Sexual abuse in LI schools should not be hidden

The hundreds of cases of sexual abuse in Long Island public schools that have emerged in the wake of the Child Victims Act have put quite a stain on the region's vaunted educational systems.

Two dozen school districts have paid a total of $28.8 million to settle 37 lawsuits, all filed by former students. Another 150 cases remain active, including a staggering 45 lawsuits against the Bay Shore district alone.

With each case comes the story of a student who has accused teachers, administrators or fellow students of committing sexual abuse, of misusing their power and exploiting the trust of a vulnerable youngster. The Child Victims Act, passed in 2019, provided survivors of such childhood abuse a window to file look-back lawsuits, some alleging misconduct that took place decades ago. That window closed in 2021.

It was a critical opportunity for survivors to come forward, to tell their stories, and to seek damages for the harm they experienced. But for the school districts, the cases have resulted in often-expensive settlements for which they were ill-prepared. Taxpayers have and will continue to shoulder that burden, especially because some school districts have had difficulty getting their insurance policies to cover the cost.

A bill that would create a $200 million fund to help districts pay significant settlements hasn't moved forward in Albany. It's a tough ask to require taxpayers statewide to subsidize negligent school districts.

More importantly, policies and regulations must be developed to require districts to inform their residents about cases they're facing and potential costs. Several districts did not provide Newsday with details about the settlements, their financial obligation, or the legal fees they incurred. Even in sensitive situations where personal information should be redacted, the state Education Department should require districts to provide the state with as much data and details as possible that would not identify anyone who was abused. Taxpayers have the right to know what these former teachers and administrators did, under the watch of which school board members, and the financial repercussions taxpayers now face.

But this isn't only about abuse from decades past. We know all too well that abuse stemming from power dynamics can happen anywhere at any time. In the Babylon district, a teacher who was accused of sexually harassing students was kept on the payroll for more than a decade, from 2006 when complaints were filed until his retirement in 2018. That teacher and others in the district remain under investigation by Attorney General Letitia James.

Beyond dealing with the immediate financial fallout from old settlements, school district administrators and board members would be wise to reevaluate and improve the training and safeguards they have in place to prevent harassment and abuse and to encourage students to come forward. This will only happen in districts that have established an environment where such behavior won't be tolerated.