Though Penn State football coach Joe Paterno (in photo) was fired over the sex-abuse scandal involving his former assistant coach, Paterno didn’t violate the law. He reported the suspected child abuse to his supervisors at the university, which is apparently all that is required in Pennsylvania. That’s not the case in Kansas, noted John Richard Schrock, an Emporia State University professor who trains biology teachers. Kansas law requires professionals who regularly work with children to report suspected child abuse directly to the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services or to SRS via a law enforcement officer. “A teacher would probably by courtesy also inform the principal; indeed, local school policy may require it,” Schrock wrote. “But the principal is not a substitute for informing Social and Rehabilitation Services.”
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