employees and to existing school district and open-enrollment charter school employees not previously trained as required by TEC, §38.0041. (1) The training must include: (A) factors indicating a child is at risk for sexual abuse, trafficking, or other maltreatment; (B) warning signs indicating a child may be a victim of sexual abuse, trafficking, or other maltreatment; (C) internal procedures for seeking assistance for a child who is at risk for sexual abuse, trafficking, or other maltreatment, including referral to a school counselor, a social worker, or another mental health professional; (D) techniques for reducing a child's risk for sexual abuse, trafficking, or other maltreatment; and (E) information on community organizations that have relevant research-based programs that are able to provide training or other education for school district or open-enrollment charter school staff, students, and parents. (2) Each school district and open-enrollment charter school must maintain records that include the name of each staff member who participated in training. (3) To the extent that resources are not yet available from the Texas Education Agency or commissioner of education, school district and open-enrollment charter schools shall implement the policies and trainings with existing or publicly available resources. The school district or open-enrollment charter school may also work in conjunction with a community organization to provide the training at no cost to the district or charter school. (e) Using a format and language that is clear, simple, and understandable to students, each public school and open-enrollment charter school shall post, in English and in Spanish: (1) the current toll-free Texas Department of Family and Protective Services Abuse Hotline telephone number; (2) instructions to call 911 for emergencies; and (3) directions for accessing the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services website (www.txabusehotline.org) for more information on reporting abuse, neglect, and exploitation. (f) School districts and open-enrollment charter schools shall post the information specified in subsection (e) of this section at each school campus in at least one high-traffic, highly and clearly visible public area that is readily accessible to and widely used by students. The information must be on a poster (11x17 inches or larger) in large print and placed at eye-level to the student for easy viewing. Additionally, the current toll-free Texas Department of Family and Protective Services Abuse Hotline telephone number should be in bold print.

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(a) The following words and terms, when used in this subchapter, have the following meanings. (1) Child abuse or neglect--The definition of child abuse or neglect includes the trafficking of a child in accordance with Texas Education Code (TEC), §38.004. (2) Other maltreatment--This term has the meaning assigned by Human Resources Code, §42.002.

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Dickinson ISD in Texas has a local policy that illustrates how they approach child abuse and neglect. The District’s program to address child sexual abuse, trafficking, and other maltreatment of children, as included in the District improvement plan and the student handbook (student welfare - child abuse and neglect, 2020).

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Dickinson ISD-Student Welfare-Child Abuse & Neglect

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The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Ethical Standards for school counselors code item: A.11. Bullying, Harassment, and Child Abuse emphasize that the school counselor:
b. Reports suspected cases of child abuse to the proper authorities
c. Knowledgeable about current state laws and campus procedures on child abuse
d. Develops and maintains the expertise to recognize the signs and
indicators of abuse and neglect, plus encourages training for staff and students.
e. Guides and assists students who have experienced abuse and
neglect by providing appropriate services
(ASCA, A.11. b, c, d, e, 2016)

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Personal Connection to the Legal and Ethical Standards

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Personal Connection to the Legal and Ethical Standards

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Explore my Prezi presentation overview of how the context allowed me to understand the application of the law to my personal educational journey. I have included points regarding my feelings about these connections to the law and how this paved a way for my education goals.

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My Educational Journey 1876 I was provided the freedom to receive a free K-12 public education and as a first-generation American I made sure to not take it for granted. I am thankful for the establishment of a free public school and funding structures which prevented my parents

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The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) provides the publications and research tab, which houses resources related to crisis and trauma under toolkits and framework documents. ASCA frequently collaborates with other organizations on topics of importance to gathers appropriate resources for school counselors to access relating to current issues.

There is a Texas Facebook Group called "The Great State of Texas School Counselors" for school counselors to exchange ideas, ask questions, share resources, and support each other that was created by our School Counselor Program Manager at Texas Education Agency (TEA), Stephanie Lerner.
Linked-in: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanie-lerner-25552073
Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/thegreatstateoftexasschoolcounselors/

Stephanie also provides school counselors with resources, a blog, reviews, speaking engagements, and support on her website.

I have selected a blog post from Stephanie's website that is relevant to my topic. This blog post provides school counselors with crisis intervention and prevention information that is foundational and critical guidelines to follow. Child abuse and neglect fall under the Responsive Services section for school counselors, and crises services are expected (TEA, 2018).

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Crisis prevention and intervention in school counseling is a topic that every counselor should know inside out. Crisis prevention is the key to teaching students how to keep themselves safe, while crisis intervention allows the school counselor to take all necessary steps to support a student in crisis. This post will give you all the resources you need to learn about and set up best practice crisis prevention and intervention protocols in school counseling.

Crisis Prevention & Intervention: My Story

I work with a very high crisis population. To give you an idea, we had 255 student crises at my school last year. So, this is what I do and I have a lot of experience with it. Unfortunately, for the last 10 years, we have seen an unprecedented explosion of student crisis across the nation. If you are interested in the causes behind this tragic trend, I highly recommend the book, The Coddling of the American Mind; it really is a must-read for everyone who works or raises children!

Crisis Prevention & Intervention: A Definition

Let's begin by defining what exactly constitutes a student crisis. Basically we are talking about any situation where a student feels there is/was/may be physical harm to self or harm to another. At my school, we call these the "3 hurts":

They want to hurt themselves physically- such as Self injury or Suicidal ideation.

They want to hurt another physically- such as threats of violence to another student/staff member or having Homicidal thoughts.

Someone threatens or hurts them or another physically- such as Bullying or CPS issues.

Crisis Intervention: Guidelines to Follow

It is important to have a protocol for handling student crises, that way you are prepared and ready to go when a crisis walks into your office, as it most definitely will if you are a school counselor (SC). You want to be able to focus all your attention on the student in crisis in front of you, and NOT on wondering or researching what you are supposed to be doing in a crisis! So, here are a few basic guidelines to follow in a crisis:

Talk immediately to the student and the parent/guardian.

Document, document, document.

Consult with your administration and co-counselor- do NOT work on a crisis alone.

If you need a crisis protocol, I have included a link below to my School Counselor Stephanie website where you can find a list of steps to follow for each of the different types of student crisis. To access this protocol, click this link and then scroll down to access my "Crisis Intervention Steps and Resources" downloadable.

Crisis Intervention: A Warning about Suicide Screeners/Assessments

It is best to avoid using suicide screeners/assessments in schools. Here are the reasons for this:

They increase the school and staff liability if a student is hurt.

A suicide screener or mental health assessment is a clinical tool that should be administered in a clinical environment by a clinician.

If you administer a schoolwide screener, are you prepared if hundreds of your students make a mental health outcry? Do you have the mental health staff immediately available to thoroughly investigate each outcry and complete all the crisis intervention steps? If not, you make the school system and yourself very vulnerable to a lawsuit if a student is hurt.

Here is an ASCA article on this topic: https://www.schoolcounselor.org/magazine/blogs/november-december-2013/suicide-contracts,-assessments-and-parental-guardi

Instead of using screeners or assessments in schools, it is best practice to communicate the facts that the student tells you directly to their parents/guardians.

Crisis Prevention: Lessons and Groups

Crisis prevention in group counseling and guidance lessons looks very similar. The reason for this is that school counseling interventions typically follow the Rti model:

Tier 1 Intervention- guidance lessons

Tier 2 intervention- group counseling

This means that the intensity and the frequency of the intervention support (in this case, crisis prevention), is just increased at Tier 2 group counseling.

Guidance Lessons

The entire student body should see you regularly in guidance lessons, so they know who you are and how to get to you in a crisis. Begin every guidance lesson with the following crisis prevention reminders and information:

How to see the counselor (request forms for non-emergencies)

The "3 hurts emergency" and how to get help

All school staff=mandated reporters

Tips to prevent the "3 hurts"

Then, teach a quick minilesson on crisis prevention as part of every guidance lesson. Possible minilesson topics could be healthy coping skills, stress and anger management, child abuse awareness, and more! Here is a link to my curriculum of guidance lessons where each one offers crisis prevention activities and info.

Counseling Groups

Increase the frequency and intensity of crisis prevention at the Tier 2 group counseling level. You can do this by:

Practicing mindfulness with the Bounding into Grounding activity from Sending Students Soaring: Trauma-Informed Group Counseling Guide.

NEWSY & NOTEWORTHY

In a few weeks, I'll also be uploading an end-of- year counselor task checklist with some accompanying resources. Follow me at this link to know when it is available.

LOOKING AHEAD

This brings me to the end of my May post. Please leave a comment because I'd love to hear what kinds of crises you are dealing with at your school! You can catch up with me again in June for my monthly counseling post that I share during the first weekend of every month! My June post will be all about tips for interviewing and landing that dream counseling job!!!

In the meantime, you can find out about my latest promotions, free stuff, or counseling adventures by following me on my School Counselor Stephanie Instagram, Facebook, or Pinterest pages!

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School Counselor Stephanie - School Counselor Stephanie

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Crisis prevention and intervention in school counseling is a topic that every counselor should know inside out. Crisis prevention is the key to teaching students how to keep themselves safe, while crisis intervention allows the school counselor to take all necessary steps to support a student in crisis.

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After analyzing the content, I have provided a vocaroo voice recording presentation for school counselors:

focusing on the different types of child abuse

school counselors legal responsibilities

resources that might be helpful when interacting with students and families that have been impacted by these types of incidents

Continue to stay vigilant when meeting with students and receiving referrals from teachers regarding student safety.

A positive school culture related to safety is critical for teachers to promote while teaching online and in person.

A handout to supplement this presentation is attached.

Vocaroo Presentation: https://voca.ro/1ljOjaEGfutt

The Child Mind Institute is a phenomenal website that has a wealth of information on a range of topics, including child maltreatment. Topics are organized, there are resources, step-by-step guides, and all online for convenience. This institute is also active on social media, such as Facebook, which allows viewers to "follow" their updates and new research articles. https://childmind.org/

The Child Advocacy Centers of Texas (CACTX) is dedicated to enhancing the capabilities of those individuals and agencies who work with child abuse victims within Children Advocacy Centers (CAC) settings. https://www.cactx.org/

Some recommendations related to educational practice for this topic and best practices for legal compliance:

Be diligent with staying up-to-date with the legal requirements, current state laws, and campus procedures for reporting child abuse and neglect.

Be intentional with developing and maintaining the expertise to recognize the signs and indicators of abuse and neglect.

Encourage your administrators on the importance of proper training to enable students and staff to have the knowledge as well.

(ASCA, A.11. c, d, 2016)

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Dickinson, Texas referral options courtesy of the Gator Wellness Center.

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American School Counselor Association. (2016). ASCA Ethical standards for school counselors. Alexandria, VA: Author.
De La Rosa, S. (2020, May 21). Child maltreatment reports drop as educators lose access to students during closures. Education Dive. https://www.k12dive.com/news/child-maltreatment-reports-drop-as-educators-lose-access-to-students-during/578284/
Texas Education Agency. (2018). The Texas model for comprehensive school counseling programs (5th ed.). Texas Counseling Association.

https://tea.texas.gov/sites/default/files/Pub_2018_Texas-Model_5th-Edition.pdf
Tillman, K. S., Prazak, M. D., Burrier, L., Miller, S., Benezra, M., & Lynch, L. (2015). Factors Influencing School Counselors’ Suspecting and Reporting of Childhood Physical Abuse: Investigating Child, Parent, School, and Abuse Characteristics. Professional School Counseling. https://doi.org/10.5330/1096-2409-19.1.103