FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
?
STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
John L. Winn
Commissioner of Education
F. PHILIP HANDY,
Chairman
T. WILLARD FAIR,
Vice Chairman
Members
DONNA G. CALLAWAY
ROBERTO MARTÍNEZ
PHOEBE RAULERSON
KATHLEEN SHANAHAN
LINDA K. TAYLOR
Contact Person
Name:
Marian Lambeth
Phone:
850/245-0438
July 26, 2006
SunCom:
205-0438
Email:
marian.lambeth@fldoe.org
K12: 2006-100
MEMORANDUM
TO:
District Superintendents
FROM:
Marian W. Lambeth
SUBJECT:
Reporting of Abuse to the Department of Children and Families
On June 12, 2006, Governor Bush signed into law House Bill 7173, An Act Relating to the Welfare of
Children. This legislation amends the purpose and intent of S. 39.01, Florida Statutes, in part by
including the employee of any school into the definition of “other persons responsible.”
Known or suspected abuse by employees of a public school must be reported to the Department of
Children and Families (DCF) for investigation.
Abuse should be immediately reported by calling the
Department of Children and Families Abuse Hotline at 1.800.96ABUSE or 1.800.962.2873.
Upon receipt of a call to the DCF Hotline regarding abuse by a public school employee, DCF will orally
notify the appropriate state attorney and local law enforcement agency. When the complaint is in
response to a certified individual, DCF will also notify the Bureau of Professional Practices Services.
DCF will notify the school principal of the findings of the investigation pursuant to S. 39.202(2)(q),
Florida Statutes. This notification will enable the principal to transfer an alleged perpetrator to a position
of non-student contact or notify the school district superintendent to initiate corrective action or
termination proceedings as deemed appropriate.
Each public school district should create guidelines for all staff related to the reporting and investigation
of abuse to the DCF hotline. Additionally, each administrator should be trained in the district’s protocol
for reporting the outcome of the DCF investigation to district staff and promptly making a decision to
ensure the safety and well-being of the students and staff of the school. Each district should be prepared
to conduct its own investigation for incidents that fail to be verified as abuse by DCF or for incidents of
inappropriate conduct of school board employees that do not require reporting to DCF.
MARIAN W. LAMBETH, CHIEF
BUREAU OF PROFESSIONAL PRACTICES SERVICES
325 W. GAINES STREET, SUITE 224-E • TALLAHASSEE, FL 32399-0400 • (850) 245-0438 • (850) 245-0621 Fax
Memorandum to District Superintendents
July 26, 2006
Page Two
Pursuant to Florida Statute 1012.796, each district is required to report legally sufficient allegations of
misconduct by certified educators to the Bureau of Professional Practices Services within
30 days of
knowledge
. Regardless of the incident being reported to DCF or not, districts should continue to timely
report legally sufficient allegations of misconduct to the Bureau of Professional Practices Services.
ML/mll
